Napoleon's legacy

Dinner in Italy: The Historic Brotherhood of the Golden Sabre

Thursday, July 1, 2010 at 03:56PM

Storica Confraternita della Sciabola d’Oro

The Brotherhood of the Golden Sabre, better known in Italy as Storica Confraternita della Sciabola d’Oro, will be hosted by Bisol on Saturday, July 3 in the hills of Prosecco at the Relais Duca di Dolle - the official site for the induction of new Knights of the Brotherhood.

The dinner event will be an opportunity to learn the secrets of the noble and ancient art of sciabolatura (sabrage), and then if performed accordingly, be officially “Knighted” Sabreur Chevalier or  Maitre Sabreur, becoming a member of the prestigious Confrérie.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, members of the brotherhood are skilled at using their sabres to gallantly open a bottle of bubbly. This tradition dates back to the Napoleonic Era, when victorious members of Napoleon’s military preferred to slice off the head of the champagne bottle - cork and all, instead of removing the foil and wire basket.

Today the tradition is performed at important events with distinguished and honorable guests.

Executing the art of sabrage properly and with any style clearly requires practice; as many things can go disastrously wrong when the saber’s fine edge swiftly meets the seam of the glass annulus at the top of the bottle. An art best left to the members of the brotherhood, which currently has over 35,000 members worldwide.