Gambero Rosso Wine Travel Food n.165 by Gambero Rosso

The Silent Revolution of Underwater Wines

Wine Travel Food

Year 26 ∙ number 165 march-april 2024 gamberorosso.it

28. World Tour Africa. Nairobi by Marco Sabellico

30. World Tour Europe. Zurich by Giuseppe Carrus

36. World Tour Europe. Munich

40. Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris is growing but there is much space for improvement by Lorenzo Ruggeri

46. World Tour USA by Marco Sabellico

50. ProWein lays bare

The fears of the Wine World by Lorenzo Ruggeri 62 >Food

15. The rosé of Abruzzo that challenges Provence by Alessio Turazza

18. My Prosecco col fondo that has bewitched the United States by Loredana Sottile

70. Gobbledygook in the kitchen

4 >Editorial

you don't know,

the sea

Lorenzo Ruggeri

>Cover

ask

Story

The surprise of wines aged under the sea by Lorenzo Ruggeri 14 >Wine

64 Recipes. Giacomo Lovato by Clara Barra

(not) to

a menu

Umbria New Wave Gourmand revival with a green heart by Antonio Boco Wine Travel Food The Silent Revolution of Underwater Wines Year 26 number 165 march-april 2024 gamberorosso.it

How

write

72 >Travel 73

Editor Gambero Rosso S.p.A.

via Ottavio Gasparri, 13/17 - 00152 Roma +3906551121 - fax 0655112260

gambero@gamberorosso.it

Director Marco Mensurati

Senior Editor Lorenzo Ruggeri

Translation Eleonora Baldwin

Graphic Project Tina Berenato - TB design Layout Maria Victoria Santiago, Chiara Buosi

Contributors

Clara Barra, Antonio Boco, Giuseppe Carrus, Stefano Polacchi, Sonia Ricci, Marco Sabellico, Loredana Sottile, Alessio Turazza, Michele

Vaccari

Photos and drawings

Andrea Di Lorenzo, Messe Düsseldorf, Michele D'Ottavio, Lido Vannucchi, AdobeStock, Vinitaly, Jamin Winery

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If you don’t know, ask the sea

by Lorenzo Ruggeri

We have always thought of wines aged at the bottom of the sea as senseless talk. A fairy tale to be told to gullible wine lovers, possibly with large and generous wallets. On the other hand, wines resting in the silence of the abyss had never excited us when we tasted them, we basically didn't even know what to expect. Where would the big news be? "They are incredibly tastier," someone had told us. Hogwash. That's not the case, not least because greater flavour would, if anything, be attributable to unwanted seawater penetration in the bottle: not exactly a minor problem from a hygiene point of view. And yet, in our blind comparative studies (same producer, wine and vintage, aged in cellars and in the sea respectively) we found some notable differences. No, it is not just a suggestion. On the other hand, the experiments with Mozart and music had also made us reconsider, revisiting that sceptical attitude typical of wine tasters, reluctant to anything new, always defending their fortress of knowledge. The wines are unquestionably different, amidst a flood of lies and legends, blindly after a few attempts we could already anticipate which of the two wines had sampled the seabed. Each type seems to respond differently and without doubt the peculiar refinement seems to benefit the structured reds in particular, with fine work on the tannic network typical of a very slow and gradual wait. On the other hand, without having to experiment with expensive underwater methods, it is enough to taste the same wine in Rome or Sydney to sometimes notice certain subtle differences. Which often have to do with long boat journeys, rarely to unwanted temperature changes en route. On the other hand, the Romans had already identified how much wine changes during travel, and seaworthy wine is the basis of many historical books. And how can we not mention the English merchants - right, Woodhouse? - who invented Marsala at the end of the 18th century precisely to reinforce and help the liquid contained in the casks during its travels by ship. Whether aged at sea or in the belly of a mountain, wine responds differently because it is a living product. All these experiments remind us how crucial the wine conservation phase is, which is too often still neglected. Yet, it makes all the difference in the world! As does the different evolution depending on the container, magnum or single bottle, or the closure. We are studying the subject of screw caps or cork in the depths. Meanwhile, we enjoy the mystery of the sea.

The surprise of wines aged under the sea

Compared with “traditional” bottles, the ones from the abyss win.

Stories and labels: the tests by Lorenzo Ruggeri

Shells, corals and encrustations on the necks of bottles seasoned with rich storytelling on the side and generous prices to say the least. Sounds like the perfect recipe to irritate a good chunk of wine lovers. Yet behind the labels refined at the bottom of the sea lies a complex world of research and innovation. One thing is certain: wine that has rested in the darkness of the abyss changes flavour; the influence is there and it is perceived on a sensory level. This is demonstrated by blind tastings, it is not just suggestion, each type seems to respond differently to marine influences. Let’s take a step back, water and wine have never got along very well. A turning point came on a hot summer day. It is 16 July 2010 when a diver spots a wreck lying on the seabed south of the ÅLand archipelago in the Baltic Sea, on the border between Sweden and Finland. It is a ship that disappeared back in 1840, shuttling between France and the Tsar’s court in St. Petersburg. On board, 55 metres down, an unusual booty is found: 168 bottles of

Champagne. Forty-seven of these are identified quite nimbly; they are from a small maison that is still active, Veuve Clicquot. The bottles tasted by a jury of international experts are surprisingly still in good shape, the Champagne was sweet, as in the dictates of the time, but the evolution was clearly better than expected.

The potential

The spotlight is turned on the potential of the abyss, the absence of light and the constantly low temperatures of the deep sea acquire the scent of opportunity. The dances open, research and experimentation movements gain strength, especially in Spain and Italy. To be fair, a couple of visionaries were already ahead of their studies. Prominent among them was Piero Lugano of the Bisson winery in Chiavari, who decided to refine

All photos are by Jamin in Portofino winery in Santa Margherita Ligure, which refines the wines of several wineries at sea

>Shipwreck

In 2010, the discovery under the sea of a wreck laden with Champagne for the Tsar triggered the idea that the depths can help wine

Underwater wine producers in Italy and around the world

Italy

Baia del Sole

Bisson

Casa Sabaino

Liguria

Parovel/Serena Wines 1881

Veneto/FriuLi

Siridia

Veneto

Tenuta del Paguro

emiLia romagna

Campo al Signore

Terre di Talamo toscana

Cantina di Venosa

BasiLicata

Cantine Tommasone campania

Paolo Leo pugLia

Le Profondità moLise

Benanti

Francesco Intorcia

Passopisciaro

Tenuta Navarra siciLia

Santa Maria La Palma sardinia

Spain

Bodega Crusoe Treasure

Vina Maris - Bodegas Carchelo

ElixSea

France

Veuve Clicquot

Leclerc Briant

Drappier

Château Larrivet Haut-Brion

Croatia

Edivo Vina

Greece

Gaia Wines

Chile

Viña Casanueva

his classic method at a depth of 60 metres as early as 2009. The intuition was born out of necessity: he did not have sufficient space in his cellar for storage, so he decided to age the bottles (crown cap) underwater and then disgorge them on dry land.

