Battle of the Wines
The Battle of the Wines (fr. La Bataille des Vins), sometimes called "The Battle of the Blends" was a notable poem written by Henry d'Andeli in 1224 and tells the story of a famous wine tasting organized by the French king Philip Augustus. Over 70 samples from France and across Europe, including Cyprus, Spain and the Mosel region, were tasted and judged by an English priest. The priest classified the wines he tasted as either Celebrated for those which pleased him or Excommunicated for those that did not meet his standards. In the end a sweet wine from Cyprus (widely believed to be Commandaria) won the overall tasting and was awarded the supreme title of "Apostle". Wines from France Celebrated wines Laon Clermont Crouy Soissons Montmorency Hautvillers Épernay Argenteuil Deuil Pierrefitte Marly Trilbardou Sézanne Saint-Yon Samois Orléans Jargeau Tonnerre Auxerre Chablis Saint-Bris Vermenton Orchaise Vézelay Montrichard Lassay Sancerre Savigny Beaune Nevers Issoudun Châteauroux Buzançais Poitiers Chauvigny Saint-Pourçain La Rochelle Montmorillon Saint-Jean-d'Angély Taillebourg Saintes Angoulême Saint-Émilion Bordeaux Moissac Montpellier Béziers Carcassonne Narbonne Excommunicated wines Chambilly Le Mans Rennes Étampes Argences Beauvais Châlons-sur-Marne References External links 1224 works 13th-century poems French poems Medieval French literature Medieval wine Philip II of France