Gambero Rosso Wine Travel Food - May 2017 by Gambero Rosso

www.gamberorosso.it YEAR 21 N. 107 - MAY 2017

WINE

T R AV E L

FOOD

Tuscany HIDDEN TREASURE

• TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS • TRAVEL TRENTINO • TREE SURGERY

a tavola

WINE 20 | Tree surgery Since 2011, pruners Marco Simonit and Pierpaolo Sirch have been working to restore major vineyards by means of the Dendrochirurgia method, or Tree Surgery, a procedure designed to defeat one of viticultureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most serious diseases. 34 | Piaggia Vertical Mauro Vannucci and his daughter Silvia, in Poggio a Caiano, over the course of twenty vintages have created a classic among Tuscan reds: Piaggia, Carmignano Riserva.

TRAVEL 40 | Trentino. Wood, milk, flowers, herbsâ&#x20AC;Ś. Alpine dairy flavors On the San Martino di Castrozza plateau, 2,600 meters above sea level, the light is brilliant, the pristine air intoxicating. This cool and breezy paradise is the symbol and image of a territory in which sustainability is a tangible and concrete concept.

may 2017 2

MAY 2017

“Wine is at times a staircase to dreaming” Antonio Machado (Poet and writer | 1875-1939)

50 | Miami. Art Deco and Stone Crab. America and the Open Mind Deco and contemporary art, movida and avant-garde urban chic, design and limitless beaches – this is Miami. As Greater Miami, it includes many souls, including culinary ones.

FOOD 14| Italian restaurants in London: 3 experiences. During the Tre Bicchieri event in London, we named our choices for the best Italian restaurants in the city. Our Top Italian Restaurants ebook will appear in October, but here are our first stories: a contemporary pizzeria, a delightful wine bar and an Italian-style steak house. Three prizes for three categories. Still to come… Tre forchette. 27 | In praise of the outskirts. Starting with restaurants Quality restaurants are often the driving force bringing prestige to outlying zones. 65 | Marco Gubbiotti. Umbria Essence When strong agricultural tradition meets experimentation and contemporary taste, cucina is enriched by emotion and a different way of seeing. In this region, excellence is an everyday matter and the habits of genuine flavor risk being undervalued. Marco Gubbiotti offers the ancient 3 flavors of his Umbria in a modern key. MAY 2017

EDITORIAL

WINEMAKERS OF THE WORLD…. A few days ago I was in San Gimignano and went to visit the new exhibition space in the Rocca di Montestaffoli, the highest point in the City of Towers. At first, the headquarters of the Consorzio della Denominazione San Gimignano, the Rocca was then transformed into the Museum of Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Now, after a major renovation, it has become the headquarters of Vernaccia di San Gimignano Wine Experience, a permanent multimedia exhibit on two floors. Architect Piero Guicciardini has designed a deeply fascinating wine journey. It tells of centuries of history, but in an ultra-modern way, with holograms (a wonderful one of Davide Riondino) that recount stories and anecdotes. In specific positions, by wearing virtual headgear, visitors can fly over the territory itself. On the ground floor, two sommeliers help in wine tasting, hold tasting courses or perhaps just pour wine for those who want to enjoy the view from the Rocca while sipping a glass of cool Vernaccia. Open bottles are rotated and preserved under nitrogen. Videos of the producers and interactive maps complete a wonderful space, romantic and fun to use. Visitors flow in every day. But beyond the Experience and Vernaccia di San Gimignano, beyond

this excellent example of how to promote a territory, what struck me most was that to greet me and guide me, in a courteous, charming manner, were young Africans who had survived the Mediterranean escape route and landed in Italy. The municipality absorbed a large number and are placing them – and they are receiving salaries – in socially useful work. As we visit wineries all over the country, from north to south, it is now commonplace to see these survivors of an exodus of the ages in our vineyards and cellars. They are well-integrated and passionate about their new work. We often read about authoritarian tendencies in the world, of xenophobic choices, of ‘urban’ voters and ‘rural’ voters and talk of secession. An example of an opposing trend was evident in France, where racism and separatism did not win, above all not in the wine territories. Those zones did not vote for isolationism or anti-europeism. People who make wine and go around the world to sell it obviously do not care about distinctions of race and religion, do not love walls and barbed wire. Three cheers! Marco Sabellico

4 MAY 2017

2017

Vini d’Italia worldtour 2017/2018

JUNE

NOVEMBER

09 TORONTO - Canada trebicchieri Wine & Food Experience 20 Bordeaux - France trebicchieri VINEXPO SPECIAL

03 TAIPEI - Taiwan Top Italian Wines Roadshow 06 BEIJING - China trebicchieri Wine & Food Experience

OCTOBER 25 SEOUL - Korea

Top Italian Wines Roadshow

08 HONG KONG - China 13 SHANGHAI - China

trebicchieri - HKTDC Special Gambero Rosso Wine & Food Experience

22 MOSCOW - Russia trebicchieri Wine & Food Experience

27 OSAKA - Japan Top Italian Wines Roadshow 28 WARSAW - Poland Gambero Rosso Wine & Food Experience 31 TOKYO - Japan trebicchieri

2018 JANUARY 16 STOCKHOLM - Sweden trebicchieri 18 COPENHAGEN - Denmark Gambero Rosso Wine & Food Experience 22 BERLIN - Germany Gambero Rosso Wine & Food Experience 25 MUNICH - Germany trebicchieri

FEBRUARY 01 MIAMI - Usa Gambero Rosso Wine & Food Experience 06 CHICAGO - Usa trebicchieri 08 NEW YORK - Usa trebicchieri 03 SAN FRANCISCO - Usa trebicchieri 15 LOS ANGELES - Usa trebicchieri

MARCH 08 LONDON – U.K. trebicchieri 17 düsseldorF - Germany trebicchieri PROWEIN Special

APRIL 05 SãO PAULO – Brazil Top Italian Wines Roadshow 09 HOUSTON - Usa Top Italian Wines Roadshow 25 DUBAI - EAU Notte Italiana Wine & Food Experience

MAY 07 ZÜRICH - Switzerland Gambero Rosso Wine & Food Experience 22 SINGAPORE - Singapore Top Italian Wines Roadshow 24 BANGkOK - Thailand Top Italian Wines Roadshow

JUNE 04 SEATTLE - Usa Top Italian Wines Roadshow 06 VANCOUVER - Canada trebicchieri 08 TORONTO - Canada trebicchieri Wine & Food Experience

NEWS FROM AROUND WINE AND THE ECONOMY WORLD

SUSTAINABILITY. In Burgundy, a plan to reduce pesticides Burgundy’s grapegrowers took a step forward in their march towards reducing their use of pesticides. The new “’plan phyto” brought together the representatives of the growers and other professionals. The process took four months of work by a commission involving forty or so experts from all along the production line. The wine producers have been informed and will have time to make their own comments. The document has the approval of the groups (ODG) for the defense and management of Burgundy’s 100 appellations. Some measures in the plan call for training and technical assistance for growers, but also forbid spraying and sprinkler guns by 2025, alongside a search for alternative systems. Helped by technicians on-site, producers can voluntarily test the effects of these measures starting in 2017. The aim is to apply them on a large scale

from 2018. In particular, this year pesticide treatments without substances classified as carcinogenic or mutagenic (CMR) are planned as is stopping the use of weed-killers and using systems that better focus and direct the products used. Burgundy knows that its image will depend on carrying out these measures. Mean-

time, to better defend grapes from the caprices of bad weather, within 2017 an anti-hail umbrella should be completed, covering 45,000 hectares. One hundred and twentyfive generators of solutions of silver iodide to be emitted into the air should reduce the size of hailstones, cutting damage by 50%.

UNITED STATES. Tax on wine imports. For or against? After saying goodbye to free trade agreements with Europe, the next American protectionist move could be the imposition of a 20% tax on all imports into the United States, including wine. The proposal from

President Donald Trump could have wide approval. According to a recent poll from Harvard-Harris Poll in collaboration with the Harvard Center for American Political Studies carried out on a sample of 2027 voters, 62% of Americans would favor taxing imports. In particular, 77% of Republicans were in favor of such taxes, 61% of independents and 51% of Democrats. Less enthusiastic about such a proposal were retailers, convinced that an import tax would harm the entire sector. Among those in favor, the general opinion, according to Trump’s reasoning, is that a tax would increase domestic production and thus American jobs. The same poll showed that about half of Americans believe that Trump will not be able to impose such a tax due to the strong opposition he faces from the Democrats. In the first two months of 2017, American imports of wine amounted to 1.56 million hectoliters (+7.8% compared to the same period in 2016) for a value of 622.6 million dollars (+10.1% compared to 2016). Is this the beginning of a USA-EU trading battle, as the Wall Street Journal suggests? 6

MAY 2017

FRANCE. Exports of agricultural products fell in 2016 The French balance of trade for agricultural products worsened drastically in 2016. Exports fell 2% to 58.7 billion euros while imports rose 3% to 52.6 billion. The overall total remained positive, but went from 9.2 billion euros in 2015 to 6.1 billion in 2016, losing one third of its value after 2015 registered a slight improvement of +0.2 billion. Also falling 1% was volume exported, while imports increased 3%. This worrisome phenomenon can be explained largely by the reduction in untransformed products, in particular those of the cereal sector, as underlined by the French Ministry of Agriculture in their regular bulletin.

The wine sector fell slightly, with 8.2 billion euros of export. Over the entire period 2000/2016, this is next to the worst level for France’s trade balance, only a little better than that of 2009, the year after the financial crisis. European Union countries are still France’s primary commercial partner, but their share of overall trade continues to drop. Compared to Italy, French exports towards our country were stable in 2016, equal to 5.35 billion euros. After Germany (-1%) and Belgium (stable), the Italian market is now in third place in terms of value, replacing Great Britain, which dropped 227 million euros.

GRAPE HARVESTS. Production dropping in South American countries The internal regions suffered the most, the area of Secano Interior hit by fires that in recent months destroyed half a million hectares. The drop in productivity, nevertheless, is not something new for the

countries of the New World. Last year, Chile did not produce more than 10.1 million hectoliters and Argentina came in at 9.4 million hectoliters, one of the worst vintages of all time. CC Fsanchezs

Italy is concerned right now with damage caused by bad weather that struck its vineyards a month ago, and judges the possibility of a new production record unlikely. On the other side of the globe, the grape harvest is over and the first results are in. What kind of year was it for the countries of the southern hemisphere? “It was a small harvest, but a promising one,” say producers. In Argentina, the fall in production was caused by springtime frosts that could diminish the 2017 harvest by 40%. Those who were able to harvest a few weeks early did better, but more or less all the regions suffered in comparison to preceding years, although the effects of El Niño (the unusual heating of ocean water, causing drought, that last year harmed all of Argentina’s agriculture) had been overcome and weather was normalizing. The same was true in Chile, where the year was described as ‘atypical’, with temperatures extremely high, physiological phases occurring early and yields low.

7 MAY 2017

NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

ROME AMONG THE FIVE MOST VEGAN-FRIENDLY CITIES IN EUROPE. Lisbon is number one Lisbon, Prague, Warsaw, Barcelona and Rome are the five most vegan-friendly cities in Europe, according to Hundredrooms, an online comparative listing of tourist lodgings. Their classification is based on the proportion between population and number of restaurants that offer menus dedicated to vegans. The number of people whose lifestyle, for ethical and personal reasons, eliminate meat or all animal products from their diet is growing. According to the Vegetarian Resource Group, In the United States today, 3.3% of the total population (about 8 million people) don’t eat meat or fish. Of these,!.6%, about 128,000 people, are fully vegan. In Europe, Italy, Austria and Germany have the largest number of vegetarians (9% of the population in Austria, 8% in Italy and Germany). The trend is upward and requires a prompt, serious response from urban restaurants. European cities seem to have recognized the phenomenon, especially Lisbon. Over 100 restaurants and shops are listed as suitable for vegans in a city of barely 550,000 inhabitants.

Second place goes to the capital of the Czech Republic which, despite eating traditions strongly connected to meat, in recent years has seen an exponential growth of locales for vegans. In Prague, 34 restaurants do not use animal products in a city of 1,260,000 inhabitants. Warsaw claims more than a hundred vegan-friendly eating places and shops, and Charlotte, on Plac Zbawiciela, a favorite café, offers some house-made, completely vegan sweets. Another on the top-five list is Barcelona, certainly the most vegan-friendly city in Spain, and recognized as such by local government, which appreciated the hard work of promoting and spotlighting vegan eating places. In fifth place, we find Rome, with about 50 vegan restaurants. The most notable is Il Margutta, a long-established vegetarian restaurant with vegan options, not far from Piazza del Popolo.