Initial tests

On the Adriatic shore, Gianluca Grilli was among the first to sink his wines. As a marine base he chose a seabed of the former Paguro platform, the Agip station installed off Ravenna that exploded in 1965. Over time, it formed a seabed at a depth of 35 metres that began to host Albana, Sangiovese and more. The initiatives of individual producers were joined over time by a specialised company, founded in 2015 by three young men: Jamin Underwater Wines in Portofino. Today it is among the world’s leading companies, not producing wine but providing services and know-how. It manages all loading and unloading operations, monitoring and data analysis. Thanks to a private event organised by Ais Lazio, we were able to see for ourselves a rapidly developing reality. Globally, in 2022 there were about 400,000 bottles aged at the bottom of the sea, in 2021 there were only 100,000. The figure for 2023 is around 800,000 and 150,000 come from our seas. In Italy, there are about ten wineries that autonomously choose to age seafood wine, many rely on Jamin, which has already validated about 200 wine references.

Depth

Pure marketing operation or suggestion? We talked about this with Antonello Maietta - for three terms at the head of the Italian Sommelier Association - now president of Jamin. «Constant temperature and pressure on the cork are the defining elements, it is as if the wine were resting in a hyperbaric chamber,» he begins. In the depths of the Mediterranean the temperature is between 13 and 14 degrees, a kissing assist for the wine. «Of course, if all you want is the encrustation on the bottles, you only

need to attach them to a little boat on the dock for a month. The work we do is slightly more complex» he points out. Every 10 metres of depth you acquire one bar of pressure, around 50 metres you have the same atmospheres as a Metodo Classico. The underwater cellars monitored are located in Portofino, Ravenna, Termoli, Acquappesa and Scarlino. But given the boom in demand, openings are already in the pipeline in Cala Violina (Grosseto), Pantelleria and many more. If viticulture is moving ever higher up the mountain, ageing is aiming for the abyss to take advantage of the coolness of the sea. The effect on wine? «Every category of wine has a specific response. It depends on the variety, the type of processing, and how long it matures underwater. Our protocols are

calibrated on 6-month intervals, there are bottles that have been maturing under water since 2016. We tasted 12 samples strictly blind, the same wine aged in the cellar and at sea. The changes are evident even to a non-expert taster, but with mixed results. The experiments on bubbles were the first, but I am not convinced that it is the product that benefits the most. In general, wines that are too delicate, such as very light whites, are not good. It is a different matter with very tannic reds and in general wines with appropriate alcohol contents, at least 13%. And now we are also cellaring vermouth and gin under water». In short, Prosecco under water makes very little sense. The first difference we notice is that of colour. Already from the reflections we can guess which of

Argentum Bonum, the Gewürztraminer of Elena Walch: a special selection refined in a historic silver mine in Val Ridanna

the two samples has been lulled by the sea currents. In fact, they have brighter and more luminous tones, less concentrated than the same vintage aged in the cellar. Only on Francesco Intorcia’s excellent Marsala Vergine Riserva 1980 do we have no clues. No, we do not perceive a more intense minerality flaunted by several producers. Fortunately, this would be a clue to an unintended contamination. The discriminating factor seems to be time, sometimes accelerated, sometimes compressed.

Tasting

On the whole, sea wines seem younger, fresher and snappier, the slower and more gradual evolution reminiscent of the magnum and standard bottle comparison. The acidity, in particular, is more pronounced in the sea wines. We also taste two Champagnes, Jamin’s own labels made by the well-known Drappier maison. The sample aged for 18 months at sea has a finer carbonation and is more integrated into the structure than the sample aged only 12 months on the seabed. «In order to proceed with underwater ageing, a state concession must be obtained, a bureaucratic process must be undertaken and complex equipment must be used. You need baskets of 500 and 1000 bottles with sensors, you need to rent a pontoon boat for the operations that cost between 12 and 13 thousand for the dive and as much for the extraction. Because of pressure, divers are forced to stop every 10 metres. The operating costs? They can impact between 4 and 16 euros per bottle depending on the quantity. That is why it only makes sense to refine wines that in the imagination can snatch a certain price threshold.»

It is no coincidence that we started with Champagne.

Strange ageing techniques and where to find them

Under water, under snow, underground and in gold. In addition to submerging bottles in the seabed of seas and lakes, there are various places and materials with which unorthodox approaches are being experimented. From the abyssal depths, we move on to vertiginous heights and glacial temperatures: Vini d’Altura is a project conceived by Bruno Carpitella in which wines are aged at an altitude of 2,000 metres, among the peaks of the Gran Sasso National Park. The bottles are placed in special wooden and iron containers covered with snow. The wine remains in this state for 6-7 months, until the thaw. Same altitude, but a different environment for the Tramin and Elena Walch wineries, which leave a small production of bottles in a disused mine in Val Ridanna. Darkness, lack of UV rays, constant temperature and humidity between 90 and 100 per cent together with the lack of vibration are the basis for this method of ageing. There are those, however, who choose a different material in which to age the wine. The shape remains that of a bottle, but 24-carat gold covered in silver is used instead of glass. This is Professor Salvatore Valenti’s Anima Aurea project. His studies have shown how wine can benefit from these precious materials during its maturation and ageing. Finally, there is no shortage of experiments exploring new horizons in the history of recent oenology. In 2019, twelve Chateaux Petrus 2000 bottles remained in orbit for 14 months in the International Space Station thanks to a research project financed by the private company Space Cargo Unlimited. The resulting wine seems much more evolved than that left on Earth.

