Shardana 1999

On Sardinia’s extreme southwest coastline, we find Sulcis: a cape of gently rolling land, jutting out into the Mediterranean in one ample sweep of white sand, steep vineyards and emerald waves. As you sail into the island from the south, Sulcis is your first view of Sardinia. It was this blue-green shore the Phoenicians first glimpsed from their Middle Eastern vessels, three thousand years ago. From the Sulcis peninsula, these adventurous traders navigated northwards, eventually colonizing the entire island. SHARDANA was their name for the native Sardinians — and the mysterious red symbol on the label shown above is a Phoenician S. Three thousand years later, Neil and Maria Empson chose this ancient word for their own tribute to beautiful Sardinia: a full-bodied, voluptuous red.