GOLDMAN PRIZE 2017. Nobel for ecology recognizes courageous farmers. Awards in Guatemala and Slovenia The Goldman Environmental Prize is one of the most prestigious awards of its type, and is thought of as the Nobel for ecology. Each year, since 1990, the prize has recognized the commitment of the most deserving environmental activists. Often the spotlight focuses on unexpected personalities from surprising social backgrounds, who merit recognition for the charisma and tenacity they have demonstrated in difficult situations where they must face the power of multinationals and the corruption of local administrators. Such is the case of Rodrigo Tot, named for a Goldman 2017 in a ceremony in San Francisco. The Guatemalan farmer belongs to the Mayan community Q’eqchi, who live in the mountains of El Estor in the district of Izabal, 300 kilometers from the capital, Guatemala City. Here, for more than three decades (he is now 59), Tot has defended 60 campesinos whose land and property was expropriated to serve the interests of mineral businesses that require the zone’s gold and nickel. His campaign cost him dear-

ly. In 2012, one of his four children was killed during a raid designed to intimidate him, a tragic event that is hardly unusual in many countries of South America, where many activists’ battles end in violence. Today, Tot’s battle for his community continues. In 2001, the Constitutional Court recognized his property rights, but the government has still not applied the sentence. This farmer represents the reality of many in his zone who have seen their rights to their land denied. On the other side of the world, in Slovenia, Goldman recognized the constancy of Uros Macerl, an organic farmer in the region of Trbovlje, in central Slovenia. His family farm, which belonged to his grandfather, has been affected by the industrial pollution of a cement factory running on petroleum coke that has damaged the quality of the air, soil and water. From 2009 to 2015, Macerl undertook a legal battle against the institutions that gave the industry authorization to burn dangerous industrial refuse. The intervention of the European Court of Justice, called on by the persistent farmer, brought Macerl victory. The court called on Slovenia to recognize its responsibilities and respect the European Union’s standards regarding pollution. The world is one, and the determination of a single farmer can contribute to save it.

be on TV, but there were many stereotypes that needed to be swept away.” So she decided to make her contribution, and organized her first dinner. At the table, besides Saab and her husband were two Jewish guests and two people who had participated in the memorial gathering after the attack on the Pulse nightclub in Orlando (which occurred on the night between June 11 and 12, 2016). “Our dinner took place during Passover, and I had to study the rules about food during a period that was important for my guests. So I went to shop in the stores near the homes of my guests, and I asked the Jewish shopkeepers the rules I should observe.” We asked how the first dinner went. “It was a real success. We explained our dishes and how they were cooked. We told the stories connected to those foods, and by doing so, we clarified parts of our lives that were otherwise incomprehensible to others.” After the enthusiastic reviews from the first guests, subsequent dinners were a guaranteed success. Amanda and Hussain now organize one each week. It’s not clear whether this initiative will turn into work. “We thought of founding an association, drawing up a set of regulations so that anyone in the world, whatever faith they held, could create events of this kind. Food and the stories connected to it are a powerful instrument of cultural mediation. We just need to exploit this force intelligently.”

“DINNER WITH YOUR MUSLIM NEIGHBOR.” An ex-contestant in Masterchef USA has an idea The idea for the initiative, “Dinner with your Muslim neighbor” came from Amanda Saab, cook-blogger and ex-contestant in Masterchef USA. She currently lives and works in Seattle. Her objective is to invite perfect strangers to dinner and to show them, through food, the life, rules, beliefs and aspirations of “an ordinary American Muslim.” “I had never suffered discrimination for my custom of wearing a hijab,” Saab told the Washington Post. “During Masterchef, many people wrote to congratulate me for participating. They were happy that a Muslim woman could

The Adrià brothers and Josè Andrés gear up for their Spanish Eatalystyle venue in New York. All the chefs of Hudson Yards At the end of 2018, when the Hudson Yards project on New York’s West Side opens, the competition for a place in the city’s most desirable culinary scene will be fierce. Among the names already confirmed in various formats is David Chang, with a double concept in the style of the Momofuku Ssam Bar along with a formal dining room and a fast-casual takeout spot. Thomas Keller will manage two locations, bringing to New York the format he perfected in the Bouchon Bakery in Yountville, California, but at the same time, offering new concept fine dining dedicated to American tradition. With them will be Costas Spiliadis, Greek seafood restaurateur, planning Estiatorio Milos in a beautiful space with a terrace overlooking the Manhattan skyline. Other spots include classics from American cuisine by Michael Lomonaco, a location of D&D London, along with coffee bars, pastry shops, a juice bar and a salad/organic space. Italian cucina will be represented by Cipriani, which already has many locations in the city and is a favorite with New Yorkers. Casual Italian dining will be in the hands of Gabby Karan De Felice and Gianpaolo De Felice who already have Tutto il giorno, a restaurant in Tribeca and in Southampton. Spanish chef Josè Andrés, who has a restaurant in Washington D.C and two dozen other locations, will appear in New York for

the first time in a 35,000-square-foot food hall along with the Adrià brothers, their debut in the United States. At Number 10, Hudson Yards, under the High Line, they will open a Spanish market and food hall with the motto, “Eat, drink, laugh, love.” The design will include outdoor spaces and will evoke the spirit of the Boqueria of Barcelona. Spanish artisans and top winemakers will create a wide selection of tapas and a wine bar. Certainly, the participation of Ferran and Albert Adrià will guarantee a slew of culinary surprises. 9

MAY 2017

GAMBERO ROSSO FOOD&WINE ACADEMY

Lorenzo Ruggeri Gianlucaby Ciotti collaborated

DEMO DAY STARTUPBOOTCAMP FOODTECH The future of food is in the hands of the young Innovation and agriculture are a winning team in Italy and around the world. This is what emerged during Demo Day, the first cycle of the Startupbootcamp FoodTech, specialized in supporting young companies that are innovating in all segments of the food industry, bringing technology to the production of food and beverages, to distribution and management of restaurants and bars, and offering solutions that are potentially on a global scale. During the event, held in Rome in March 2017, startups told their stories and unveiled for the first time the prototypes of their own products and the first investments obtained. “Foodtech is a market with extraordinary opportunities for Italy. We at Startupbootcamp have worked hard to show the world ten startups destined to transform the food industry. We brought to Rome (the third city in the world for the number of applications sent) the top people in the sector,” said Diego Falanga, Chief Operating Officer of Startupbootcamp FoodTech.

Vertical farms, food delivery and new technologies to support productivity: Demo Day revealed all the most extreme but potentially functional approaches, the products of young minds that will be able, in the middle-to-long term, to revolutionize the food sector. “We closed the call in September 2016, establishing a record in the history of Startupbootcamp with over 600 applications coming from 56 countries,” added Falanga, “a result that was made possible by the great work of the scouting team, which orga-

nized 10 events around the world. Mentors and partners helped the candidates validate their ideas and refine their strategies and business models.” Gambero Rosso, the principal partner of Startupbootcamp Food Tech, as a support to the logistics of the event, brought in the students of the Master in Food&Wine Business, in partnership with the LUISS Business School, as well as the young people attending the courses for chefs and pastry chefs at the Gambero Rosso Academy.

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EVENTS ABROAD

by Lorenzo Ruggeri

ITALIAN FEVER IN DUBAI The Italian wine world had fine news from Palazzo Versace in Dubai. Our Tre Bicchieri event drew 300 people, including entrepreneurs, operators and major collectors. It was a perfect Notte Italiana, with saltimbocca and Neapolitan pizza baked on the spot by maestro pizzaiolo Enzo Coccia, recipes from Academia Barilla’s chef Marcello Zaccaria, technical seminars and over 60 top bottles, many of which were available in the city for the first time. The event was further honored by the presence of the Italian ambassador to Abu Dhabi, Liborio Stellino, the Consul General to Dubai, Valentina Setta, and one of the area’s best known business men, a great promoter of Made in Italy, Yogesh Mehta.

Dubai is a world of its own, even where wine is concerned. In a city where less than 15% of the population is local, where the Indian community amounts to over 50%, tourism drives wine consumption. Eighty percent occurs in hotels with restaurants and exclusive clubs that have deep and varied wine lists. The numbers hosted by hotels are impressive: 15 million tourists visited in 2016. Dubai was ahead of Rome in this rating. Sector analysts predict growth that will reach 20 million in 2020, the year of the much-awaited Expo. Thanks to the Emirates airlines, with more than 3,000 flights weekly, Dubai is a growing hub for travel between the West, Asia and Africa, like no other city in the world.

Yogesh Metha, Valeria Setta, Liborio Stellino and Paolo Cuccia

Accademia Barilla’ chef Marcello Zaccaria

the seminar

“Outside tourism structures, to buy or even transport alcohol, you must have a specific license and be at least 21 years old. Wine is expensive because taxes here are among the highest in the world: 50% on its value, plus a municipal tax of 10% and another final tax of 30% on the total price. But that doesn’t slow consumption, which is booming. We have added 3,000 labels to our portfolio,” said Jean-Philippe Le Rouzic, Wine Sales Manager of African Eastern, the colossus that together with MMI (Maritime and Mercantile International) controls importation and distribution. Many operators from the two companies came to our event. They were surprised, they said, by the quality of the white wines they tasted. In the United Arab Emirates, Italian wine enjoys 18% of the market share. Seven years ago, that figure was at 8%, while France has gone down from 25% to 20%. This is the effect of the many Italian eating places that have opened in the city. Today 14,000 Italians live and work in Dubai, mainly in the food and beverage sector. During our event, our top award for the best Italian restaurant in the city went to Il Borro Tuscan Bistro, a sign that after years of excess, restaurateurs are seeking new pathways. “Here too, there’s a return to focusing on the ingredient. Fine dining locales are having trouble. People who have traveled all over the world come here to find simple and authentic things. The most popular dish is pici all’aglione, a pasta dish heavy on garlic,” chef Maurizio Bosetti told us. The latest news: in the first few months of 2018, Massimo Bottura will also open a place in Dubai.

Chef Maurizio Bosetti - ”Il Borro” Tuscan Bistrot

13 MAY 2017

GAMBERO ROSSO ON THE ROAD

by Lorenzo Ruggeri

ITALIAN RESTAURANTS IN LONDON: 3 EXPERIENCES During the Tre Bicchieri event in London, we named our choices for the best Italian restaurants in the city. Our Top Italian Restaurants ebook will appear in October, but here are our first stories: a contemporary pizzeria, a delightful wine bar and an Italian-style steak house. Three prizes for three categories. Still to come… Tre forchette.

A HYMN TO VARIETY

ating good Italian food in London is no longer an impossibility, given that in a few hours, our best ingredients, mozzarella di bufala, for example, can make it to the tables of Her Majesty and her subjects. But that’s not all. Emigration to Great Britain is an old story, and (so far) it has been so simple that great and very great Italian restaurants are not a rarity. london Each has its own character, and many are very original. Italian restaurants in London come very close to the quality of the restaurants here at home. Looking over 3,000 locations in the capital, we see that most have left behind the checked tablecloths, mandolins and cutlet-with-spaghetti-as-a-side-dish of the past.

London is still the most multi-ethnic city in Europe, and Made in Italy products appear in unexpected places. Burrata, ‘nduja and mozzarella keep company with all sorts of exotic foods. Typical flavors can count on a growing market. Street food and stands in the markets offer regional specialties to the city’s sophisticated palates. Even birrerias have found their way into the hearts of those who grew up on stout and lager. Giorgio Locatelli was one of the first restaurateurs to emerge in Great Britain, as was Franco Manca, who now heads an empire of more than 20 pizzerias. Wine bars know how to offer the indigenous wares of small and even tiny producers alongside the more important, familiar names. And then there’s pizza, which no Italian living abroad will willingly give up. In London, it 14

MAY 2017

stands out. Even if in many parts of the world finding a pizza worthy of the name is impossible, in this capital city, the level of authentic pizza is excellent, and can compete with any in a major Italian city. Gourmet variations are rare, as are experimentation with dough, flours, yeasts: traditional pizza has ruled the waves, at least until recently. It’s hard to predict if Brexit will change any of that. Italian restaurants are often opened by non-Italians, a compliment to the popularity of our country’s cucina. Of course, all authentic Italian-owned restaurants are not automatically good. Mediocre eating places can be found everywhere, But it is comforting to see that abroad, Italian cucina is more varied and well-known every year, especially in terms of recognizing territorial differences and offering Made in Italy products.

TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS

For two years, we at Gambero Rosso have been working on a publication aimed at presenting the evoTop lution of Italian Italian cucina around the Resta20u17rantts world. The results .i www.gamberorosso of many trips, long flights, and multiple tastings will be seen in ©

Top Italian Restaurants, a guide in English meant to spotlight our fellow Italians working abroad. Available on our site in October, 2017, it will pull together the experiences we have had on our travels with Gambero Rosso wine events. Three hundred places will be evaluated, including restaurants, casual and fine dining spots, pizzerias and wine bars in more than thirty countries. We will pay special attention to the traceability of products used, certifications, respect for ingredients, depth of wine lists. The evaluation criteria will be the classic Gambero Rosso range of one to three. So Tricolore Slices (Spicchi) for the best pizza, Tricolore Bottles (Bottiglie) for the great wine restaurants, Tricolore Three Shrimps (Gamberi) for trattorias and osterias, and finally, Tricolore Three Forks (Tre Forchette) for the best restaurants in the world.

MACELLAIO RC SOUTH KENSINGTON

You eat well, you drink well, and you have a great time doing it. The format that Ligurian host Roberto Costa (that explains the RC) has developed appeals to instinct and belly, with a menu that makes you hungry just reading it. Cheeses and salumi (cured meats) come directly from small Italian producers. Fassona piemontese

beef is the star of the show – raw, sliced, as steak – but there’s also a delightful choice of cucina povera dishes, the famed fifth quarter, the quinto quarto, as Italians refer to organ meats and lesser bits – a rarity on the Italian scene in Britain. We found coda alla vaccinara (oxtail) as well as tripe alla romana (with tomato, mint and pecorino cheese). Side dishes make up for any guilty meaty feelings and a Ligurian-style oven turns out focaccia. Besides South Kensington, opened in 2012, Roberto has a location on Union Street, inside a theater, and a third in Exmouth Market, where tuna is prepared in a thousand ways, alongside the usual meat offerings. Tre Gamberi Tricolore in our guide. And, Roberto confesses, he dreams of opening in Italy. Macellaio RC | South Kensington | Londra SW7 3LQ | 84, Old Brompton Rd, Kensington | tel. +44 20 75895834 | macellaiorc.com Macellaio RC | Exmouth Market | London EC1R 4QE | 38 - 40 Exmouth Market | tel. +44 20 36968220 | macellaiorc.com Macellaio RC | Union Street | London SE1 0LR | Arch 24, 229 Union Street | tel. +44 20 38480529 | macellaiorc.com

GAMBERO ROSSO ON THE ROAD

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Bruno Cernecca has managed to pull off a format unique in London, first as a retail store and then, while offering wine by the glass, he added simple, well-thought out cucina. Everything is Italian, from coffee to the Negroni sbagliato (mistaken, that is, with spumante instead of gin), to food products, and to pleasant, well-trained personnel. His wine list offers over 500 labels, paying great attention to producers and to grape varieties that are not easy to convey, such as tintilia and pignoletto. He offers natural Etnean wines, as well as Masseto and Dal Forno – even by the glass, thanks to Coravin. Also on his list are a range of Prosecco labels and carefully chosen Franciacorta bottles to drink along with porchetta or lasagna or crunchy bruschetta. The relaxed rhythms of South Kensington are a perfect setting, while the Covent Garden version is more lively and dynamic. A calendar of meetings with Italian winemakers and masterclasses complete the picture. Tre Bottiglie Tricolore, the top score for a wine bar.

16 MAY 2017

For their London location, two Calabrian brothers, Matteo and Salvatore Aloe, chose Shoreditch, a neighborhood of specialty coffee bars and art galleries as well as some of the city’s best cocktail bars. The London spot is the cousin of various versions of Berberè in Bologna, Florence, Milano, Torino, Castel Maggiore, and soon, Rome. At Radio Alice (the name of a popular, politically active radio station in Bologna in the 1970s), you will find light, crisp pizza, which comes to the table already sliced. Pizzaioli wearing coppola caps (okay, a little stereotyping) prepare their pies with mixed stone-ground organic flours, wheat, enkir, kamut, rye and corn, slowrising and topped with organic and seasonal products. The result? We thought it was the best pizza in London. The support of Emma King, co-founder of the excellent Gayl’s bakery, is vital. Their concept of gourmet pizza brings together experimentation, seasonality, curiosity, authentic flavors, and friendly prices. The site is a restored factory. The evening flew past, thanks also to the small Italian winemakers on the list and their healthy, sustainable bottles. Tre Spicchi Tricolore. Radio Alice | London | 16, Hoxton Square | www. radioalicepizzeria.com.gridhosted.co.uk

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TENUTA POLVARO

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Via Polvaro 35 • 30020 • Annone Veneto, VENICE • ITALY

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WINE OF THE MONTH

THE RISERVA OF A LIFETIME Brunello di Montalcino Ris. 2010 - Baricci We dedicate this wine of this month page to an extraordinary winemaker who passed away in Montalcino on April 19 of this year. Until the last hours of his life, he was talking about green fertilizing, pruning, aging. Nello Baricci was one of the key figures who made Montalcino great. He was among the founders of the Consorzio, one of those visionaries and pioneers who, with hard and exacting work, transformed the geography of Montalcino from wheat fields to one of the most sought-after vineyard zones in the world. We have rarely known a winemaker so entirely dedicated to his land and his work. Two years ago, when we interviewed him, he burst into tears remembering the scandal involving Brunello. Just the thought of it was unbearable, shocking. How could anyone do that to the land they loved? The crucial year in Baricciâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life was 1955 when Nello purchased the Colombaio estate. His wines have always been extremely faithful to the earthy, lustrous style typical of Montosoli sangioveses. Credit is due to his children Graziano and Graziella, his son-in-law Piero Buffi, and grandsons Federico and Francesco, all of whom work on the estateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s five hectares, and to the cellar processes, which include long maceration and aging in 20- and 40-hectolitre Slavonian oak barrels. The first Riserva di Brunello made at Baricci in 60 years of history is from the super-acclaimed 2010 vintage. The wine reveals traditional, complex inspiration with an interplay of plums and dried flowers, freshly dug earth and coffee powder, faithfully echoed in the taut, biting palate. The final vibration is interminable. Nello, may the earth that you loved be gentle, and we thank you for this last gift.

18 MAY 2017

TWITTER dixit Restaurant Barococo

European Beauty

Good to know

Traditional wine cellars in Tokaj historical wine region, Hungary -known for origin of Tokaji aszú wine, the world’s oldest botrytized wine

sententiae antiquae

“For those who have wine, the best medicine of all is getting drunk.” … φαρμάκων δ’ ἄριστον οἶνον ἐνεικαμένοις μεθύσθην Alcaeus

Demi Cassiani

CinqueTerre in Italy is a dream for photographers

Madeline Puckette

You’re a winegeek if you judge a restaurant by the wine list.

Winetracker.co

Porsche Design created this free-standing wine refrigerator. Looks nice but not sure how practical it is.

Monica Larner On the road in Langhe

Jamie Goode

...it’s easy to bash natural wine, to hope for its demise, to criticise, as some of my peers have done. But younger drinkers love it....

19 MAY 2017

WINE STORY

Stefania Annese collaborated

Tree Surgery C

hateau Reynon, Schiopetto and Bellavista can sleep easy. Their vineyards are safe. Even more, the quality of their wines and the economic resources of their wineries are safe as well. These estates saw their vineyards reborn after an attack of esca, the grapevine disease. The credit goes to pruners Simonit & Sirch. Since 2011 they have been working to restore these vineyards by means of the Dendrochirurgia method, or Tree Surgery, a procedure designed to defeat one of viticulture’s most serious diseases. A true calamity, esca attacks the dry wood, degrading it and bringing about the collapse of the vine, which must be pulled up and replaced with new young plants. We asked what the surgery consists of. “Simplifying, you can compare

our surgery to what a dentist does to care for a decaying tooth,” explained Marco Simonit. “Using little electric saws, we open the trunk and take out the part that has been attacked by esca disease. We have to analyze the trunk and branches that show us the location and development of the decay inside the plant. The funguses responsible for the disease attack and penetrate through pruning wounds. They create a damp zone in the vine where the disease attacks and destroys the wood, reducing it to a spongy, crumbly mass. At this point, we intervene, purifying the plant. In a short time, it will recover its vigor, make fruit again, and return to full productivity.” Marco Simonit is one of the creators of this method, and together with Pierpaolo Sirch and his Italian team, he

has become an institution among the most important Italian and French estates. Today, after six years of experimentation and work, the results are astonishing. Ninety per cent of the plants that were treated have returned to being fully productive and 10,000 vines of five different varieties (sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, pinot nero) have been rescued. “When the vines return to their vegetative life and process the most water is the moment when esca disease can attack, said Marco, maître tailleur de vigne. “Nevertheless, we can intervene even during the chronic phase of the sickness and manage to restore the plant to health. Tree surgery, described by Louis Ravaz and Lafon, is a practice that has been known since ancient times. M. Poussard, at the end of the 19th century, practiced it, achieving encouraging results. We met with Professor Denis Dubourdieu, who died last year, director of the ISVV, the Istitut des Sciences de la vigne et du vin of the University of Bordeaux, and we perfected the technique using modern tools.” But above all, the team was able to save producers 50,000 euros per hectare, the cost calculated by Denis Dubourdieu for replacing a vineyard of 10,000 vines in the Medoc. Over the years, the technique of intervention was improved, so that almost all the vines present in six winegrowing regions in Italy and France were rescued: Collio, Isonzo, Franciacorta, Bolgheri, Champagne, Burgundy and Bordeaux. “Right now our team works for at least two years alongside those who are beginning to operate with dendrochirurgia, Tree Surgery.

Dendrochirurgia in Tree surgery - Bordeaux

Dendrochirurgia in Tree surgery - Champagne

We develop an identity card for each vine, trying to make it productive again,” concluded Marco Simonit. “We are totally satisfied with the results we obtained, but we can’t stop here. We have to, for example verify which is the best period for operating on the vines, how often we must do it, and for how long the vines that have been operated on will stay symptom-free. We are working not only in Italy and France, but also in Chile where sauvignon and cabernet franc vines are those most badly hit by esca disease.”. 21 MAY 2017

Chef Maurizio Bosetti - ”Il Bo

Dendrochirurgia in Tree surgery - Friuli

DO AS TREN

PAIRING

drawings by Chiara Buosi

SCHIAVA

FIANO FSOAVE

frappato

verdicchio

morellino

Sliced speck TRENTODOC

FIANO FSOAVE

frappato

morellino

verdicchio

Canederli in broth

A. A. SANTA MADDALENA CL.

SCHIAVA

FIANO FSOAVE

Strangolapreti pasta

22 MAY 2017

TRENTINO PINOT BIANCO

THE TINI DO

SCHIAVA

FIANO FSOAVE

frappato

morellino

verd

Ham hock with polenta A. A. LAGREIN

FSOAVE

Venison fillet with black currant sauce, purÃ©ed celery root, apple sauce frappato

morellino

verdicchio

A. A. PINOT NERO SCHIAVA

Apple strudel

23 MAY 2017

A. A. MOSCATO ROSA

FIAN

DESIGN

by Francesco Seccagno

DESIGN & FOOD Contemporary furniture, appliances and accessories can be described as classic, because classic doesn’t mean old-fashioned, but instead signifies balance and harmony. The lines that characterize these objects are modern and, at the same time, warmly appealing. Hi-tech isn’t a special effect, but is a quality inherent in the materials and the products themselves.

Energica | Tognana | Casier (TV) | via Ca’ Barbaro | tel. 0422 672 273 | www.tognanaporcellane.it Energica is the exclusive line of pots and pans from Tognana. They use the innovative tecnology of Floatech, developed for organic cooking. The goal is to maintain the nutritional and sensory qualities of food, favored by five layers of non-stick heavy aluminum with a granite-like appearance. The bottom of the pans is made of Thermo 3D, developed to resist deformation resulting from use, and to maintain even heat while cooking. Bakelite handles with a soft wooden look are anti-slip and cool to the touch.

Modulari | USM | Münsingen | Svizzera | www.usm.com More than 50 years ago this historic Swiss company designed one of the most famous and long-lived systems of modular furniture in the world: USM Haller. Modularity is the key to the new creations, which are already classics. They offer balance and harmony, as well as sleek contemporary design. These adaptable pieces (among them are bookcases, dressers, night tables, kitchen cupboards, TV tables, bar carts) can easily fit in every corner of the house. Available in many colors, they are never boring.

24 MAY 2017

Cucina Portofino | Smeg | Guastalla (RE) | via Leonardo da Vinci, 4 | tel. 0522 8211 | www.smeg.it Top quality materials and the meticulous design typical of professional stoves combine in the multi-colored line inspired by Mediterranean colors. The new Portofino collection is available in eight appealing shades and in different configurations: a self-cleaning pyrolytic oven with gas burners and a multi-function oven with an induction cooking surface. The design, modern and essential, surpasses those of built-in units. The oven provides uniform temperatures throughout the entire cavity, allowing even cooking on all levels.