The Jamin method (from the Ligurian dialect, giaminare, meaning to work hard) involves capsules made with a mixture of shellac, wax lacquer and some natural resins.

Sustainability

The aspect of the story that convinces us least is the emphasis on environmental sustainability. The company points out energy savings due to the natural conditioning of the sea, reduction of land consumption to accommodate new bottles and protection of natural areas. Even the polymer, the film that wraps the bottles in the sea, is biodegradable. That’s all very well, but the ageing process is currently carried out on wines that are already finished and processed, labels that have obtained DOC status to be precise. So this is an extra step, an extra workload, with bottles travelling even hundreds of kilometres to sample the silence of the sea, the operations on

the seabed and the return to the cellar. The lever of sustainability seems to us somewhat forced, the thinking is however evolving. The concept of underwater cellars of proximity, so as to exploit the potential of the terroir in the vineyard and the terroir in the cellar, is entering the scene.

The projects

«Today we are faced with very different agronomic projects, there are wines that are originally designed to age under water. Analyses are becoming more and more sophisticated, the tendency is to refine at sea in the same region of origin of the wine, as close as possible to the place of production,» Maietta explains. And there are also individual experiments in lakes, such as Lake Iseo, but also in Alsace. In the United States, on the other hand, the movement is frozen, the regulations prohibiting the ageing of wine at sea for hygienic reasons.

In August 2023, two producers were prosecuted and thousands of bottles seized, yet wines aged on the Italian seabed can be safely marketed.

Jamin became a benefit company at the end of 2023 and raised 600,000 euros in a few hours through crowdfunding. Thirty per cent of the turnover is invested in research and development, on the scientific side there is a way to go. The depth of immersion generates a very peculiar pressure from the outside towards the cork, at the same time the currents generate a continuous rocking motion: the wines react to these inputs.

As in the case of wine treated with Mozart, the reorganisation is physical.

The wines find a new reorganisation, a new relationship of forces between hard and soft components. The sea does not add, it does not transform, it shapes. We avoid immersing in it wines that have little to say.

>Portofino Bianco Nostralino ’19 land

Casa Sabaino Portofino (GE)

Comparison at 12 Land or sea?

Luca Baffigo’s white is an equal blend of vermentino and bianchetta. The colour is an intense yellow, golden highlights. The aromas are ripe, of yellow peach and ginger. The taste is savoury, slow-paced, with a light spiciness and earthy notes to enliven the finish. It lacks a hint of freshness but has balance and good aromatic modulation.

>Portofino Bianco Nostralino ’19 sea

Casa Sabaino Portofino (GE)

Six months in the Cala degli Inglesi in Portofino. The colour is bright and shiny, with green reflections, clearly lighter than the sample on the ground. The aromas are lashings of freshly cut grass and bergamot, with a slight undertone of toasted almond. The palate is taut, citrine, with a finish of ginger and basil. It seems three years younger than the “traditional” sample.

>Bolgheri Rosato ’18 land

Campo al Signore Castagneto Carducci (LI)

Slightly stronger and more intense colour than the sea sample. The volumes are certainly more intense and more evolved, in particular the spicy note is more marked. The mouth has more texture, more volume but also less distension and persistence. The difference in this case is not as marked, but it is noticeable on the nuances of intensity and aromatic integrity

>Bolgheri Rosato ’18 sea

Campo al Signore Castagneto Carducci (LI)

Pale pink colour and still bright for this blend of Sangiovese and Merlot. The nose is reduced, then opens on tones of dried flowers and tangerine. The palate is crisp, relaxed and rhythmic, with hints of pepper, paprika and almond to give it drive. Not very long but of discreet harmony. Aged for seven months at the canonical minus 52 metres.

>Champagne Cloè Marie

Kottakis 52 Limited Edition

sea 12 months

Jamin UWW

Portofino (GE)

Partially Italian Champagne: produced by Drappier, it is a Pinot Noir from Aube: 24 months on the lees, zero dosage and low sulphite level. It matured in the marine area of Portofino for 12 months. Brilliant with coppery veins, it is fragrant with apple and peach and baked bread. The carbonation is creamy, accompanying tones of raspberries and apple pie. Soft and balanced finish.

>Champagne Cloè Marie

Kottakis 52 Selection Edition

sea 24 months

Jamin UWW

Portofino (GE)

Lighter and brighter reflections; more citrusy aromas (orange peel next to apple and peach). The palate is grittier, the acidity is more distinct, with raspberry and citrus notes. Pure and airy finish, the carbonation is finer and more enveloping, it has more articulation.

Sensation: a traditional cuvée with an extra 18 months on the lees.

>Romagna Albana

Squilla Mantis ’19 land

Tenuta del Paguro Ravenna

Colour of good concentration, with reflections between amber and golden. The aromas are very reminiscent of dried fruit, nuts and almonds, with a hint of citrus zest. A good example of a territorial wine. The taste is savoury but a little crushed by the peel and maceration notes, slightly phenolic. The alcohol makes itself felt on the finish.

>Romagna Albana

Squilla Mantis ’19 sea

Tenuta del Paguro

ravenna

The colour is lighter and brighter, with delicately greenish reflections. The aromas are very different, ranging from cedar to almond. The structure is undoubtedly more compact, with the hard and acidic parts more in evidence, but also a greater and more precise relaxation of flavour. Much fresher than the earthy one. Albana seems to respond well to marine influences.

>Aglianico del Vulture Sup.

Carato Venusio ’13 land

Cantina di Venosa

Venosa (PZ)

We move to Basilicata in the municipality of Venosa at an altitude of about 500 metres. The aromas are distinctly roasted, with strong tones of cocoa, liquorice roots and powdered coffee. The mouth is voluminous, crushed on the toasted profile, for a wine that still seems far behind in its evolution. The finish is drying, with tannins that are, to say the least, exuberant and a little rough.

>Aglianico del Vulture Sup.

Carato Venusio ’13 sea

Cantina di Venosa

Venosa (PZ)

It seems like another wine: the aromas are finer and more airy, from toasty sensations it goes on to balsamic and black fruit registers. The taste is creamier and more enveloping while maintaining hardness and structure, the aromas veer from dried herbs to tar, there is more fruit. The finish is long and harmonious. The polymerisation of the tannin here is incredible, we return to the glass several times and find only confirmation.

