Can we drink like royalty in the comfort of our home?

Yes, we can! Let's look at the Italian case, we all love Italian wines, don't we?

(c) Medium

It turns out that in the past, the Quirinale Palace used French not only as the primary language of state programs and menus for private receptions but also as the basis for dining style. This tendency remained unchanged even after Italian unification when the cultural, political, and social movement promoted national ideas and patriotic ideals. Noblesse oblige?

(c)Agefotostock

I looked through the archive menus: no Italian wines! With all the luxury and quality of Italian wines, official Rome drank exclusively French and German wines. The only menu from the Roman reception of 1899 with Italian wines that I came across looked like this:

Capri Bianco is still produced in Naples; however, this wine was made exclusively on Capri until the 60s. Today a bottle from Capri will cost you around 120 Euro.

Gattinara is still produced in Piedmont. Actually, Gattinara is a place where the corresponding wineries are concentrated. The average price tag varies around 30 Euro per bottle.

And French champagne for dessert. This menu doesn't specify who was the supplier of His Majesty.

By 1910 the situation had changed dramatically. On the eve of Italian fascism, King Vittorio Emanuele III opts for Made in Italy. No more French influence, only local wines, only the great language of Dante. Look at this beautiful menu in Italian from a luncheon in honor of William II, the last German Emperor and King of Prussia.

Castel Calattubo from the Valdina winery is a Sicilian wine. I did not find its composition or its modern analog.

Barbaresco Manissero was produced by a Piedmontese winery (city of Bra). It was a famous wine in the 19th century. Unfortunately, the winery closed in the 1920s despite the Royal Supplier status. There are a lot of modern analogs of this wine. Price ranges from 20 to 120 Euro per bottle.

Gancia is a wonderful, sparkling wine produced by Carlo Gancia, the father of Italian sparkling wine. Gancia production was launched in 1850 and remains unchanged. If you have ever bought an Asti DOCG 2-year-old you know the taste of that sparkling Gancia from the menu. A bottle will cost you 15-20 Euro.

Since the 50s official Rome ordered wines from Ca del Bosco, Tasca d'Almerita, and Caparzo. Today the choice of a 'royal' sommelier is greatly influenced by the Vinitaly rating.

But thanks to the archive, we can always feel like William II, buying a bottle of wine from the menu above.