Tavolo 1060 | Thonet | Frankenberg | M. Thonet strasse, 1 | Germania | it.thonet.de The solid table designed by Jorre van Ast is the epitome of a formal language rich in elegant detail. The rectangular surface seduces the eye with its subtlety, its corners rounded and its lower borders slanted inward. The two pairs of legs form a reversed curved V, a reminder of the firm’s genius in working bent wood, a Thonet tradition. They allow for the greatest comfort when sitting at the table. “It came naturally to me to concentrate on one of Thonet’s key talents, the ability to manipulate and bend wood. I wanted to design a table to pair with those splendid Thonet chairs,” the designer explained.

25 MAY 2017

APULIAN PASSION, ITALIAN ROOTS.

TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS

by Gerardo Antelmo

IN PRAISE OF THE OUTSKIRTS STARTING WITH RESTAURANTS 27 MAGGIO 2017

TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS

28 MAY 2017

photo

Yesuitus2001

San Diego

Top Italian Resta20u17rants

.i t www.gamberorosso

TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS During the 40 annual events that Gambero Rosso organizes around the world, we have presented awards to the best eating places

Spiez

we found in each city. We evaluated Italian restaurants in over 30 countries. The guide will be available in October in ebook format.

29 MAY 2017

wo years ago, the great Italian architect, Renzo Piano, opened a lecture at Columbia University in New York with these words: “The mission of architecture in this century is to save the outskirts. If we don’t succeed, it will be a disaster, not only urbanistic, but also social.” Often the center of a city is no longer the center, and the countryside is no longer country. In the 1960s, 70s and 80s, the objective was to save the historic centers, an objective largely achieved in the most renowned places of Italy and Europe. In Italy, many small towns, which are in the outskirts of large cities, have been rescued, restored and defended thanks to the farsightedness of an inspired chef or restaurateur who chose the spot for a top dining spot. In the province of Frosinone, for example, the tiny Acuto certainly owes its glory to Salvatore Tassa and his Colline Ciociare restaurant. The same thing can be said for Vallesaccarda in the province of Avellino where undoubtedly the brand of the Oasis restaurant is worth a great deal more in terms of tourism than the brand of the entire town. This phenomenon occurs around the world. Quality restaurants are often the driving force bringing prestige to outlying zones. Who, outside of locals, would know about the town of Batavia in Illinois, a fifty-minute drive from Chicago? Outsiders who go to Batavia do so to dine in an Italian restaurant that is, in many ways, incredible. Gaetano’s doesn’t only offer good Italian cucina, but its proprietor, Gaetano himself, makes his own cured meats, including mortadella, and ages cheeses in specially designed spaces. The result is that the best cold cuts and cheeses in the Midwest can be found at Gaetano’s. His story, probably the only one of its kind in that part of the country, resembles many other unusual adventures. In Italy and elsewhere, restaurants can be the catalyst for the restoration and recovery of outlying areas, a goal, according to Renzo Piano, of the first decades of the third millennium. One restaurant we review here is on the outskirts of San Diego (in the USA), the other is forty kilometers outside the city of Bern, in Switzerland.

TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS

Solare

an Diego, the city that connects California with Mexico, lacks the Mediterranean seafood that the Pacific cannot provide. The soil doesn’t have the humus and ideal Sicilian microclimate suited to the perfect ripening of the earth’s products. Flavorful tomatoes like those of Pachino, ripened on soil made saline by the water of the seas of southeastern Sicily, are nowhere to be found. But Accursio Lota, born and raised in Menfi, trained at the Four Seasons in Milano by chef Sergio Mei, revolutionized the Solare restaurant in only four years. Located in an out of the way military residential zone far from downtown, Solare is famous in that part of the world for its great Mediterranean cucina. Even a simple dish like pici with garlic, oil, hot red peppers and green onions becomes a memorable experience. Or perfectly textured pasta is balanced with a yellow sauce of preserved lemons and basil. In another dish, white onions, Sardinian saffron and roasted half-dried tomatoes with their typical powerful flavor offer a satisfying balance of bitter and sweet. “It is possible, but not simple, to find high-quality agricultural products in California, even if it requires research. You can’t count on large-scale American distribution since they are concerned with quantity and stock vegetables for weeks, so by the time they get to the table, they have lost flavor and aroma.” Accursio Lota spends half his time with local farmers who grow only a few acres of produce.

He manages to offer cucina without compromises, authentically Italian, paying attention to educating his clients with the help of staff that understands and explains every single ingredient. ”I use a dry Mexican pepper, Guajillo. It is larger than our peperoncini, brightly colored and mild.

Infused with egg white it becomes the perfect base for exceptional fresh pasta. We have to know how to take from other traditions those very few elements that can add to the evolution of our great Italian 31 MAY 2017

cucina towards new, modern flavors,” Accursio added. Solare’s wine cellar is also excellent. The choices curated by sommelier Petra assure a broad and up-to-date selection.

TOP ITALIAN RESTAURANTS

Riviera by Elio Seestrasse 67 | Spiez | Switzerland| tel. +41 33 650 91 91 |

lio, Desireè, Michelle and Fabienne Marsiglia curate the cooking of their Riviera restaurant as if it were the kitchen in their own home. “Every day we have lunch and dinner in our

restaurant to test our cucina. The secret to offering good food is to be critical of yourself,” observed Elio. He has thirty years of success in the world of restaurants. The experience of being a guest at Riviera, which also offers clients its small boutique hotel, begins with the extra-virgin Ligurian olive oil made from fruit harvested by hand

32 MAY 2017

in the family groves on the Ligurian coast. You can sample it on raw vegetables such as fennel and radishes, or tasted it on bruschetta. Traditional Mediterranean first courses are well made and perfectly presented, including excellent seafood and flavorful fish that would seem impossible to find elsewhere in this unglamorous corner

of German-speaking Switzerland. The experience is framed by the atmosphere of the restaurant - elegant by not luxurious, with modern lines enlivened by nostalgic touches such as authentic Lambrettas and Vespas. The view is over the isthmus of Lake Thun framed by the romantic mountains of the Berne Oberland. Even the pizza is well-made, thanks, above all, to the use of top-quality ingredients. Among the dishes, Gragnano spaghetti from Gerardo di Nola stands out, served with clams and rapini puree. The delicate cream of the greens has been blended with the broth from the open clams, which entirely maintain their incredible sapidity. The wine list reveals great competence with unusual choices demonstrating scrupulous research, something rare in a restaurant that seats large numbers, especially in the summer. This is an eating experience that is particularly unusual in a small town with a population of little over 10,000 people. The wine list includes bottles from France, Switzerland and Germany as well as many Italian labels that are shown with their Gambero Rosso ratings.

GREAT VERTICAL TASTINGS

by Marco Sabellico

Mauro Vannucci and his daughter Silvia, in Poggio a Caiano, over the course of twenty vintages have created a classic among Tuscan reds: Piaggia, Carmignano Riserva. 34 MAY 2017

Piaggia

t’s not easy to stand out on a stage as crowded as that of Tuscan winemaking. But Mauro Vannucci is not timid. Just the opposite. Piaggia and its wine came about almost by accident, as often happens. Mauro, an entrepreneur in a completely different sector, was looking for land on which to build a house. It was 1975, and on the plot he chose, in Poggio a Caiano, there was a vineyard. For a few years he turned it over to a farmer to cultivate. Then in 1991, the urge to make some wine for home use and the memories of childhood and family harvests in nearby Montalbano pushed him to try his own first vinification. The result was satisfying, and so, little by little, the winery grew. “The turning point came in 1993, when I met Alberto Antonini. He tasted my wine in Verona, during Vinitaly. He liked the wine and I liked him.” So starting with the 1994 vintage, a fruitful collaboration began that has continued ever since. Mauro, who has his ideas about quality and is not easily satisfied, began buying land, carefully chosen with the help of Federico Curtaz, Piag gia’s agronomist.

Challenge

from father to daughter

GREAT VERTICAL TASTINGS

They soon had 20 hectares. “We’re in a zone that is well-suited for wine, but vineyards have to be planted carefully in the right places. Ours have a density of between 5,500 and 6,000 vines per hectare. More would be counterproductive, and fewer vines would not exploit the potential of the terroir. I’ve chosen good, well-positioned hillside exposures, well-drained galestro terrain lying between 190 and 230 meters above sea level. I planted the vines, one by one. If you don’t start in the vineyard….” Mauro knows what he wants to express with his Carmignano – the power, richness and structure that come from healthy fruit, perfectly ripened, but at the same time he aims for elegance and drinkability. He’s not shy about comparing himself to the best. A few years ago, while visiting Château Margaux, he said to owner Paul Pontallier, “Your wine is very good, but so is mine.” The French winemaker, who died a year ago, asked him who he was and what wine he made. Mauro pulled out a bottle of his Piaggia and had Pontallier taste it. According to legend, Pontallier complimented him and asked for a bottle to drink that evening with colleagues. “In twenty years we at Piaggia have gone far, but so has our entire zone,” said Mauro. “The area has grown, new wineries have opened, competent ecologists have come in and the market has begun to know us. Carmignano, with its Supertuscan aromas, has become more popular. My formula is 70% sangiovese, 20% cabernets franc and sauvignon, and the rest merlot. I use good quality new barrels and take extreme care with every detail, from cork cleanliness to barrel providers. Everything has to be monitored and analyzed. There are risks at every turn, and distraction can be fatal.” For the last few years, helping to build this family business, his daughter Silvia has joined him, his wife Rita, and

his brother-in-law Paolo, who runs the winery. Silvia, who has a law degree, has dedicated herself passionately to Piaggia and to developing markets. “We have built up a great team, including our enologist, Emiliano Falsini. The range of our labels has grown along with our vineyards, and today we turn out more than 80,000 bottles. Alongside Piaggia Carmignano Riserva, which is our top wine, we have Carmignano del Podere Il Sasso and Poggio de’ Colli, a monovarietal Cabernet Franc that has proven to be very popular and well-received by critics. Pietranera is a fresher, bouncier Sangio-vese that comes from younger vines,” Silvia told us. “At this point in our history, the problem is not selling our wine but distributing it well around the world. I love that job, and it takes me around the globe all year long, from Japan to New York, from Hawaii to London, Chicago and Canada. Sixty percent of our production 36 MAY 2017

is sold abroad and we’re growing little by little. The important thing,” added Silvia, who has also been the president of the Carmignano wine consortium, “is to place it in the right settings, in the best wine bars and best restaurants on the planet.” How much can the winery grow, we wondered. Silvia explained, “In terms of quantity, if we find the right vineyards, we could go over 100,000 bottles annually in the next years, but not much more.” And qualitatively? “My father has his idea of wine, and I have mine. As I travel I visit wineries and taste a great deal. I like to meet with colleagues from all over, and I bring these experiences home. My father likes challenges, and he thinks every aspect can be perfected. We’re always discussing, experimenting, trying to improve, year after year in how we interpret our territory, our vintages, the tastes of our consumers. That’s the Piaggia spirit - never be satisfied!”

CARMIGNANO RISERVA PIAGGIA 2013 | 93

Dark ruby red, with lovely purplish tones on the rim, the color is dark and dense. On the nose, the wine is youthful and far from being fully evolved. It offers notes of ripe red and black fruit, with blackberries, marasca cherries and plums in the foreground, which then turn to spicy, Mediterranean tones and a delicate boisĂŠ note. On the palate the wine is fat, rich and dense, but it also has backbone, freshness, and fruitiness. It offers appealing nuances of blackberry, chocolate, black currant and blueberry. Tannins are smooth and resolved, the fruit healthy and whole. Not fully developed, it needs a few years to mature in order to express its full potential. A long and fascinating close on black fruit and balsamic notes.

Piaggia | Poggio a Caiano (PO) | www.piaggia.com

2012 | 94

Dark ruby red, dense, limpid. A lovely nose with ink tones, red and black fruit, a balsamic vein and notes of Mediterranean scrub. An intense wine, it is still behind in development, almost raw. The palate is dense, taut, and substantial wine, but not over-extracted; well-balanced, it has smooth tannins that are softly astringent. A tale of terroir with ripe red fruit, backbone, long aromatic persistence. Powerful and truly seductive.