>Marsala Vintage Riserva ’80 land

Francesco Intorcia Heritage

Marsala (TP)

Marsala of great authenticity matured for over 35 years in oak barrels. A finely peaty nose, it smells of nuts and dates, with fresh sensations of orange peel. The palate is still hard, alive, with notes of infused citrus and a wonderful sensation of bitter almond. We dream of pairing it with a crostini and a smoked salmon of the right kind.

>Marsala Vintage Riserva ’80 sea

Francesco Intorcia Heritage

Marsala (TP)

We do not notice any particular differences in colour. The sensations are more spicy, with notes of dried flowers and a sweeter tendency. The mouth has a more perceptible alcohol, more viscous, accentuated umami sensations. It seems older, blindly we think it is the traditional one. The wine has already matured for over 40 years.

wine

The rosé of Abruzzo that challenges Provence

Chefs and sommeliers talk about the character and versions of a historic wine that pairs well with haute cuisine

by Alessio Turazza

In the wake of the success of Provence, with its very light pink wines and delicate aromas, many Italian regions - and many countries around the world - have begun to look with more interest at rosés. This type represents more than 10% of the wines drunk in the world; in France, consumption exceeds 35%. In Italy, rosé production stands at around 10% of all wines made, about half of which are destined for export.

While many territories have followed the style of Provence, Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo has remained impervious to fashion. Its Montepulciano-based wines are characterised by an intense pink colour, fruity richness and dense texture, resulting in a deep and persistent sip. Because of its characteristics, it finds its ideal place at

the table. We explored the subject in depth with the chefs and sommeliers of the five starred restaurants in Abruzzo.

At Ristorante D.One

Our journey into Cerasuolo starts at the D.One restaurant, with sommelier Luca Fabiocchi working with owner Nuccia De Angelis and chef Davide Pezzuto. Is it a real boom? «Cerasuolo is gaining an important slice of the market and many companies are producing excellent versions of it,» explains Fabiocchi. «The regulations, however, allow the use of 15% of other red grapes: this, combined with the natural inclination to follow fashions and trends a little, leads to wines that are too simple. I am convinced that Cerasuolo must remain faithful to its identity and continue to be a rosé with

an intense colour, good structure and aromatic intensity». With Cerasuolo we are in the world of rose wines. How do they work today in relation to a wine list that has to play with increasingly complex and diversified menus?

Pastore 2.0: D.One’s fagottelli dedicated to Gregorio Rotolo and his cheese

Like a Villa Maiella carpaccio: veal marinated in coffee and mountain cumin

«Among rosés it has the most important place. On the wine list, we have labels of Cerasuolo from wineries in Abruzzo that make wines in the classic style,» says the sommelier. «For some labels, we propose different vintages to show the evolutionary characteristics of the wine. However, I also find the rosés from Puglia, those from Etna and even some rosés from Tuscany interesting». But what is the specificity of Abruzzo rosés?

«Cerasuolo is definitely a versatile wine, which goes well with both seafood and meat dishes. It is perfect with some of the dishes on our menu: Fagottelli filled with Gregorio Rotolo’s cheese, Cuttlefish Tagliatellina with rice chips and Tropea red onion gel, the Manzetta abruzzese with smoked black cardamom and Grandma Mariuccia’a onion»..

At Reale by Niko Romito

With Gianni Sinesi, sommelier at Niko Romito’s Reale restaurant in Castel di Sangro, we talked in particular about pairings with vegetarian dishes. Which are not exactly part of an imaginary linked to tradition... «Of course, Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo has always been a wine of tradition. Thanks to innovation and the evolution of cellar techniques, however, today it is also a wine of research». And is it also a wine that “stands up” to Niko’s research dishes - particularly on vegetables? «The chef’s research into the vegetable world has led to very intense and distinctive dishes in which acid and bitterness are often the protagonists. Cerasuolo, for example, goes very well with vegetables that present these trends such as roasted escarole, lettuce, or the dish with broccoli leaf and aniseed, artichoke with radicchio and peanuts». Only vegetables? «Absolutely not. Certainly Cerasuolo plays very well with our

dishes that range in the world of meat at 360 degrees: I’m thinking of roast squid, pigeon fondant and pistachio, and sea bass, lentils, hazelnut and garlic».

Villa Maiella in Guardiagrele

We move on to Guardiagrele to meet Pascal Tinari, sommelier of the family restaurant, Villa Maiella, and to hear his experiences on Cerasuolo. «Our proposal is very much characterised by respect for the territory and the search for authenticity of the products and ingredients we use. Cerasuolo fits perfectly into this vision and that is why we do not offer rosés from other regions on the menu. Cerasuolo is very versatile: it offers a range of different interpretations, depending on the area of origin and the style of the producer. Wines from the mountains express more freshness, those from the coast are richer». So, staying strictly within the territorial sphere, what are the best dishes to pair with Abruzzo rosé? «A well-structured Cerasuolo goes very well with our intensely flavoured cured meats, certainly with our Pallotta cacio e uovo. It can, however, also go well with a brodetto alla vastese or with barbecued lamb dishes, or with chicken al coppo, which is cooked in a pan directly over the fireplace». Pascal has also been involved in several experiences abroad, in France in particular. What - if anything - differentiates the Italian approach to rosé wines from the French trends? «Apart from the Tavel appellation, the model of the delicate and light wines of Provence dominates in France. Cerasuolo has the advantage of having its own identity and a good gastronomic propensity. I include at least one Cerasuolo in each of our tasting menus. Today it is important to work to consolidate the identity of Cerasuolo, to build value for the future. Cerasuolo has all the credentials to make its place in the world of rosés».

