Whether or not Napoleon Bonaparte died as a result of arsenic poisoning, we do know for certain that, while in exile on St Helena, his drop of choice was the famous (for the time) constantia. Constantia was made in part from the muscat of Alexandria grape, bearing the name of his ancient predecessor.
Both the man and the grape can be linked to Spain. In the country's south, in the region of Andalusia, is a city named Jerez. The wine region around the city that bears the same name produces one of the world's most famous wines. There it is called "jerez"; in France they know it as "xeres" and the English corrupted the word into "sherry".
Sherry is a fortified white wine. Sherry-style wines were very popular in Australia in the first half of the 20th century, but are harder to find nowadays. If you are looking for good examples of sherry-style wines, try the range from Seppelt. Note, however, that because the Seppelt wines are not made in Jerez, they cannot legally be called sherry.
Therefore, they are named after the sherry style they are made into. Fino, Amontillado and Oloroso are all good quality choices in the Seppelt range. The three grape varieties permitted in the production of sherry are palomino, Pedro Ximénez and muscat of Alexandria.
Not far from Jerez in Andalusia is a place called Barrosa, the site of the 1811 battle between Napoleon's forces and those of the Spanish and English. General Thomas Graham led the British infantry to an unlikely battle over the French, which, in the scheme of things, had no effect whatsoever on the war. It did, however, earn significant kudos for General Graham's military brilliance that was matched by the respect his soldiers had for him. One such soldier was Lieutenant William Light.
Both the general and the lieutenant were honoured for their roles in the war. Lieutenant Light was promoted to colonel and General Graham became Lord Lynedoch.
William Light was a surveyor by profession and he was tasked with finding the location for the capital of the South Australian colony. Unique among the Australian colonies in that it was free, the South Australian colony was yet to begin its now world famous wine industry.
Light chose the site where Adelaide now stands, but his superiors back in England didn't like his choice and didn't hesitate to tell him so. Light was upset with his superiors and decided on a new challenge—to find walking access from his chosen site to the Murray River. His companions included an assistant by the name of William Jacob.
After some time, they came across a beautiful, undulating valley. It impressed Light so much that he named it after his old friend and General, Lord Lynedoch, and the town later took on the name. The nearby ranges he named after the battlefield of Barrosa (the name we now have for the valley). In both instances, the honours went somewhat awry as Light managed to misspell both of them—proving that you can't be good at everything.
The one thing Light did spell correctly was a pretty little creek he named after his assistant. Ten years later in 1847, a young German settler by the name of Johann Gramp planted the first vines in the Barossa Valley at Jacob's Creek.