Carmignano Docg At its base, sangiovese The scent of a SuperTuscan Carmignano is a town between Florence and Prato. It gives its name to a DOCG wine produced in its surrounding territory and in nearby Poggio a Caiano. Both places are in the Prato province. Sangiovese grapes must account for 50% of the vinification. Canaiolo nero grapes can amount to 20%, cabernet (franc and sauvignon) from 10 to 20%. Trebbiano toscano, canaiolo bianco and malvasia del Chianti can be added to a maximum of 10%. Regulations assert that the vineyards have to be on hillsides, the soil must be marly limestone of the alberese type, clay schist (Eocene) and sandstone (Oligocene). Altitude must not exceed 400 meters above sea level. Forcing of every kind is forbidden, but emergency irrigation is permitted. The wine requires aging at least until June 1 of the year following the harvest. It must be held in oak or chestnut barrels for at least eight months. All vinification operations, aging and bottling, have to be carried out in the DOCG zone.

2011 | 93

Dark, almost black shade of red. The nose is intense, rich, full of red and black fruit with the classic balsamic vein and a clear note of blackberry. The palate is dense, full, pulpy and fat, with notes of chocolate and smoke, but resolves into 37 MAY 2017

a fresh tonic feel, with a good, healthy acidic component. It is an articulated, savory wine, balanced, even if assertive, powerful and rich. A lovely soft, long finish on notes of fruit, with important but elegant tannins. The blackberry returns. Great balance of wood tones.

2010 | 95

Intense and rich ruby hue. Perfectly mature plum nose with hints of pomegranate, Mediterranean scrub, wild blackberries. The wine begins to find its dimension. Rich, pulpy, substantial, with a silhouette that lengthens and slims in a dialogue between red and black fruit. An assertive acidic vein translates into a long finish of blackberries and black currants where coffee and toasty sensations are still just an idea. Re-tasted, it is one of the richest and most complete, complex. An amazing and persistent nose. Enthralling.

2009 | 92

Dark ruby color, intense and deep, with a still unyielding rim. A Mediterranean nose of Tuscan countryside herbs and flowers, the scent of land burned by a summer sun, but also of sweet notes of blackberry and ripe plum. The bouquet is rich in medicinal herbs, like an herbalist shop. Then comes a hint of bitter cacao and a note of licorice. In the mouth, the usual majestic structure, but with the balance that time begins to confer. Notes of red fruit, of roast coffee, a touch of licorice and pepper render the mix even more fascinating and complex. A lengthy close,

GREAT VERTICAL TASTINGS

austere and serious, still a little marked by wood sensations.

2008 | 91

Dark, dense ruby color. Cherry and fresh, full marasca cherries on the nose. A wine of great vitality, with subtle hints of tobacco, bitter chocolate and sweet licorice. Fruit still dominates. The mouth is generous, silky, rich and taut. Tannins are important but elegantly velvety. It is savory, progressive, mouthfilling. We can see that Piaggia is a wine that’s worth waiting for. Perhaps a hint of astringency, but marvelous substance. Deep, meaty, never heavy, it closes on long notes of bouquet garni and vanilla.

2007 | 91

Intense, dense, taut ruby color. Dense and rich on the nose where it displays warm notes of dry, sun-warmed land, hints of hay, boisé tones, toasted wood, nuances of coffee. The mouth is structured and warm, its fruit ripe and sweet – marasca cherries, blackberries and

plums – then aromatic herbs, hay and summer meadow flowers. This red approaches maturity; elegant fruit, solid, wonderful astringent and imperious close. No roughness or unevenness; dense, substantial. Tannins are sweet and smooth. Notes of pepper and licorice. Wood sensations, but never too insistent. The structure is weighty without being too muscular or extracted. The year was a warm one, but the wine expresses juicy fruit. Fine tones, on the close, of wood and spice. A powerful wine but also sweetly fruity and balanced.

2006 | 93

Elegant and relaxed wine with an integral rim. Notes of fruit, in-cense and balsam lead into the broad, suave palate of recent years. At first, the palate is less impressive, but quickly finds rhythm and scope. An impression of forest floor and porcini mushrooms appears, with backbone and freshness supporting it all. A fresh-tasting wine that evokes the first autumnal breezes, a more inti-

mate, self-contained story. Great elegance. On re-tasting, even better; harmonious, long and well-balanced.

herbs and pepper. Wood sensations are perfectly integrated.

2005 | 95

Dark ruby red with a hint of evolution on the rim. On the nose, chocolate and spice, aromatic herbs and quinine, which lead into plum and marasca cherry jam. Then come darker tones – coffee and spices, fireplace and aromatic wood. The palate is well expressed, generous, warm, mouth-filling and progressive. A hot vintage year, but interpreted with class and discretion, without sacrificing drinkability and balance. Sapidity, elegant tannins, a measured and balanced astringent vein that translates into a long, spicy, balsamic, balanced finish with notes of pepper and summery forest floor. Still healthy and taut.

Dark, dense ruby color. Spectacular. Its expressive force and vital-ity make it seem a more recent vintage. Elegant, taut and concentrated at first, harmonious and generous. It is the first of these vintages to have a balanced character of real, vital maturity. Red and black fruits are in the foreground, ripe but not too much so, with blackberry, blueberry, raspberry and cherry appearing in succession. Fine boisé background, good density offering substance from the first impact to the delicate but peremptory final note where cherry finally gives way to coffee and licorice with some assertiveness. Elegant, full, rich and long. One of the best Piaggia vintages ever.

2004 | 93

Still a dark ruby color, dense and full. The nose is intense, Tuscan, earthy and mineral. Fresh hay, sun-warmed meadow grass. Then ripe plum, baked bread, a hint of coffee and cherry jam appear. Wonderful savory, muscular palate, a mix of fur and coffee, burning stone, but also ink and quinine bark with a delicate and noble bitter note. The wine is savory, taut, nervous, but still has a great deal of red and black fruit pulpiness. Then, cherry tart and baked sweets, coffee and tar appear in the background. An energetic wine, it has balance and an important finish of fruit, aromatic

2003 | 90

2002 | 92

Dark ruby color, slight evolved shade on the rim. The first…. Elegant nose of berries, Mediterranean scrub, but also a note of vanilla. An amazingly suave and slim vintage year in the history of this wine. It doesn’t lack concentration, but is deliciously relaxed, in a minor key, with enviable balance and a promise of longevity. On the palate, spicy, fine, elegant notes. Wood is consistent, and the mouth has a good rhythmic cadence that underlines the peculiarities of the vintage year. It closes smoothly and long on notes of cherry, hay and aromatic herbs. Mature but not overly so. A marching, unstoppable pace.

2001 | 97

IImpressive. Black, dark, deep. a wine that unleashes power and energy extraordinary for its age. Concentration and structure are at the limits of arrogance. It is powerful, vibrant, concentrated. Truly muscular, substantial, intense. It could be the undoing of a commonplace formula, but instead it is the glorification of a wonderful vintage an exceptional terroir. It is the result of care that doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t overlook a single plant in the vineyard. A great Italian red â&#x20AC;&#x201C; powerful, mouth-filling, complex and richly multifaceted, quali-ties that others of this age lack. Impressive for elegance and sunny Mediterranean style. One of the high points in the brief history of this young winery. At the limits of the unforgettable.

2000 | 94

Classic ruby color, dense, dark, intense. Nose is substantial and complex with spice and pleasant wood sensations, clear and harmonious. Ripe red and black fruit, whole and healthy. Even if the vintage year was hot, ripening fruit to the limit, the wine has balance and finesse. Acidic freshness and measured extraction of tannins make this vintage year a benchmark. Medicinal herbs, bouquet garni, tones of marasca cherries and roast lamb describe a red that is dense, elegant, rhythmic. Mature and never dusty tannins. The close is on opulent, ripe fruit and white pepper. A grand interpretation of a hot year. Harmonious, balanced and dynamic. Coffee, hazelnut, licorice and toast at the end.

1999 | 95

Mentholated tones of licorice, quinine and Cuban cigar tobacco introduce us to an elegant, taut, muscular wine of grace, harmony and amazing persistence, a jewel of power and balance. Dense but relaxed, it unfurls seductive, caressingly soft tannins. On the palate it is truly long and persistent, with a finish of tobacco and then mint, thyme and marjoram, enchantingly mixed with sensations of cherry and blackberry. One of the most seductive and elegant vintages, it is balsamic, complex and empyreumatic, but still has full, taut fruitiness.

to show some cracks here and there. Today the wine has a lovely autumnal tone of forest floor and an acidic tone emerges. For years it held out, thanks to its concentration, alcohol and richness, but in the long run, the waves of August heat of that year affected the balance and integrity of the fruit. A handsome example, but it faces the inconvenience of being compared with other vintage years of the same wine.

1998 | 92

At first, scents of marasca cherries and medicinal herbs, then a relaxed, elegant and dense nose with tones of quinine bark, porcini mushrooms and forest floor, shading into bouquet garni. The palate is substantial, pulpy, with elegant, savory, taut fruit. A Mediterranean, warm and mouth-filling wine, it has warmth and density, and is fruity and delicately astringent, with remarkably smooth and caressing tannins. Hints of chocolate, coffee, wild blackberries and sour cherries. Vital, dynamic, harmonious, it is one of the proofs that time bestows only elegance on this wine. Rigorous balance and rhythm, extraordinarily satisfying.

1996 | 94

Elegant, ripe, fresh, fruity, substantial and dense. This is a 20-year old wine in an ideal state of evolution and development. Fruit is still tonic, its character has just barely evolved, but it is full-flavored and dense, with astonishing freshness and creaminess. Blackberries and plum, spices and fresh aromatic herbs underline its elegant and balanced Mediterranean character. Clearly Tuscan, it also has an international tone. A wonderful play of wood sensa-tions, great freshness and expressive rhythms. Tannins are velvety and mouth-filling. The wine is clean, pulpy and still fresh on the palate. It has delicate elegance, reassuring power, and displays a rich palette of sensations that

1997 |

From a hot vintage year, it is a wine with evolved tones, delicately tertiary, of forest floor, porcini mushrooms and truffles. An acidic vein supports a scaffolding that is beginning 39

MAY 2017

only age can give and is finally displaying. Twenty years old. Marvelous.

1995 | 90

Chocolate, licorice, spices, pine bark, balsamic notes on the nose. Sweet, soft, meaty and rich, it is balanced in the mouth, with hints of coffee, candied orange peel, bitter chocolate, cherry and blackberry jam that make it complex and intriguing. Velvety tannins and a vein of fresh acidity sustain the fruit. A healthy wine that still moves ahead, with an elegant and substantial finish, soft and fine. A wonderful surprise.

1994 | 90

Texture, density, harmony, elegance. It has fruit, substance, freshness and finesse. Tertiary notes on color that is still compact and integral, a marvel of harmony and elegance. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s structure, a careful use of wood, a complex bouquet of spices, roasting coffee and elegant balsamic notes. At the end, it all resolves into a rich harmony, in constant, unfettered rhythm and a finish that is warm, satisfying and sunny, telling of Tuscany, Carmignano and Piaggia. Long, full and rigorous, it is also pleasantly caressing. Bravo.