La Bandiera

In Civitella Casanova, we met up with chef Marcello Spadone, who told us his views on Cerasuolo and how it interacts with his menu and his idea of cuisine. «In Abruzzo, Cerasuolo has a great tradition and an important place at the table. We also have other rosé wines on the wine list, but Cerasuolo has an absolutely prominent place,» the chef says. «It goes very well with vegetable soups, legume soups and vegetable dishes in general. For example, it goes perfectly with Fracchiata, which is a soup made with broad beans, chick peas and chickpeas served with

Al Metrò: Parmigiano red prawn and tomato rice

by Nicola Fossaceca

puffed rice balls and wild chicory; but it also goes very well with pasta and beans or mushroom soup, partly cooked and partly raw, and with our crispy, almost puffed lentils». Essentially vegetable vocation, then? «No, Cerasuolo is also perfect with white meats. It is excellent with our three-cooked chicken or with a local rooster. Even with lamb cooked in a simple way, a rather concentrated and well-structured Cerasuolo can be paired». A gastronomic future, then, for Abruzzo pink? «I believe that the important thing for the future is that our Cerasuolo does not lose its identity. That is, that it does not give in to the temptation to make sweet, soft, easy wines. It must maintain its traditional face, faithful to the Montepulciano vine and to the customs of the territory, without homologating on the model

of Provençal rosés. By the way, Cerasuolo also ages well and can be tasted even a few years after the harvest».

Al Metrò di San Salvo

«Cerasuolo is a traditional wine that also goes very well with seafood dishes from Abruzzo. The Cerasuolo that comes from the vineyards higher up is finer and more delicate, less alcoholic and with more acidity, and is also perfect with fish dishes». We end our journey among the best Abruzzo tables by moving to San Salvo Marina, along the Adriatic coast. With Antonio Fossaceca, who with his brother chef Nicola runs the Al Metrò restaurant, we delved into the topic of seafood pairings. «Those who come to Abruzzo usually already know Cerasuolo. Our task is to choose a version that suits each dish in terms of structure and intensity. In our cellar, we mainly have mountain Cerasuolo labels: as I said, these are the ones that go best with the delicacy of seafood cuisine and are closest to the characteristics of a white wine in terms of delicacy and acidity». Can you please share a few examples from the menu at Al Metrò? «We start with the red prawn and tomato rice; we then move on to tuna with tomato, almond and onion; there is also turbot, stuffed courgette and squid gyoza. In fact, in the wine-tasting course with wines by the glass we always offer Cerasuolo to accompany different dishes». Can a fine dining restaurant afford to have only one rosé on the menu? «Honestly, we prefer to work with terroir wines and propose our own terroir rose wine. We have 8-9 different ones on the menu, precisely so that we can choose the best combination with each dish».

Multifaceted and versatile, sour and gentle: this is Cerasuolo, the true son of an Abruzzo yet to be discovered.

My Prosecco col fondo that has bewitched the United States

Christian Zanatta, wine producer included by the NYT among “the 12 memorable of 2023”, tells his story

by Loredana Sottile

It can happen that a famous international critic ends up by chance in a Roman trattoria, discovers a particular bottle on the wine list that surprises him, falls in love with it at first taste and decides to give it a place among the best wines of the year.

If, however, that evening, the critic in question had opted for a simple stroll through the city centre, or if his train had arrived late forcing him to go straight to his hotel, or if the owner of the restaurant had diverted him to more noble labels or, improbably, to a quart of house red, we would not be talking about it today.

It can happen, we said - if a whole series of coincidences line up in the

right way - roughly one time in a million. And yet, that one time in a million happened just a few months ago.

This is the story - more or less fictional - of Cà dei Zago’s Valdobbiadene Mariarosa Frizzante, tasted by New York Times critic Eric Asimov and finished, somewhat surprisingly, on the list of 12 memorable wines of 2023 (together with another Italian: Trebbiano d’Abruzzo Fonte Canale 2017 by Tiberio).

‘A vital, savoury, delicious wine’, writes Asimov in his review, but above allwe add - an almost unknown wine, of which only 3,500 bottles a year are produced: a drop in the great ocean

of viticulture. And yet, that drop was enough to make an impression. A real Coup de Chance (in the words of Woody Allen) in wine-making terms. Producer Christian Zanatta is a little incredulous when we contact him for this interview. He is about to start milking his cows and the first question he asks us is: ‘But is it really so important to have ended up in the New York Times’?

You tell us. After the article was published, was there an effect on sales or did everything continue as usual? I would say so. A lot of curiosity was generated and several requests came in, but unfortunately the wine is already finished for this year: we are making very few bottles.

Price?

From the cellar it comes out at 18 euros. Too little?

Technically it is now among the magnificent 12. But tell us: did you already know about the citation before you found yourself among the most surprising wines of the year? Absolutely not. Not least because Mariarosa mostly stays in Italy or at most arrives in some European capital. I know that the American critic tasted it in the trattoria La Tavernaccia in Rome. But I haven’t even heard of it. I would like to thank him.

Christian Zanatta e il suo “regno” verde a Valdobbiadene, nel cuore delle Colline del Prosecco

Perhaps, again due to that concatenation of coincidences mentioned above, Asimov will read our article. In the meantime, take away a curiosity: where does the name Mariarosa come from? A dedication?

It is a dedication to my aunt, my grandfather’s sister: the owner of the vineyard (in Saccol, Cartizze zone; ed) from which this wine comes. She has always made it the way we can taste it today. Since she passed away three years ago, we have continued to produce it following her method: a sincere refermentation, bottled in spring following the crescent moon. Compared to our other wines, it is different because it is the soil that is different: limestone soil, very difficult to work because of the rock outcrops, as well as the slope. But that is precisely the strength of this wine. Always thinking of Aunt Mariarosa, I personally designed the label with roses: she loved flowers and had a huge rose garden. I also dedicated the New York Times award to her.

If your Prosecco even ended up overseas, does that mean that the future will be wine col fondo (sediment deposit at the bottom of the bottle)?

I believe that the future will be wine made well, with or without the bottom. If bottle re-fermentation is done from a vocated area, then it becomes an amplifier of that land. As in our case. Only by starting from the terroir can you have a true wine.

And how did you come to Prosecco with the terroir? A rediscovery? Actually, I didn’t get there: for our family, wine has always been col fondo. My grandfather only conceived of it that way, even when we were against the tide.

Today we can say that this type of wine is ‘back in fashion’, but I imagine there were difficult years... Some 20 years ago, nobody wanted it. Then there were a series of events that shifted consumer awareness

towards wines that were not perfectly clear, without selected yeasts. Let’s say: more artisanal wines. We, however, have always made it this way, and since it is the company’s only livelihood, we have always focused on quality. Today, overall, our cellar produces about 50 thousand bottles. Potentially we could even reach 70 thousand. Not more..

Could we define your wines as natural?

