November 10, 2023
Palazzo Te and Villa Della Torre reaffirm their alliance and present ‘Camera di Amore e Psiche’: a wine born in the heart of Lugana embellished for the occasion with a dedicated art label
Milan, Novembre 10, 2023 – A year on from the announcement of the special partnership between Fondazione Palazzo Te and Villa Della Torre – a historical monument and winery of the same name owned by the Mastella Allegrini family – the two partners confirm the deep and synergistic bond that sees them as protagonists of a joint project dedicated to the enhancement of Italian cultural heritage.
This heritage is represented by art, architecture, history, literature, tradition and the most authentic and distinctive production originating in the area.
This bond is renewed today but its natural roots were already planted between the end of the fifteenth century and the beginning of the sixteenth century when Giulio Romano and his school created both architectural works. A single stylistic code makes it possible, today, to recognize a series of affinities and similarities. These can be appreciated, for example, in the two facades, which are also portrayed in the project’s logo, offering a new, highly evocative perspective as regards guided tours, designed to involve local tourists as well as foreigners, in a cultural journey that bridges the distance between the cities of Mantua and Verona and between the regions of Veneto and Lombardy.
To further seal this happy, fertile alliance, one year on from the presentation of ‘Camera dei Giganti’ Valpolicella Classico Superiore DOC 2020 wine, Villa Della Torre has dedicated another wine to Palazzo Te, a limited edition of its Lugana DOC, one of the most representative white wines in Italian winemaking excellence.
The result is ‘Camera di Amore e Psiche’, a wine that hails from the heart of the Lugana appellation (Desenzano del Garda) suitably embellished for the occasion with a dedicated art label.
There are two collector’s labels that distinguish the special edition: the first, on the 75 cl bottle, portrays the fable of Cupid and Psyche taken from Apuleius’ ‘Metamorphosis’ which is narrated in the room on the vault and in the lunettes. The second, on the larger formats (1.5L and 3L), reflects the fresco dedicated to the preparations for a banquet in the countryside, where a rich vine is the background to a table on either side of which are a servant (carrying a wineskin on his shoulders) and Bacchus: two masterpieces recognized as true jewels of Mannerist art.
“Today, the synergy and joint projects undertaken between the public and private sectors represents a valuable and indispensable tool for the enhancement, preservation and correct communication of our Italian cultural heritage. This project, which thrills us and makes us very proud, makes the combination of art and wine culture into a major player. These two assets have always been identified with Italy throughout the world and represent two souls of which Villa Della Torre is an ambassador every day.”
explains Marilisa Allegrini (Order of Merit for Labor), owner of Villa Della Torre.
"The alliance between Fondazione Palazzo Te and the prestigious Villa Della Torre winery has borne new fruit. The white wine dedicated to the Chamber of Cupid and Psyche (Camera di Amore e Psiche) flanks the red of the Chamber of the Giants (Camera dei Giganti), enlarging an offer that was designed to illustrate in a concrete fashion the fruitful outcome of alliances between territories, heritages and productive skills, forged within the context of culture and quality. This is a new opportunity to understand Italian cultural heritage in its generous capacity to involve aesthetic sensibility, education in experiencing life’s pleasures and the very development of civilizations. Both arts, monuments, and architecture, as well as productive traditions, wines, recipes and the spirit of conviviality have been the inspiration for the cultural project of Fondazione Palazzo Te and Villa Della Torre, a happy alliance that I hope will generate new creative initiatives and as many concrete experiences”
declares Stefano Baia Curioni, Director of Fondazione Palazzo Te.
"The wine ‘Camera di Amore e Psiche’ (Chamber of Cupid and Psyche) represents a second wonderful journey that we wish to share with the general public. It is an absolutely special occasion in which art and wine culture converse, becoming an effective tool of enhancement for each other. It is a multidisciplinary project that starts from physical places and, thanks to digital communication, expands and spreads, intriguing and stimulating the attention of enthusiasts as well as newcomers”
says Caterina Mastella Allegrini, Marketing Director of Villa Della Torre.
The new wine was presented yesterday in the spaces of Identità Golose in Milan. For the occasion, both Villa Della Torre wines for Palazzo Te, ‘Camera di Amore e Psiche’ and ‘Camera dei Giganti’ played a leading role in the signature dinner created by chef Giorgio Pignagnoli (of the Nove restaurant at Villa della Pergola, Alassio (Savona) | 1 Michelin star) and respectively accompanied the entrée ‘Quail in fricassee sauce, lemon beet pie’ and the first course ‘Riserva San Massimo rice creamed with prescinsêua cheese, walnuts and borage’. Pignanoli’s other two creations, ‘Duck breast al rosa in poivrade sauce, celeriac, pears and tamarind’ and ‘Buckwheat, caramel and coffee’ were paired with two other wines also produced by the Mastella Allegrini family, Villa Della Torre Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG 2019 and Poggio Al Tesoro, Teos Petit Manseng Toscana IGT 2016.