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text and photography by Massimiliano Rella

Wood, milk, flowers, herbsâ&#x20AC;Ś Alpine dairy flavors

o n i t n e Tr

On the San Martino di Castrozza plateau, 2,600 meters above sea level, the light is brilliant, the pristine air intoxicating. This cool and breezy paradise is the symbol and image of a territory in which sustainability is a tangible and concrete concept. At the table, too. 41 MAY 2017

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«M

ountain water, barley malt, yeast and hops from our valleys. Beer like this could only come from Primiero.” Fabio Simoni, craft brewer from Bionoc’ was enthusiastic. His bottles (see box) are a feature of Mezzano, in the Primiero Valley, listed as one of Italy’s Most Beautiful Villages. In the background are the idyllic mountains of the Pale di San Martino, the largest of the Dolomite groups. The appeal of this town of wooden and stone houses, inhabited by 1,640 people, is enhanced by an outdoor circuit of 31 works of art that interpret traditional wintertime woodpiles in creative ways (see box). “In the summer, there’s also Mezzano Romantica, a program of music framed by food festivals dedicated to the area’s excellent products,

starting with our exquisite cheeses. It’s an ideal opportunity to fall in love,” joked Ivano Orsingher, the Tourism Office head. Have you ever studied a cheese under the magnifying glass of its sociological environment? At Caseificio Sociale Primiero, a cooperative that brings together 65 dairy farmers and a dozen dairies, its director Alberto Bettega clarified the concept: “Our farmers form a small, local, family economy that contributes to maintaining the mountain environment. We don’t only make Tosèla, Fontal, Trentingrana and Botìro,” pointed out Bettega. “We are also a partner in tourism and environmental protection. By making our cheeses and butter, we maintain the territory.” The role of milk can even be seen in local proverbs. “La boca nò la è straca, se nò la sa de vaca.” “That rhyming dialect say-

“The Flood” 2005 by Marco Baj Artistic woodpiles in the village of Mezzano (Trento)

Brewer Fabio Simoni of Bionoc’

Bionoc Brewery Zero impact beer With a Green Way certificate and the extra guarantee of organic hops from the Valle del Primiero, the two young brewers of Bionoc’, Fabio Simoni and Nicola Simion, made a clear choice to be green and artisanal. They have won many prizes, the most recent one for their Impombera, during Beer Attraction in Rimini, in a category for acidic beers. Their history as producers had a prologue from 2006 to 2009 when they experimented with about twenty recipes. Then in 2013 they opened their craft brewery in the Dolomites, winning a prize the next year for Nociva, a dark Scottish Ale made with toasted malt. Between seasonal, acidic and Bio Lupo (from fresh local hops), they turn out about ten labels. Recently, with Nicola Coppe, a fan of acidic beers, they inaugurated a barrel cellar for aging in seconduse oak barrels, sometimes adding fresh fruit, as they do for Impombera, flavored with the raspberries from the Dalaip dei Pape agriturismo, which also furnishes them with hops. Bionoc’ | loc. Giare, 45 | Mezzano di Primiero (TN) | tel. 329 608 6570 | www.birrificiobionoc.com

42 MAY 2017

Art Artistic woodpiles A townâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s outdoor museum An open air museum, works of art and imaginative installations, are made with material historically used to warm houses, logs. Piles of small chunks of wood were always arranged to provide the winter supply of fuel. Today they have found a more creative use. A municipal project, a circuit of 31 artistic woodpiles, involves the entire village. The itinerary of Cataste & Canzei, the dialect name for the project, celebrates the rapport between the community and its wood supply. Woodcutting in the woods is ruled by town regulations that have environmental balance as their objective. The latest three creations were the work of students at the art high school, Soraperra, in Pozza di Fassa: an Eye that observes the town, a Contorted Woodpile that turns in on itself, and a Chain, with the last link open, a symbol of liberty. Among the most beautiful are Flood, by Marco Baj, Dream Night, by Erica Schweizer, Mountain Spell, by the La Stua association, Unstable Installation by Umberto Sancarlo and Free Water by Jimmy Trotter.

Mezzano, one of Italyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s listed Most Beautiful Towns. In Val Primiero (Trento). In the center, the bell tower of the San Giorgio church. In the background, the Pale of San Martino.

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Cheese table in Malga Rolle: Fresh Tosèla, aged Primiero and smoked ricotta

Agritur Dalaip. Antipasto with cured meat board (carne salada, speck, rolled pancetta, salami and bresaola) and cheeses (Dolomiti caciotta, aged Primiero, Primiero Fontal), apple compote, spices and quail eggs.

44 MAY 2017

ing means that the mouth is not satisfied until the palate has tasted cheese at the end of the meal,” explained the president of the Strada dei Formaggi delle Dolomiti, Francesca Doff Sotta. This cheese-focused itinerary shows off the excellent production and hospitality of three valleys: Primiero, Fassa and Fiemme. She added, “In the summer we offer “Dawn in the Dairies”. We set off early and go up to the mountain plateaus to show how we make Botìro, our best butter.” The Scalet family offers another special experience at their agriturismo, Dalaip del Pape. They organize a picnic with a donkey, who carries a breakfast of bread, Botìro, jam and apple juice: three hours in small groups. “The cucina in Primiero is simple but of

An essential book for all who love Italian wine More than 60 experts spent months doing blind tastings in every region of Italy

2400 producers 22000 wines 429 Tre Bicchieri 88 Tre Bicchieri verdi

www.gamberorosso.it

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Trentingrana & Co. Valley and mountain cheeses Trentingrana, Nostrano di Primiero, fresh Primiero (60 days of aging) and Stagionato (six months) – these are the raw milk cheeses made by the Primiero dairy, the Caseificio Sociale, a cooperative that brings together 65 milk producers and a dozen or so dairies. Other specialties are Fontal, a local fontina type, Dolomiti, Tosèla, a fresh cheese typical of the Primiero valley, and, only in the summer, the premium Botìro, a raw cream dairy butter produced by natural separation. The cream is beaten several times in the churn to separate out the buttermilk and make the butter itself more compact and drier. The yellow color is due to carotene and other natural antioxidants present in the milk of cows that pasture at high altitudes. Flavors are intense and aromas are influenced by mountain herbs. Valle di Primiero is included in the Strada dei Formaggi delle Dolomiti, the Dolomite itinerary of cheeses that brings together 100 businesses producing cheese and offering hospitality in the three Trentino valleys. During the summer, Dawn in the Dairies (Albe in Malga) gives early-risers a chance to watch the cows being milked. Reservations at the Tourist Office. Caseificio Sociale Primiero | via Roma, 179 | Mezzano di Primiero (Tn) | tel 0439 765 616 | www.caseificioprimiero.com www.stradadeiformaggi.it

APT - San Martino di Castrozza, Passo Rolle, Primiero e Vanoi | via Passo Rolle, 165 | San Martino di Castrozza (TN) |

Caseificio Sociale Primiero. Mixing milk during the preparation of Tosèla

Taverna Malga Lozen Chef Gianni Iagher with his two grandsons

high quality,” said chef Michele Corona from Da Anita, the restaurant he runs with his mother Anita and sister Elisabeth, who waits tables dressed in traditional costume. “We have Tosèla, which is our fresh cheese. It’s lightly cooked in butter and served with mushrooms and polenta. We have Botìro, a fantastic butter, made in the mountain dairies during the summer months. We also have grassole, wild spinach from the mountains, and herbs that we use in grappa and in canederli dumplings. Come and visit us!” Herbs and spices go into the marinade for carne fumada, meat cured by butchers Rolando and Francesco Bonelli, father and son, in nearby Siror. They produce a beef roast enhanced with fruit and herbs they grow and then coldsmoke with beech wood. (See box.) Our next visit took us to 1,493 meters above sea level to the Mal-

ga Lozen dairy. Here the Orsega and Iagher families run a tavern where cook Gianni Iagher welcomed us with a steaming plate of polenta, Tosèla cheese cooked in butter, sausages, and a mixture of porcini, chanterelle, and chiodini mushrooms. The sausages are homemade and smoked with pine and juniper wood. The meal ended with a tasting of the house grappas, a delicate one with milk, and a more assertive one flavored with pine cones from a high altitude tree, cirmolo or Swiss pine. We left Malga Lozen for a walk in nearby Val Noana, fragrant with balsamic aromas, in the silence of gigantic pine trees: 50 meters tall, a meter in di-ameter. The only sounds were birdsong and flowing water from a fountain in the woods – mountain water, a precious resource. “Our water produces all the electricity we need,” explained Paola Toffol, president

Francesco Bonelli and his father Rolando in their family butcher shop

Cured Meats Speck and carne salada smoke-cured with beech wood For three generations, the Bonelli family has produced top quality artisanal cured meats, gluten and lactose free, with selected ingredients. Besides selling meat, they make baked ham, speck, pressed meats, six types of wurst (including classic frankfurters, weisswurst and Meraner) as well as carne salada, both of venison and beef, salted for a month, and then spiced. Other products are mortandela Val di Non, a kind of smoked and aged meatloaf prepared with beef roast marinated in spices and three types of fruit. After 15 days, the meat is delicately smoked for eight hours at room temperature with certified beech wood, and then aged for three months. It is eaten with arugula, extra-virgin olive oil and Trentingrana cheese. Macelleria Bonelli | Via Asilo, 22 | Siror di Primiero (Tn) | tel 0439 762 233 | www.macelleriafamigliabonelli.it

47 MAY 2017

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Lucia Trotter, owner of Artelér, traditional weaving in Mezzano di Primiero

“Chain”, artistic woodpile in Mezzano (Trento). Work by G. Soraperra Art School in Pozza di Fassa

48 MAY 2017

of the tourism association of San Martino di Castrozza, Primiero and Passo Rolle. “We are trying to completely abandon the use of coal thanks to two facilities, one in San Martino that has been functioning for ten years, and a more re-cent one in the valley of Primiero.” After a polenta lunch, a walk in the woods followed by a house-made pastry at Lucian, it was time to go shopping. In Mezzano that means woodwork from Zeni, with traditional objects made by Renzo and works of art by his son Gianluigi. We also saw hand-weaving at Arteler, a store and workshop owned by the Trotter family. We found elegant shawls, clothing and articles for the house. Before you leave for the city, take a deep breath and fill your lungs. A gift from Trentino.

Malga Venegia | loc. Val Venegia | Passo di Rolle | Tornadico (TN) | tel. 348 062 7886

where to stay Capanna Cervino | loc. Prati di Castellazzo | Passo di Rolle (TN) | tel 0439 769 095 | www.capannacervino.it

Davide Lucian, his partner Jana and the Pasticceria Lucian staff

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by Emilia Antonia De Vivo

Deco and contemporary art, movida and avant-garde urban chic, design and limitless beaches â&#x20AC;&#x201C; this is Miami. As Greater Miami, it includes many souls, including culinary ones.

Miami

ART DECO AND STONE CRAB. AMERICA AND THE OPEN MIND

50 MAY 2017

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few degrees above the Tropic of Cancer, Miamiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ethnic and cultural groups seem infinite. More than 100 languages are spoken here. Landing in Miami, this spirit of peaceful co-existence, of spunsugar clouds, soft breezes and mild temperatures for most of the year enfolds visitors in the relaxed mood of the city. Stress vanishes, and so does the desire to ever leave. Miami is fusion â&#x20AC;&#x201C; of people, traditions and food. All have brought along their eating habits from home. More than 6,000 restaurants flaunt styles ranging from casual to fine dining, representing innumerable cultures, from Caribbean and South American (Peru and Argentina included) to Asian. New World Cuisine, founded here by chef Norman Van Aken, refers to the special mix in which flavors of the most varied provenance meet American cooking. New World Cuisine is low in fats and bursts with flavor, putting together clean taste sensations and ingenious combinations of fresh fish, fruit and tropical vegetables. The Wine & Food Festival Food Network of South Beach (in February) is the annual meeting place for those who want to stay up to date with trends in New World and New Entries. During the year, editions are dedicated to special themes such as fruit and spices of the world, Latin flavors, seafood, mango or Goombay (celebrating the connections between Miami and the Bahamas). During Taste of the Nations, participants can sample the flavors of different nationalities, presented by 30 of the best international restaurants. During the month of Miami Spice Restaurants, stellar tastings at friendly fixed prices promote maximum quality and diffusion of culinary culture of every kind. Over the

last few years, the geographic perimeters of Miami have been redefined. Greater Miami brings together 35 communities, including Miami Dade, Downtown Miami, Miami Beach and many urban neighborhoods that until now have been identified largely for their vacation spirit, La Bella Vita. Today Miami can compete with global capitals of culture, and not only as the city of eternal fun. MIAMI BEACH. Canadian scholar Godefroy Desrosiers-Lauzon examined the unthinking attraction to the

warmth of Florida and Miami using the metaphor of migrating birds. Florida’s Snowbirds are those humans from the north that spend their winters, from 2 to 6 months of the year, in the South. In Miami Beach, the oceans are emerald, the beach (real or fake) is whiter than white, and the pace of walking slows down. The United States’ greatest collection of Art Deco architecture is preserved here, with barely a touch of kitsch. Miami Beach hotels are often iconic buildings, both for architecture and the social life they embody. Their density is very high in respect

A dish in Nobu

Little Haiti, alias Lemon City For its residents, it’s still Lemon City, a name from the original extended citrus fruit groves, its trees still surviving in many home gardens. In the 1920s, the village was annexed to Miami. For decades it was considered a den of criminals and drugs, but today Little Haiti is in the middle of important transformations and gentrification. To its north, the luxury condominiums of Edgewater, to the south, the wave of Design District directly connected to Wynwood. The boomerang effect of the surrounding real estate has pushed out some of the original inhabitants but renewed urban vitality and expanded entertainment options. The historic places once frequented only by locals, today are cult destinations for fans of Latin American music, and the English language is nowhere to be heard. Ball & Chain, a cult place of the 1930s, one of Billie Holiday’s favorites, is now where millennials in search of vintage live music experiences mix with veteran DJs and acrobatic samba dancers.