I believe that natural wine does not exist. There is natural grape, as it is produced by nature. But wine is always produced by man. I would speak more of wine without artifice with great respect for the raw material. In our case, a wine that is the result of spontaneous fermentation, unfiltered, with indigenous yeasts and without temperature control. We say that it is the vinification that is natural.

How does biodynamics fit into this path?

Personally, I approached biodynamics because, between lunar cycles and respect for plants, it represented what we were already doing without knowing it. Basically the old way of working the vineyards. Today I cannot even call myself a biodynamic producer. Biodynamics, in fact, is quite recent (1924), whereas in my opinion in Italy there is a whole culture that predates it and already followed the same principles. My family is proof of this. That is why I would like to go back to its origins to rewrite its history.

An ambitious project. But what practices do you follow today?

One above all: never use herbicides in the vineyards. That is why I have reintroduced grass-eating cows. Moreover, they provide us with the manure that ends up in the vineyard. They help us a lot. So I have also abandoned some compounds that are typical of biodynamics. I believe much more in good manure than in preparations.

The other Ca’ dei Zago label

The work of Christian and Marika Zanatta has not gone unnoticed even in Italy. The Ca’ dei Zago winery is, in fact, present in Gambero Rosso’s Berebene guide with the winery’s other wine - Valdobbiadene Vigneto Ca’ dei Zago 2022

- whose production is a little higher than the Mariarosa, but still too little to satisfy all demands. It is still a Prosecco with a bottom: so convincing that it was awarded a score of 89 out of 100. Here is the file taken from Berebene 2024: «We are in the Prosecco lands, in San Pietro di Barbozza. Christian Zanatta, after an experience in New Zealand, has returned to the old family vineyards cultivated with glera according to biodynamic principles to relaunch bottle re-fermentation. His Prosecco Col Fondo lasts for a short time both on the market and in the bottle: rustic, mouthwatering in the yeast tract, compulsively drinkable. It leaves a lively, savoury mouthfeel »

And is that enough even in difficult years like the one just past?

No one denies that the year was bad. In July we had a hailstorm that ruined everything. However, it also depends on the location. Growing in the hills has advantages, because we have great water drainage and great ventilation, no frost or frost. These are truly vocated areas. And vocation is one of the fundamental principles of viticulture. Going back to the vintage, it went badly for everyone, but I would never go back: respect for the plant comes first.

Are there any other tricks you use?

Agriculture in my opinion is made up of important gestures, such as good pruning or moving the soil at the right time. Before you can be a winegrower, you have to learn to be a farmer and observe: timeliness is everything.

Do you also have to observe the moon cycle?

We have always done so for five generations. For example, we never prune with a waxing moon or when it is full. In terms of diseases, with a full moon, downy mildew is more aggressive. Farming means being there with your

head and eyes, otherwise nature is the first to screw you over.

Have you always believed in this way of viticulture?

Actually, I went through a deep crisis before I even crossed the ocean. I am an oenologist, as is my sister Marika, but my course of study was a real struggle: at university they taught us certain things, while at home I saw a completely different way of making wine (we still had the wooden press and here they took us for fools!). So, as I was learning the winemaking trade, I began to challenge my grandfather’s method. But I was just confused and I soon realised it.

Is there a particular moment when you had the epiphany? I would say on a plane to New Zealand. It was March 2010 and I had just finished my studies, so I decided to leave to see other ways of doing viticulture. I had with me a book that had been given to me by some friends: “Wine between earth and sky” by Nicolas Joly, the father of biodynamics. And it was there that I realised my grandfather was not alone: there was a whole movement that conceived viticulture exactly as he did.

What did your experience in New Zealand teach you?

In New Zealand I had the confirmation that many producers worked this way. I went to harvest at a wonderful winery where I learned how to deal with riesling and delicate pinot noir. But the greatest lesson was to see viticulture at home from a new perspective. Many times, standing still, we do not understand what has always been right in front of us. And so I came back with a new awareness: to carry on my grandfather’s work.

But you haven’t changed a thing about his way of making wine?

A few ‘details’: removing the pumps from the grapes, working by gravity, eliminating steel in favour of cement. Small details that, however, in my way of understanding wine are fundamental.

Is the wooden press always there?

Absolutely yes.

And your grandfather?

Unfortunately no longer since 2008. But I, my sister, my parents together with my brother-in-law and my wife continue following his teachings. As we say in our parts, ‘one makes for one and two makes for three’.

The contrast between his grandfather and ‘modern viticulture’ is somewhat emblematic of today. A topic also raised recently by the programme Report. As an oenologist and artisan winemaker, what do you think? Can a wine be made without resorting to correctives?

Um... tricky question. Let’s just say that hearing certain things makes me sick, just as it makes me sick to see the whole industry end up under indictment. In any case, what Report describes is not the way I make wine. Many of the practices mentioned are allowed, but I agree that some are used to correct mistakes that could be avoided if only more care and time were taken. I believe that big companies could be more careful, even

more so than us small producers. And do you know why? Because we have to play all the roles, whereas they can afford specialised people who pay attention to individual processes.

And would it then be possible to do without that long list of additives and adjuvants that end up in the bottle?

I don’t know what level of ‘naturalness’ we can return to, but there would certainly be a lot to start from in order to no longer be called ‘little chemists’. For example, care for the vineyard, but also the use of indigenous yeasts so that we can go back to talking about territoriality instead of standardised viticulture. Then I think about grape varieties: with our immense ampelographic heritage, is there really a need to go and plant foreign varieties that have nothing to do with the vocation of the land? My heart aches when a 100-year-old vine rootstock of Glera is removed to plant an international one.

In short, is modern viticulture too profit-driven? Is TV investigation “Report” correct?

If I cannot speak well of something, I prefer not to talk about it. Let’s put it this way: I think about selling my product by talking about my wine, not by talking badly about other people’s wine. I don’t follow certain dynamics because they distract me from my work.

Nor have you followed the events that see the Consortium for the Protection of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore and the Committee of 300 protesters in opposition, who do not accept the ‘contamination’ with Prosecco Doc?

Another insidious question. What can I tell you? I am part of the Consortium, but I don’t have time to follow these events. Besides, I have a bad temper: better to be in the middle of the woods than to take part in controversies that would lead me to smoke more than I would like.

