The faithful are gradually massing on the square in front of the imposing Saint-Martin church. This Monday morning, this building perched on its rocky promontory which dominates the village of Heritageis almost too small to accommodate the crowds who flock there religiously. Colleagues from all over the island, families coming from the four corners of Corsica to attend this celebration which, every November 11, takes on the appearance of a pilgrimage in the wine-growing village of Conca d'Oru.
In the choir, around the cantors of the Cunfraterna San Martinu, the confreres came in numbers to give the necessary splendor to this day “placed under the sign of sharing”says the abbot Benoît Sawadogo.
An itinerary in the footsteps of Saint Martin
Once mass is said, the faithful head towards the green theater, in the footsteps of the statue of Saint Martin, carried in the arms of men to the rhythm of theCheers Martin. It was here, in front of an immeasurable crowd and in cathedral silence, that officials read out the names of the village children who fell in combat during the Great War, to perpetuate the essential duty of memory; “these men who died for freedom who, like San Martinu, teach us strong values of solidarity and fraternity”insists, facing the crowd, Jean-Baptiste Arena, the mayor of Patrimoniu.
Honored every November 11, the date of his entombment, Saint Martin, Bishop of Tours, has been venerated for sixteen centuries. The Merciful, who was an officer in the Roman army, is also a protector of places of agrarian production. San Martinu has become an unmissable meeting place for communing around new wine. Beyond the festivities, over the years the event has become a huge showcase that highlights the oldest of Corsica's wine appellations, founded in 1968.
From Béarn, Basque Country or Beaujolais
“It is an essential meeting to make our know-how known, estimated Marie-Françoise Devichi, president of AOP Patrimoniu. This allows us to meet people and build closer ties with other players in the wine industry.”
Some came from far away. From Béarn, the Basque Country or Beaujolais. The Bacchic brotherhood of Patrimonio works rigorously to maintain this wine-producing land, less Catholic but just as divine, by sharing, more than the fruit of their land, the philosophy that drives their vineyard.
The two sponsors of this 2024 vintage are inevitably part of this tradition. Two personalities of choice: the Neapolitan cook Alba Pezonewriter, defends committed cuisine, and a local figure, Christian Andreanicraftsman of the Via San Martinovariation of the Via Sancti Martini. Inaugurated on June 20, the first Corsican section of this European cultural route, a 2,500-kilometer pilgrimage through 14 countries, promotes sustainable tourism around the figure of Saint Martin.
“He is an emblematic character of rural territoriesexplain Christian Andreani. Corsica has a rich Martinian heritage, recorded in 111 communes. It aims to occupy a privileged place on the network of cultural routes in the Mediterranean and to build a form of tourism, focused on the heritage of our territories, to tell 1700 years of history and sharing.”
A sharing which is also that of new wine. This year, the traditional drilling of the barrel of blessed wine did not take place. A large jar shaped by the ceramist Julien Truchocame to replace the old wooden barrel. A sign that Patrimonio is not only the land of winegrowers, it is also a cradle of artists. As de Musset would say, what does the bottle matter as long as you get drunk.