53 MAY 2017

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Brickell. Inventing Downtown Working around the clock for four years, real estate developers and architects built a new mixed-use urban and financial center out of nothing. Brickell City Centre embodies the rebirth of this part of the lagoon, in the heart of Downtown south of Museum Park. Two residential towers, two mid-rise buildings for offices, the tower of EAST, a residential hotel complete with sport facilities, swimming pool and four restaurants, are all positioned above a commercial center of a kind never seen here before. A new culinary hub, dedicated to Italian cooking, has appeared. Innovation, art and technology are all aimed at environmental sustainability, making this project one of the most advanced in terms of impact and functionality in the United States. A sophisticated system of rainwater collection, for example, provides cooling and autonomous electricity to the entire complex. One of the most interesting elements is the covered platform that joins the three new blocks in a public urban space that is walkable and linked to public transport and Metrorail. The authors of the change and its meticulous urban planning is Arquitectonica, who landscaped the Perez Museum by Herzog & De Meuron and the new Student Activities Center of the University of Miami.

to private residences, determining the urban rhythm on the southernmost streets of the island. On two kilometers of Ocean Drive, twelve buildings out of 14 are in Miami Modern style. The first to make their mark were the Fontainebleau and the Eden Roc, then came the Faena, the Delano, the Traymore (now Como Metropolitan) and others. Today, in tandem with the Eden Roc, under the historic tower with the blue logo, is the Nobu Hotel. Reached by the legendary hall designed by Morris Lapidus in Deco neo-Baroque, it is famous for its octagonal space and the tall columns covered in neo-Doric ridged wood. The new Nobu, designed by David Rockwell, introduces the Omotenashi art of hospitality, even in its interior design details, with the use of colors and tactile elements inspired by nature and its particular harmony. The restaurant is, naturally, under the supervision of Nobu Matsuhisa, who brings together the best of Peru-

vian and Japanese cuisine. Here the first beachside restaurant appeared, a Florida clone of California’s Malibu Farm. Chef Helene Henderson, who had long been courted by Nobu’s management, chose Miami for her farm-to-table menu, fresh and cooked to order, created for the vacation life at the ocean’s edge. Farther down along Ocean Drive, the Como Metropolitan (ex-Traymore) deserves a special visit. The new interior design is by Paola Navone. It communicates light and lightness in a transposition from the 1930s, knowingly revisited with contemporary details and elegant but never invasive luxury. In the Traymore restaurant, Juan Loaisiga reigns. His passion is classic American seafood, and his fresh fish, crustaceans and crabs bring back the golden years of Miami deco. The most famous stone crab temple is further down, in the most southern point of South Beach: 54 MAY 2017

Joe’s Stone Crab

Joe’s Stone Crab. Fishing for these crustaceans is perfectly sustainable. The claws grow back and the crab is placed back in the ocean, healthy and alive. From management to waiters, all participate in a profit-sharing plan. The restaurant has the comfortable atmosphere of a large trattoria and its family management has been in place for 94 years. You can’t leave Miami without having sampled crabs with mustard sauce at Joe’s.

Traymore

DOWNTOWN. Miami, which wants to emerge from the vacation-city image, shows off its urban self in its Downtown. Brickell Centre is the official culinary destination for those who are passionate about good Italian food. A functional and extremely well-articulated mix will include a 11,500 square meter covered food hall on three levels entirely dedicated to Italian cucina. It will house a wide variety of restaurants, each an expression of the diversity of Italian regional cooking. Tastings and show cooking will be continual, along with cooking classes and lessons in pairing given by the best Italian chefs. They will work with fresh products purchased directly in the market. The project is backed by Swire Properties, Inc., one of the largest real estate entrepreneurs in Florida. Debora Overhold, vicepresident of the company, is convinced that Miami is ready for a project of this complexity on a food theme. “We want to bring the tradition and energy that’s on the street, in the historic centers and Italian piazzas into Miami. The food market is the heart and soul of most Italian cities. Now this will be true here in Miami, in the heart of Brickell.”

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The Italian market is a block north of Brickell City Centre, inaugurated in November, 2016. Important names such as the Pubbelly Boys, with a second Pubbelly Sushi, Uruguayan Quinto la Huella, Sugar - the cocktail bar on the roof - and the last two gastronomic sites of EAST, a hotel tower with a residential formula that opened last year, are all located there. CORAL GABLES AND THE BILTMORE. Few transient vacationers find their way to this area. At the beginning of the 1920s, this was one of the first American new towns based on an avant-garde project. It is still a model of urban functionality, with pedestrian comfort the rule. Its founder, George Edgar Merrick, imagined a Mediterranean style city and established the site for the University of Miami. Also in Coral Gables is the absolute icon of Miami luxe, the Biltmore Hotel. Much of ninety years of the city’s history is reflected there, from the hurricane of 1926 to postwar events, by way of the golden years of jazz. Among its guests were Ginger Rogers, Judy Garland and Bing Crosby. Over the years, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Al Capone, and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor stayed here. In 1996 the federal government named it a National Historic Landmark, a rare honor. Visible from afar, it is the beacon for the entire quarter, marking the border between the original town and the large park devoted to golf. The Biltmore’s restaurants are an historic feature of the hotel and visited regularly by locals for Sunday brunch, weddings, and the private parties of noted Miami families. If there’s something important to celebrate, the internal courtyard,

The Chef Brad Kilgore New American Cooking

n Wynwood, the culinary scene is a bubbling pot of new openings, experimentation, and emerging new talent that immediately makes its mark. It is the headquarters of names such as Zak Stern and Brad Kilgore, the former an expert in Italo-kosher breadmaking, the second a free creative spirit transplanted to Miami from Kansas in order to better express his art. Kilgore is one of the best up-and-coming chefs in the United States. We met him in his Alter. Why Miami? “I saw that there was opportunity here. Miami is growing fast and has a lively culinary scene. I came with my wife Soraya, a pastry chef. Wynwood is suited for a place like Alter. It is the creative quarter of Miami.” What inspired you when you began to cook? “I always liked classic French cuisine. You can see it in many of the techniques we use at Alter, but above all in Brava, where modern interpretations of classic dishes are on the menu. My virtual master is Alain Ducasse.” What’s your message? “Alter’s mission is to alter the view of fine dining. The restaurant is in a warehouse with little décor and an open kitchen. I use the best ingredients I can find. I try to present them in a new way, an artistic way, with each dish telling a story. Taking into account the work that a combination of such mixed goals requires, we manage to offer the menu at an affordable price in an informal atmosphere. Guests can relax, listen to good music and enjoy the ride. The inspiration for the food comes from many things, Mother Nature above all. A good product is beautiful in itself. If it’s not beautiful,

56 MAY 2017

it is still fascinating. We add the right presentation to quality and beauty – that’s the dish. I don’t like to think of food in categories like French or Italian. Inspiration can come from different traditions in the same dish. If you close creativity into a box, you’ll always have limits. I don’t think food should have any.” How do you organize your kitchen? Where do you purchase ingredients? “That requires continual research and movement. Climate in southern Florida is extreme. It’s either too hot or too rainy. Agriculture suffers and is very difficult, complicated. It’s not easy to be a farmer around here and meet market demands. We work directly with some farmers and try to support the greatest possible number.” What are your favorite ingredients? “I like natural ingredients that bring umami to the dish. I like to think about umami as the flavor that makes you want to take another bite. Whether it’s in a principal ingredient or just an accent, but powerful, it is the character I look for to structure a dish and think of it as a completed project. I love seafood. It’s delicate and difficult to manage in the kitchen, but I love challenges, so it’s my favorite food. I would like to have an aquarium and serve the freshest possible fish.” Is there a dish you’re particularly fond of? “It took me six years, from the idea to the finished product, to make The Fallen Tree. I involved my friend, an artist and architect, Mark Diaz. The dish is served on glass on a rectangular wooden box. Through the glass you can see a birch tree, lichens, algae. The composition is back lit. It’s like eating on a theatrical scene offered by nature. It’s a composition of king trumpet mushrooms, palm hearts and various herbs and vegetables, prepared to look like a tree fallen in the for- »

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with its Moorish and Spanish details and its South American palms is the place to do it. BISCAYNE BOULEVARD. The new frontier of Modern Deco in Miami runs along the upgraded Biscayne Boulevard, beyond the lagoon and at the western edge of Little Haiti. A passion for the revival of 1950s style motels created a movement of Miami Modern already seen in the Deco restoration of South Beach. The new revival wave emerging along Block 27 (between 50th and 77th Street) has a name: MiMo Biscayne Boulevard Historic District. The famous Coppertone billboard ad, in which a puppy pulls down a little girl’s bathing suit, originated here in 1958. It was put back in place after the Dade Heritage Trust donated it to the MiMo Biscayne Association. A bike ride to Morningside is a trip back to residential Miami of the 1930s. Among the projects in the Biscayne renaissance is The Vagabond Hotel, an architectural gem and a favorite of visiting Europeans and intellectuals. It had been abandoned when New Yorker Avra Jain resolved to bring it new life. Its siren mosaic on a blue background and its original and restored ceramic tiles are in place to greet new guests. In the years when Miami was Magic, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis were purportedly frequent visitors. Today the ex-motel is inscribed in the National Register of Historic Places. May Mallouh comments, “Here we live in a small community and the restaurant is one of the favorite places of those in the know. Many residents avoid the tourist neighborhoods of South Beach and come here to enjoy a quiet and welcoming evening place.” Vagabond chef, Roberto Dubois brings

Alter. A dish by chef Brad Kilgore The kitchen in EAST

58 MAY 2017

» est. The dish is described like this: Fallen tree heart of palm trunk, royal trumpet stump, branches, moss, mud, mushrooms. What’s your favorite technique and one you would like to try? Now I’m trying to create an edible mosaic. I prepare a ‘varnish’ of vegetables and aromatic herbs. I paint on a leaf and let it dehydrate, just as you would paint a picture and let it dry. But in this case, the picture has a good flavor and is organic. It’s an exciting dish. It is like seeing a piece of psychedelic art of the 1970s and being able to eat it, enjoying all the flavors. It’s called Fluke Mosaic: Indian spices, tomato hollandaise, coconut powder, roasted avocado, cilantro… »

Ethnic and Fusion places suggested by the chef

“There are a lot of fun restaurants in Miami and a vast range of cuisines. Ethnic cooking is beginning to have a great impact as many different cultures are flourishing in the city. I adore Peruvian cooking. Diego Oka’s La Mar is the best in the city. My favorite dish is Tiradito with Parmigiano (inspired by the period in which Diego worked at the Osteria Francescana) but I often order Cheufa Aeropuerto and Anticucho de Corazon (veal heart). Then there’s José Mendin, a hero in the city. He was in the brigade at the opening of Nobu Miami and was responsible for Sushisamba in the States. I like his Hispanic-Asian fusion. He invented Pubbelly Sushi. José has many restaurants in the city where you always find something new and exciting, but the most original and my favorite is Pubbelly. It has some delicious classic dishes, but is constantly creating new ones. There’s never a dull moment in his restaurants. Then there’s Deme Lomas, who does a great job at Niu. He’s the point of reference for Spanish cooking in Miami. His gazpacho with mustard sherbet is one of the best I ever tasted. Jeremy Ford is the winner of Top Chef 2016. He was chef at Matador in the Edition Hotel. He was almost unknown until a year ago. Now he’s opening a place of his own. Jamie DeRosa, at Izzy’s, is also great.” Pubbelly Sushi Miami Beach | 1424 20th Street | Miami Beach | FL 33139 | pubbellysushi.us Pubbelly Sushi Brickell City Centre | 701 S Miami Ave | Suite 421 | Miami | FL 33131 | pubbellysushi.us La Mar | Mandarin Oriental | 500 Brickell Key Dr | Miami | FL 33131 | www.mandarinoriental.com Niu Kitchen | 134 NE 2nd Ave | Miami | FL 33132 | niukitchen.com Izzy’s Fish & Oyster | 423 Washington Ave | Miami Beach | FL 33139 | izzysmiami.com Matador Room | Edition Hotel | 2901 Collins Ave | Miami Beach | Fl 33140 | www.matadorroom.com

TRAVEL

a family style to his dishes. “It is important to recognize ingredients, as you do in the simplicity of home cooking. My objective is to create food that makes you want to come back often, not only for a gourmet experience now and then, but as a reference point for the neighborhood.” The Royal Motel, from 1951, is about to re-open as a cooking school led by chef Norman Van Aken, a pioneer of Floribbean cuisine. A few motels down, after a walk in the MiMo atmosphere, is the Blue Collar, a little restaurant with few tables where chefs Daniel Serfer and Ervin Bryant cook simple dishes in a casual atmosphere. Giuseppe Galazzi, chef at Fontana

Biltmore Hotel An Italian heads Fontana Restaurant At the helm of the Fontana, inside the Biltmore Hotel, is chef Giuseppe Galazzi, from Ferrara. He has a degree in economics and a passion for food tourism. A team of fourteen make everything in house, from bread to gluten-free dishes. “I’m fascinated by the possibility of working at the highest quality levels here. We serve fresh and genuine food all the time, and for all. The Biltmore brunch is a cult event. For $100, you can drink Champagne and eat oysters all day long, besides choosing from the buffet.” We wondered where an Italian chef eats when he’s not working. “I live in South Beach, the best place for an Italian in Miami. I adore dishes made from fresh and fragrant ingredients, for example, Thai. The best place in Miami is Lung Yai Thai Tapas in Calle 8. If I want pizza, I go to Renato Viola, once called Visa-01. He opened a new place in Brickell Centre, and a third is expected in Wynwood. The name (Visa-01) referred to the visa that’s necessary to work in the United States, but he’s had to change it after the Visa credit card company objected.”