Do you know that in spring there will be a vote for the new Consortium posts? Will a balance be found

between the Committee and the Consortium? And above all, are the “rebels” right to say that there is too much confusion with the name Prosecco?

I actually didn’t know you could vote: you see, I’m just out of touch. In any case, I believe that slope viticulture in this area is crazy and unique. If Valdobbiadene has become what it is today it is because there have been so many champions of the land who know it well and defend it. Other realities have other philosophies that do not concern us. I also firmly believe that beyond committees and associations, wine takes a stand on its own: Cartizze remains Cartizze, while Prosecco Doc is something else. Impossible for a discerning consumer to confuse.

Do you always stay in the middle of the woods or do you also occasionally travel to fairs and events?

We in the family are always in charge of sales. So yes, sometimes I take off my boots and go, but I try to focus only on events and meetings that really interest me. For example, I attend Vini Veri, which is held in Cerea on the eve of Vinitaly.

So you are not interested in Vinitaly?

On the contrary: I like it a lot and have great respect for what is the main international stage for Italian wine. Until now, however, I have never participated with a stand of my own, but I go there all the time.

If you did not make your Prosecco col fondo, what other wine would you like to produce?

Although I am located in the hills of Valdobbiadene, I am a great lover of red wines. I consider Sangiovese an incredible variety. Which is why I would say Brunello di Montalcino, but keeping true to my vocation against the tide, I would choose it a la Gianfranco Soldera. Another grape variety that fascinates me a lot is Nebbiolo. In this case, the model would be Francesco Rinaldi.

Have you ever felt like leaving your land?

I wouldn’t know where else to go. To be honest, sometimes I think about it, but then come awards like the one from the New York Times and then I realise that everything makes sense in the end.

Vinitaly time, areas to watch out for and tastings not to miss

An international agora for wine business. This is the mission of the 56th edition of the International Wine and Spirits Exhibition, which returns to Verona from April 14 to 17 and which, in an exhibition space of more than 180,000 square metres, will count on the participation of more than 4,000 wineries. A strong point is the presence of increasingly qualified international buyers, thanks to the Veronafiere-Ice recruiting program, which, between trade fair events, previews and roadshows, has fielded resources of 3 million euros.

In 2023, 29,600 international operators arrived at the Fair from 143 nations (out of a total attendance of 93,000), including more than a thousand top buyers chosen and hosted by Veronafiere and Ice-Agenzia.

THE SUBJECT AREAS OF THE 56TH EDITION

Amid confirmations and new entries, Vinitaly remains a benchmark for new consumer trends. To keep an eye on, the Organic Hall, which for this edition changes location and goes to occupy area

C. This is the hall dedicated to certified organic wine produced in Italy and abroad, which this year brings together as many as one hundred companies, with the presence of international exhibitors from Hungary, Slovenia and Austria. Confirmed for

The 56th edition of the Verona Wine Fair kicks off: business at the trade fair, wine lovers flood the city More space for extra virgin olive oil with the International Olive Oil Trade Show

2024 is the Enoteca Bio and tastings in the pavilion in collaboration with FederBio and Vi.Te.

Also in the same area is Micro Mega Wines - Micro size, mega quality: the exhibition unit under the banner of “small is beautiful” conceived by wine writer Ian D’Agata for Vinitaly. Niche limited-run productions are at the centre of the project. Space is also given to foreign labels, in the International Wine Hall (marquee D), including champagnes, but also wines produced in Georgia, Hungary, Brazil, Armenia, South Africa, Greece and those adhering to the Open Balkan project (Serbia, Albania and Northern Macedonia).

For fans of mixed drinks, the appointment is on the second floor of Palaexpo with Mixology, the exhibition section that for three years now has been expressing the art of cocktails and mixing wines,

spirits and liqueurs based on new international trends. Scheduled during the four-day event are master classes led by the most talented and in vogue bartenders.

Among the novelties of this edition is the pavilion entirely dedicated to olive oil. For its 28th edition, in fact, Sol goes back to its origins, transforming itself into the International Olive Oil Trade Show, in which there is also space for the derivatives of green gold, such as table olives, pickled vegetables, spreads made with evo oil, up to flavoured oils, products for cosmetics and nutraceuticals. And there is also a space here for a Gambero station offering tastings of the best Tre Foglie extra virgin oils evaluated by the Gambero Rosso Oli d’Italia, which is presented right here at Vinitaly, April 15 at 3 p.m. at Palaexpo. Beer, which in previous years had been housed

Veronafiere President Federico Bricolo with CEO Maurizio Danese

inside the Sol & Agrifood pavilion, will in turn be able to count on a specific area that will bear the name Xcellent Beers (area I): a show within the show with a small autonomous pavilion that will bring together artisanal and foreign beers and will be located near the international area. A location that will certainly give them greater visibility and prominence.

THE TASTINGS NOT TO BE MISSED

If business is at the centre of Veronafiere’s objectives, tastings are an essential step during the days of Vinitaly.

Cutting the ribbon of tastings is the customary walkaround tasting of Gambero Rosso’s Tre Bicchieri (Sunday, April 14 from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Palaexpo’s Sala Argento), which brings the best labels from the Vini d’Italia 2024 guide to the fair.

The following day, in the same hall, don’t miss the Orange Wine Festival (11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sala Argento Palaexpo) to get up close and personal with the best expressions of the type.

Space also for Young to Young (April 14, 15 and 16 - hall A second floor hall 10), the tastings in which young producers tell their stories to young wine communicators under the direction of wine and food journalists Paolo Massobrio and Paolo Gatti. For fans of bubbles, the appointment is for April 15 with Cool under pressure Italy’s sparkling world (11 a.m. at Sala Tulipano Palexo) curated by Master of Wine Gabriele Gorelli. To the great reds is, instead, dedicated to tasting the four big B’s of Italian wine: Barbaresco, Barolo, Bolgheri and Brunello signed

by Ian D’Agata (April 16 at 11 a.m., Sala Argento Palaexpo). Finally, the great native Italian wines are the focus of the tasting conducted by oenologist Riccardo Cotarella (April 16, 3 p.m., sala Argento Palaexpo).

EVENTS IN THE CITY

Vinitaly’s appointments do not all end within the fair perimeter. If the fair confirms itself as the centre of the wine business, the city is now the favourite destination for wine lovers. From April 12 to 15, in fact, Vinitaly and the city is on stage, the off-site event designed for enthusiasts that takes place in the centre of the city of Verona, including tastings and show cooking.

