Wine and Politics: Empress Eugénie’s Spanish vineyards

by Dr Evelyne Resnick

Will Eugénie de Montijo, last empress of France, finally join the club of innovative female wine businesswomen, alongside Barbe Clicquot, Emilie Laurent-Perrier or Joséphine d’Yquem?

When she was young, it was hard to believe that this red-haired tomboy born in 1824 in Granada would become the elegant and powerful spouse of Emperor Napoleon III and the owner of multiple estates in Spain, including a vineyard in Banos de Rioja. Today the property of the Hernaiz brothers, now called Finca La Emperatriz, her wines are still highly acclaimed, earning awards from all over the world. How did she accomplish such an endeavour?

When her father, Cipriano de Palafox, 8th count of Montijo, died in 1837, Eugénie was 13.  Her mother, Manuela, inherited the large estates of her late husband and all his titles, becoming a Grandee of Spain and a lady-in-waiting of the Queen.  Eugénie and her sister Paca led the charmed life of aristocratic youth, sharing their time between balls and tea parties. But Eugénie also remembered the golden days with the father she adored: the fencing lessons, riding her horse full speed astride (and not sidesaddle as “proper” ladies should), swimming in cold and sometimes dangerous waters, hiking the arid countryside by herself and dancing with gypsies.  And skipping classes from school. Eugénie enjoyed the outdoors and couldn’t care less about fashion and lessons.

Her mother disapproved of her wild roaming, disheveled looks and independence.  Even worse, Eugénie kept disappointing her by turning down several adequate suitors, while her sister became Duchess of Alba. To stop the rumours and gossips about her unruly daughter, Manuela took her to Paris where she met the then Prince-President, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, nephew of Napoleon I. After three years of back-and-forth courtship, Eugénie accepted the hand of the adventurous Louis-Napoléon, now Emperor Napoléon III and became Empress of France.

The rise of Spanish vineyards
As Empress consort, she established herself as a force to be reckoned with.  She had strong opinions on women’s rights and education that her husband’s uncle, Emperor Napoléon I, drastically reduced in his Civil Code. She argued with Baron George-Eugène Haussmann, in charge of renovating Paris, who did not think that large airy schools were necessary for girls. Sticking to her beliefs, she contributed to the building of many schools, hospitals, and houses all over France.

Her work and the imperial couple’s lifestyle required substantial funds that Napoléon III could not provide by himself or through the privy purse.  Fortunately, Eugénie co-owned with her mother vast properties in Spain. The lands, farms, mills, vineyards and factories were mostly located in Castille.

Always curious about scientific innovations, Eugénie was well informed of the French winemaking techniques because of the studies of fellow Spanish aristocrats, Don Camilo Hurtado de Amezaga, marqués de Riscal and the marqués Luciano de Murrieta, who owned vineyards in Rioja. Both marquises travelled regularly to London where they discovered the Bordeaux wines and appreciated their quality. They then went to Bordeaux to study winemaking techniques and imported them to Rioja, contributing at the same time as Empress Eugénie, to the birth and rise of high-quality Rioja wines.

Under Eugénie’s supervision, the small vineyard of Banos in Rioja became a place of experiment. Still traditionally managed by Spanish rule, the vineyard was doing rather poorly and didn’t bring much money.  She saw an opportunity to expand and improve her property when France got hit by Phylloxera in the 1860s. Why not provide quality Spanish wines to the thirsty French? Wine brokers, négociants and distributors from Bordeaux started visiting Rioja and other Spanish wine producing regions in search of good Spanish wines, still spared at this point from Phylloxera.

Eugénie sent several French agronomists, engineers and managers to Banos.  They all agreed about the potential of the place, now called Domaine de Sa Majesté Impériale, and suggested many changes: replace the local garnacha with Tempranillo, irrigate, transform some meadows into vineyards. Eugénie started investing in new buildings to house her workers, in modern equipment to work the soil and developing a farm to feed the employees. Between 1860 and 1864, she invested 108,000 francs (1,108,000€).  Her vineyard was now 157ha in size.