»How do you see the cuisine of the future? “It will be more and more precise. In the past, vacuum cooking was for hyper-modern chefs. Now you can even find it in Starbucks. When cooking methods are highly focused on techniques and good results will be widely available, there will be less human error and more room for creativity. The risk is that there could be more uniformity. But I believe a humanized use of advanced technology will allow more innovation in the kitchen.” Any new plans? “Right now I want to open a barbecue inspired by my home town, Kansas City.”

The swimming pool of Como Metropolitan Miami Beach

The fountain at Biltmore Hotel

TRAVEL

62 East

MAY 2017

CAMPAGNA FINANZIATA AI SENSI DEL REG. UE N. 1308/2013 CAMPAIGN FINANCED ACCORDING TO EU REGULATION N. 1308/2013

Amarone della Valpolicella Great family prestige from 5 generations

Via Costabella, 9 - 37011 Bardolino (VR) Lago di Garda - Tel. +39 045 7210022 - zeni.it

64 MAY 2017

RECIPES FROM GREAT CHEFS

by Francesco Seccagno

i t t o i b b u G o c r a M When strong agricultural tradition meets experimentation and contemporary taste, cucina is enriched by emotion and a different way of seeing. In this region, excellence is an everyday matter and the habits of genuine flavor risk being undervalued. Marco Gubbiotti offers the ancient flavors of his Umbria in a modern key

UMBRIA ESSENCE 65 MAY 2017

Not just stringozzi…

RECIPES FROM GREAT CHEFS

Born in 1971, Marco Gubbiotti knows his home territory intimately. Umbria is a region with rich traditions tied to its soil and agriculture. It has many gastronomic treasures and fine chefs. The force of the past is powerful, shaping both work in the kitchen and visitors’ expectations. Marco, who trained first in hotel school and then in the kitchens of fine local cooks, praises his Umbria and has developed a vision of the land in which he lives, an interpretation which he offers his clients. He explains how he trained “in the kitchen of Igles Corelli, Bruno Barbieri and Mauro Gualandi during the last season of Trigabolo in Argenta. I realized that cucina was something different from what I had learned. That’s where I began my true professional and creative adventure. Then, cooking in Villa Roncalli, in Foligno, alongside Sandra Scolastra, I understood how tradition can express itself in different ways, be more modern and creative, closer to the sensibilities of those who interpret it.” The lessons taught by chefs Gianfranco Vissani and Marco Bistarelli are not far from that mentality. In 1998, Gubbiotti headed the kitchen of Bastiglia in Spello, one of the most intense periods in that beautiful complex. “Step after step I began to shape my cucina, using products from my own territory, but also other excellent Italian foods. In 2002, another important experience for me was to work with Pascal Barbot, chef at Astrance in Paris. He is passionate about Asian and fusion cooking. From him I learned what simplicity and clean flavor means to a dish.” After winning a Michelin star in 2004 at the Bastiglia, positioning the Spello restaurant in 67th place among the best restaurants in the world, Marco began to think about a project of his own. In 2011, together with some friends, he founded Cucinaa Progetto Gastronomico. “This is a 360-degree kind of place. Together with a young and very well-trained staff, I can continue to plan and create. There’s a shop in a contemporary style, a sort of gourmet bazaar, we do tasting and cooking courses, catering of various kinds and for different occasions…” Consulting for the Il Milione restaurant in Hong Kong is the chef ’s most recent satisfaction. Cucinaa Progetto Gastronomico | Foligno (PG) | via Firenze, 138a | tel. 0742 22035 | www.cucinaa.it 66 MAY 2017

Diced

baccalà , C olforcella goat cheese , fava beans with mint and red C annara onions Ingredients for 4 servings For the diced baccalà 250 g well-rinsed baccalà fillets

For the onions 200 g red Cannara onions

Extra-virgin

300

g white wine vinegar

300

g white wine

olive oil

Freshly ground

pepper

For the sauce 150 g Colforcella goat cheese from Rita Rossi farm in Cascia (PG). www. colforcella . it 250

g whole milk

Salt Black peppercorns One bay leaf 700

g fresh fava beans

g butter

Fresh garlic

g flour

mint

67 MAY 2017

Prepare the sauce: make a roux with butter and flour, add boiling milk and simmer for a few seconds before adding goat cheese. Dissolve cheese and purée sauce with hand-held blender to smooth. Remove skin from de-salted baccalà (can use later to decorate plate, either fried or ovendried in strips), dice fish, dress with olive oil and ground pepper. Peel the red onions, slice into thin sections and boil in wine and vinegar flavored with bay leaf and peppercorns. Drain onions and cool. When the cooking liquid is cool, combine again with onions. Peel fava beans. (If they are small, you can leave skin.) A little before serving, sauté with fresh garlic, fresh mint, salt. Combine elements in a deep dish and serve.

RECIPES FROM GREAT CHEFS

Riso

di S emola , poached eggs alla carbonara , wild asparagus Ingredients for 4 For the eggs 6 organic eggs 10

servings

thick - cut slices salted lard

or guanciale

Freshly-ground

pepper

For the riso di semola 240 g riso di semola (rice-shaped pasta) 20

g spring onions

vegetable broth

300

g wild asparagus

5 g fresh 50

garlic

g grated

Parmigiano Reggiano

Extra-virgin

olive oil

Salt Parsley,

chopped

Remove excess pepper and skin from lard. Place lard in freezer or flash-freeze to make cutting easier. Cut heat-proof plastic wrap into a 25-30 cm square. Oil the center. Slice lard or guanciale very thin, into 12 cm square pieces, and place each in center of wrap on oiled section. Arrange the wraps above concave molds. For each, separate white and yolk. Grind pepper on white, beat lightly and spoon onto center of wrap. Place intact yolk on center of white and close wrap balloon-style. Clean wild asparagus. Keep only tender part, blanch in boiling water, cool in ice, cut off a few pieces from end to stir into riso di semola. SautĂŠ asparagus in olive oil and a little fresh garlic, add parsley and reserve. In another pan, heat other lard gently until crisp. Cook riso di semola as you would risotto. Begin with spring onion and olive oil, then add riso di semola and toast for a few seconds. Add hot vegetable broth (you can add discarded bits of asparagus to broth during preparation, then remove). Continue cooking. When almost done, add small pieces of tender asparagus and blend with olive oil and Parmigiano Reggiano. Simmer eggs gently in water, preparing two extra in case of breakage. Cook for 5 minutes, beginning with eggs at room temperature, 5Â˝ minutes if eggs are cold. Serve risotto with poached eggs on top. Be careful with eggs when removing from plastic wrap. Garnish with slices of crisp lard. 68 MAY 2017

69 MAY 2017

RECIPES FROM GREAT CHEFS

70 MAY 2017

Squab (browned

breast , raviolo with dark meat , fennel and pear chutney , spices and peas ) Ingredients for 4 servings For the squab Four middle-sized squab

100

g spring onion

Cocoa

g carrots

g bread crumbs

g celery

g macaroon crumbs

5 g fresh

garlic

Salt

powdered spices ( cinnamon ,

star anise , cardamom , ginger )

Vinegar

1 bouquet mixed

herbs

wine

Extra-virgin

Mixed

Sage

1 clove White

g fresh egg pasta sheet

Freshly ground 80

olive oil

pepper

g peas

Fresh garlic Cooked grape must For the quick chutney 1 Williams pear 1 fennel

bulb

g light brown sugar

g apple vinegar

1 piece cinnamon stick 1 sprig rosemary

71 MAY 2017

Clean squab, reserve livers. De-bone the birds, removing breasts whole with the backbone attached. Remove part of the breast to cook and serve separately (see photo). Remove skin and make raviolo filling with dark meat. Brown the livers over high heat with olive oil and fresh garlic. Add sage, vinegar, fresh black pepper and salt. Chop the livers with the raw meat and adjust seasoning. Cook the pasta sheets, cool, dry, and cover with a very thin layer of chopped squab. Place in refrigerator covered with plastic wrap. Make broth with bones. Brown them in a pan, then add celery, carrot, onion, fresh garlic, clove. Cook for a few minutes, then add white wine. Add the herb bouquet and cover with abundant ice. Cover pan and cook for 2 hours adding liquid if necessary. When ready, strain. and If necessary, reduce further. Prepare the chutney: cut the pear and fennel into cubes. Combine with rest of ingredients and cook over high heat to caramelize without their changing color. Shell peas and blanch in boiling water for a few seconds. Drain and sautĂŠ with a little fresh garlic and rosemary. For the spice powder, ideally start with fresh spices and grind them, but powdered ones can be used. Add them to bread crumbs with a pinch of cocoa powder and macaroon crumbs. When ready to serve, brown the breasts on all sides and roast in oven for 5 minutes. Cut the dark meat raviolo into squares, dust with spice and crumb powder, arrange on plate and place other ingredients on top. To complete, moisten with the reduced broth and decorate with chutney, herbs, peas and cooked grape must. SautĂŠ the breasts for a few seconds over high heat and arrange on plate.

RECIPES FROM GREAT CHEFS

Strawberry

and basil sherbet, custard, hemp biscotto Ingredients for 4 servings For the sherbet 500 g ripe strawberries (reserve 100 g for sauce) 100 g sugar syrup (50% water, 50% 5 g basil

sugar )

leaves

For the custard 250 g milk 80

g sugar

1 yolk Lemon For the hemp biscotto 60 g bread flour 60

g hemp flour

g light brown sugar

g almond flour

g extra - virgin olive oil

Lemon Combine the sherbet ingredients in a Pacojet container (or else blend, strain and use ice-cream maker) Heat milk with lemon zest. Work together egg yolk and sugar, then add to milk and heat in double boiler to make a custard. For the biscotto: combine the ingredients without handling too much. Crumble the dough and bake in 175°/350°F oven for 15 minutes. Purée the 100 g of strawberries and strain. Serve. 72 MAY 2017

73 MAY 2017

RECIPES FROM GREAT CHEFS

Diced baccalà, Colforcella goat cheese, fava beans with mint and red Cannara onions

Riso di Semola, poached eggs alla carbonara, wild asparagus

Il Venco 2013 | Marco Merli | Perugia | fraz. Casa del Diavolo

“Marco Merli is a young Umbrian winemaker who works with passion and with hands impregnated with wine,” the chef explained. “This Grechetto, which is well structured and aromatic, stands up to the raw baccalà well. It masks the tannin in the fava beans and enhances the goat cheese which, since it loses some of its acidity in the sauce, balances the wine.”

“This is the premium wine of the Roccafiore winery, a fresh, mineral Grechetto di Todi that goes well with the green flavor of the asparagus and the aroma of wild herbs. Its complexity, since it is aged in large barrels for 12 months, perfectly supports the fattiness of the egg in the carbonara.”

Squab (browned breast, raviolo with dark meat, fennel and pear chutney, spices and peas)

Strawberry and basil sherbet, custard, hemp biscotto

Montefalco Sagrantino Collenottolo 2012 | Tenuta Bellafonte | Bevagna (PG) | tenutabellafonte.it

Vermouth Numero Uno | Cantina Raina | Montefalco (PG) | loc. Turri | www.raina.it

“This is an elegant wine, with good acidity and little tannin,” explained Marco Gubbiotti. “It is a monovarietal sagrantino, vinified naturally and with indigenous yeasts. It is aged in large barrels so it doesn’t take on too much wood. It enhances the characteristics of the squab and other red meats. The spices then bounce between the dish and the glass in intriguing equilibrium.”

“This was made for the first time by the Raina winery from indigenous Umbrian grapes. The wine is worked slowly with infusions of herbs, spices and citrus fruit blended in a secret recipe by winemaker Francesco Mariani and the Distilleria Quaglia in Castelnuovo Don Bosco. In this dessert, it pairs marvelously with the hemp and the egg custard. The strawberry seems to melt into the liquid in the glass,” said the chef.

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75 MAY 2017