German tourists buying Italian Hitler wine as collectibles

German tourists are reportedly buying wine with images of Adolf Hitler as collectibles.

The wine, which has been widely known to be on sale in Italy for some time, is the work of winemaker Vini Lunardelli, who founded his winery in 1967. He has been producing wine with dictator themes since 1995. He also has labels featuring Stalin, Lenin, Che Guevara, Napoleon and Franco.

A prominent Austrian cosmetic surgeon recently brought the wines to new prominence after alleging that German and Austrian holidaymakers were travelling to Jesolo, a resort town about twenty miles from Venice, to purchase the wine.

The labels on the €8.50 bottles show Hitler with slogans such as “Mein Führer”, “Sieg Heil” and “Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Führer”.

Although there have been occasional protests over the labelling and the company’s own website observes that the wines are a “cult object among the collectors”, sale of such products is legal in Italy, even if it may be illegal in Germany and Austria.

In 2018, Andrea Gnassi, the then-Mayor of Rimini, a town elsewhere on the coast, said of the sale that his hands were tied and that attempts to press for national legislation against fascist products had been unsuccessful. He said: “We receive reports like this at least five to six times a year. As long as a new law is not approved, all attempts at [action by the municipality] can achieve nothing.”

Campaign Against Antisemitism reports on news and incidents relating to antisemitism throughout Europe.

Image credit: Vini Lunardelli