Banos was in one of the most conservative areas of Spain and Eugénie’s mother, co-owner of the place and a traditionalist, didn’t understand why her daughter had to overturn a system that worked for centuries. The changes also upset the workers. The government of the province disapproved of the introduction of foreign techniques and managers. Eugénie faced a strong rebellion: workers, supported by Spanish owners and aristocrats, demonstrated their opposition to the new system rather violently.  Eugénie wasn’t impressed. She didn’t back down despite her managers’ alarms and, by 1866, the situation calmed down.

The role of Bordeaux merchants
She was right to continue the modernisation of her property because Bordeaux négociants were showing great interest in her wines.  In 1868, her manager went to Bordeaux to raise interest in her work. Some merchants proposed 15 francs per hectolitre (hl). Then one wine broker offered to buy all the production, 600hl, for 9,000 francs. Eugénie was thrilled: she was making a (small) profit but mostly proving her mother and all her opponents wrong.

Her triumph was short-lived. In 1868, Spain erupted in violence, sent Queen Isabelle packing (to France where Eugénie welcomed her) and disrupted the Domaine’s management. The Spanish workers rebelled again against Eugénie’s management style while Manuela, still in Madrid and well informed of the situation, promoted more traditional methods. When buildings were burnt and vines destroyed, Eugénie hesitated but once more decided to stand up and pursue her reforms.

In 1870, when the Second Empire was crumbling, she kept improving her Spanish wine estate. In September, Napoléon III lost his empire, but Eugénie heard good news from Rioja: her manager sold the 2,000 hl of wine harvested during the French-Prussian War.  The French were still interested in her wines, despite having turned away from the political pull of the Napoleon dynasty.

Now exiled in Great Britain, Eugénie’s financial needs had increased. Her husband by his point was almost ruined, and had no income. When she understood she would have to leave France, she sent to England most of the jewellery she had bought since becoming the empress. The sale of her jewellery by British auction houses brought enough money to support the family and to keep improving her wine property.

The World Fair
Her work paid off. In 1875, the Domaine, now named “La Réserve Française”, was almost profitable. In 1878, her wines were awarded a Silver Medal at the World Fair and attracted the attention of many French negociants and wine brokers who started fighting to get a bigger allocation of her production.

Her success was the result of a subtle mix of French touch and strong management. During the time Eugénie was developing her domaine, Bordeaux was investing time and money in helping Spanish producers to improve the quality of their wines. Eugénie could easily get the latest information on the French winemaking techniques. She knew she had to invest in cellars to stock the harvest, to buy barrels to improve its ageing potential and to keep it on the property for several years. It meant the domaine would not be bringing money for several years, but Eugénie understood that her sacrifice would bring long-term profitability.

She was right. After her triumph at the World Fair, the profits steadily improved for 20 years, bringing an average of 4,200 francs profit every year (€42,000).  Even when Phylloxera reached Banos in 1912-1913, Eugénie kept investing in the Réserve. She bought American rootstocks for a cost of 273,000 francs (€2,730,000), selling 5,700 trees of a poplar grove to finance it.

When she died in 1920, her wines were appreciated in Spain,  in France and in England.  Banos entered a modern era and contributed to building an economy of fine wine in Rioja.

By showing her strong business acumen, resilience and foresight, Eugénie linked the best of France with the best of Spain. Her legacy is still visible in the French and Spanish wine industry. Current owners the Hernaiz brothers have created a high end cuvée, widely appreciated by wine critics and lovers, called Eugénie. In 2025, la Finca received the Best of Wine Tourism Award by the Great Wine Capitals Global Network, whose jury highlighted the friendliness and kindness of the brothers’ management and sustainable choices.

Eugénie would be proud of their accomplishments – as she would to read her name on a bottle of Blanc de Noir Pinot from her beloved castle of Arenenberg, in Switzerland, former property of Napoléon III.

Petie Kladstrup and Evelyne Resnick’s book, The Last Empress of France: The Rebellious Life of Eugénie de Montijo, is published by Hanover Square Press/HarperCollins, 2025