Idda lived in the 12th century together with her husband on the Iddaberg mountain in the canton of St. Gallen, location of the Alt-Toggenburg, the ancestral castle of the Counts Toggenburg. According to the legend of the saint, Idda lost her wedding ring, which a hunter subsequently found and wore. When Ida’s husband discovered the wedding ring on the hunter’s finger, he accused his wife of infidelity and had her thrown from a 200-metre high cliff. Miraculously, Idda survived the fall, whereupon a deer with shining antlers led her to the nearby convent of Fischingen, where she subsequently lived. The pilgrimage church of St. Iddaburg was consecrated in honour of Idda on the former site of the castle and remains to this day a place of pilgrimage in Switzerland.
This wine, dedicated to her, stands out on account of its particular crafting, showing the unfamiliar side of a well-known grape variety. Saint Idda of Toggenburg also excelled in a male-dominated era thanks to her commitment to her fellow human beings: I imagine Idda as a young, strong woman with a confident yet delicate character, one that we also bring to the fore in the wine. You too can reveal your unknown side.
Yours,
Eberhard Toggenburg
