Our Charter

Article I — Definitions

For the purposes of this Charter, and any dispute arising after the third bottle:

• “Compagnon” means a sworn member of the Brotherhood, of which there are ten.
• “Bottle” means a vessel of wine of genuine merit; a poor bottle is not a Bottle but a misunderstanding.
• “Lodge” means any gathering of Compagnons at which a cork is drawn in earnest.
• “The Four Sacred Things” means the Grape, the Wine, the Winemaker and good Gastronomy.

Article II — The Oath (All for One)

The Brotherhood swears the ancient oath, in the manner of the Musketeers: one for all, and all for one — unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno. When one Compagnon opens a great bottle, all are summoned; when one is wronged, all are affronted — the affront to be avenged with a superior bottle, never a blade.

Article III — The Ten, and the Degrees

The Brotherhood numbers ten: nine sons of Switzerland and one of the Low Countries. Ten is the sacred figure; an eleventh may be raised only by unanimous acclamation and the surrender of a worthy bottle to the cellar (an intronisation, after the Chevaliers du Tastevin).

In the manner of the old guilds of stonemasons, a Compagnon advances by merit through three degrees:

• the Apprentice — who still spits;
• the Compagnon — who swallows, and remembers;
• the Master of the Cellar — who buys.

Article IV — The Annual Tasting

It is the sworn duty of every Compagnon to host and conduct one tasting each calendar year — ten Compagnons, ten Lodges, an unbroken year of wine. The host presides as Worshipful Master of the Evening: he sets the theme, pours the wines, and answers for the gastronomy.

Absence without grave cause is forgiven only upon delivery of a penance bottle, of a quality exceeding the regret.

Article V — The Four Sacred Things

Above all else the Brotherhood honours four things, and to honour them is the whole of the law: the Grape, for its patience; the Wine, for its truth; the Winemaker, for his faith; and good Gastronomy, for making saints of us at the table. Bacchus is saluted; gluttony is not. We drink to remember, never to forget.

Article VI — The Code of Conduct

Every Compagnon conducts himself on the level and on the square, in cellar and at table:

• When a fresh glass is poured, all Compagnons raise it together and cry “Santé!” — no one drinks before the shared toast. This rite is sacred.
• What is poured in the Lodge stays in the Lodge.
• Pour for thy neighbour before thyself.
• Bring no bottle thou wouldst not proudly drink — passing off a poor wine is the one true heresy.
• Settle disputes by blind tasting, never by raised voice.
• The last glass is offered, never seized.
• Judge the wine, never the host.

Article VII — Rites, Signs & Symbols

The emblem of the Brotherhood is the Tastevin, the silver cup of the old wine knights. The Compagnons know one another by their secret signs — the slow swirl, the long sniff, the knowing nod across the table — and by the grip: a handshake offered with the right hand, because the left holds a glass. The word of the year is whispered, never written. To every toast, the response: so shall it be poured.

Article VIII — The Annual Pilgrimage

Once a year the Brotherhood travels to a great wine region, to drink at the source and pay its respects to the winemakers in person. In 2026, the pilgrimage is to Rioja. Wine is the excuse; friendship is the point.

Article IX — Amendments & the Final Clause

This Charter may be amended only at table, by a quorum of Compagnons, and only with a great bottle open. Should any clause be found unenforceable, the remainder shall stand — and the offending clause shall buy the next round.

In witness whereof, the ten Compagnons have set their corks to this Charter, in friendship, in Switzerland, since 1979.