Gorgona Prigione | Unique Heritage Wine
A case of six bottles of wine produced on the prison island of Gorgona is currently up for sale at Sworders. Estimated at £200 - 300, the bottles form part of our Fine Wine and Spirits timed auction, drawing to a close on Sunday 8th November.
A case of six bottles of wine produced on the prison island of Gorgona is currently up for sale at Sworders. Estimated at £200 - 300, the bottles form part of our Fine Wine and Spirits timed auction, drawing to a close on Sunday 8th November.
The Tuscan island of Gorgona was established as a penal colony in 1869 and today still houses 70 inmates in the final stages of long prison sentences.
In July 2012 the Frescobaldi winemaking dynasty responded to an email from the prison director asking for help in making something drinkable from the existing hectares of vineyards on the island. The prisoners had tried to produce wine for government employees but soon realised substantial oenological knowledge was required. The prison director emailed more than a hundred wineries asking for help but it was only Lamberto Frescobaldi who answered. Three days later, he was on a boat to Gorgona and soon became the driving force of a project that helped inmates gain new skills.
Today the organically-made wine has has an international following, from the US to Japan – not only because it has a heartwarming story to tell but also because it is an excellent organic wine.
Recent News
Ken Bolan | Nature Follows Form
Few figures in the art and antiques world have shaped taste and defied convention quite like Ken Bolan. From the glamour of continental showrooms to the quiet beauty of rewilded West Country landscapes, Ken’s journey has been one of bold vision and creative instinct. This landmark sale, to be held on Wednesday 24 September, opens a window into that world – a personal collection amassed over five decades, filled with sculpture, furniture, and design with soul and story.
7 July 2025
John Ruskin | A Remarkable Archive Comes to Auction at Sworders
A major highlight of our forthcoming 'DREAMS | A Unique Private Collection' sale on 9 July is a remarkable archive of letters and manuscripts by John Ruskin (1819–1900), the celebrated Victorian polymath. This unparalleled group – numbering in the hundreds – is believed to be the largest collection of Ruskin correspondence in private hands and spans a vast range of topics from art and architecture to politics, religion, and personal reflection.
2 July 2025
Valuation Day Discovery
'The Scented Garden of Abdullah the Satirist of Shiraz' - also known as 'The Bagh-i-Muattar' - quickly caught the attention of our book specialists, when a copy bound in full vellum was brought in by a local client to our weekly valuation day.
2 July 2025