In addition, as usual, the eve of the fair is under the banner of Vinitaly Opera Wine (Gallerie Mercatali, Saturday, April 13), with 131 producers selected by Wine Spectator and Veronafiere for the 13th edition of the premiere event of the international fair that every year shines a spotlight on the ambassadors and iconic labels of Italian wine in the States. The theme of Vinitaly Operawine 2024’s layout is opera, inscribed as of this year in UNESCO’s Intangible Heritage and a symbol of Verona throughout the world thanks to the Arena Opera Festival.

INTERNATIONAL WINE HALL

- EXHIBITING WINERIES FROM:

Georgia - France - Lithuania - South Africa

Dominican Republic - Hungary - Serbia - Albania

- North Macedonia - Greece - Slovenia - ArmeniaRomania - Brazil - Moldova - China

Vinitaly

Verona

viale del Lavoro, 8 vinitaly.com

fvinitalyofficial

$vinitalyofficial

The Tenuta Luisa Wine Resort: the authentic pleasure of hospitality in Friuli

On the banks of the Isonzo river, refined itineraries and taste experiences among nature, history and culture.

A family rooted in the world of agriculture for five generations. The Isonzo land is the cradle of some of the most precious grape varieties, an Italian area that is the destination of a tourism that is attentive to the authenticity of the proposals: Tenuta Luisa offers wines of recognized quality, telling the story of a family and of a place rich in traditions, offering visits, tastings, stays, hospitality and welcome itineraries that aim to make the experience of wine a rich and multifaceted one.

THE ENCHANTMENT OF THE ISONZO

The estate is located in Mariano del Friuli, in the heart of the Friuli Isonzo DOC region, an area devoted to viticulture since ancient times. The cross-border Isonzo River dominates its morphology, with its ex-

Sauvignon: one of the excellences to be tasted at Tenuta Luisa Wine Resort

traordinary and almost unreal emerald waters, flowing through Slovenia and then Friuli to flow into a nature reserve of rare beauty: the Cona Island, with its fascinating Camargue horses.

Considered among the most beautiful rivers in Europe from a naturalistic point of view, theatre of crucial battles during the First World War, setting of small settlements and ancient villages full of charm, the Isonzo, with its rich territory, knows how to welcome even the most demanding travellers.

THE PROPOSALS OF GORIZIA

2025: EUROPEAN CAPITAL OF CULTURE

In its path we can also find Gorizia, the symbol of Mitteleuro¬pa, which has always been a crossroads of peoples, languages, traditions and the next European Capital of Culture 2025 together with the neighboring Nova Gorica, which promises to enrich its tourist offer with many events and initiatives as of now.

THE TENUTA LUISA WINE RESORT

The Tenuta Luisa Wine Resort is the ideal landing place to visit this varied territory: an old family farm converted into a guesthouse, where every choice and every detail reveal the pleasure and cult of hospitality.

In the heart of the village of Mariano del Friuli, where the charm of history meets the silence of nature, close to evocative cycle paths and fascinating tourist destinations, this elegant B&B offers a break that can envelop all the senses, enriching one’s stay with culinary experiences, refined wines, tastings and taste itineraries built with care and love by Signora Federica, who animates it and destined to leave a mark to be remembered over the years.

Tenuta Luisa

Info and reservations:

Wine Resort Tenuta Luisa +39 0481 69680

Via Cormons, 19 - Mariano del Friuli (GO)

info@tenutaluisa.it

www.tenutaluisa.it

World Tour Africa. Nairobi

Italian

wine is betting

on Kenya:

up 17% in one year

by Marco Sabellico

The Top Italian Wines Roadshow debuts in Nairobi, Kenya. a country where wine imports from Italy have grown 17 percent in one year. The arrival at Loresho Ridge (on the outskirts of the capital) of wine lovers and operators also from neighboring Tanzania and Uganda and even West Africa confirmed the great interest in Italian labels. Here, in the large Shamba hall (almost a set of La Mia Africa), the day under the banner of Italian wine was opened by the speech of the Italian Ambassador, Roberto Natali: «Kenyans increasingly appreciate Italian wine,» he said, «thanks also to the industriousness of our restaurateurs in the country. Wine imports have grown by 17 percent in the last year, and we are now the third largest country, behind France and neighboring South Africa, but we can

grow further.»

«Italian wine fascinates us,» added journalist Victoria Mulu-Muniwoki, one of the most heard voices in the Kenyan food and wine scene. «It is complex and different from other countries in the world because of its richness of typical grape varieties, styles and terroirs,» she said, «which is why it needs to be communicated, told. Kenyans love Italy and its products, and this love is reciprocated by the Italians who choose Kenya as a vacation destination. A beautiful, fulfilling, growing relationship.»

"Kenya is a wealthy country, 50 percent of the population has the ability and resources to buy wine, and consumption is growing," says Stefano Libianchi, owner of Missis Di wine shop and Room Wine Kenya

Import, in Watamu, and eCommerce MyA-zone.com, which serves the retail channel. «In addition,» he adds, «Nairobi is an international city, with 20 percent of the population being foreigners, since Fao and the representations of so many international bodies are here. There is also a differentiation in consumption: sparkling and big red wines are going strong in Nairobi, while on the coast rosé whites and lighter reds, certainly better suited to seafood cuisine. We sell a lot to private individuals, but wine shops are multiplying, and then there is the Italian restaurant industry that absorbs a lot. In short, a stimulating, growing landscape that needs new proposals all the time and, above all, presence. Events like these are crucial for the development of our export....»

Confirming these statements was the success of the two master classes held by Marco Sabellico, accompanied by Victoria Mulu-Munywoki, which were sold out.

Satisfied were the Italian producers present. «Prosecco is going strong here,» Consuelo Donetto, export manager of Treviso-based Villa Sandi, told us, «thanks not only to tourists but to Kenyan consumers who

appreciate it very much. And this is an important market, a reference for all of sub-Saharan Africa, which must be cultivated and guarded.»

«We expect great satisfaction from Kenya,» echoes Alan Gaddi of Friulibased Zorzettig, «we have great whites, sparkling and red wines that go perfectly with Italian and international cuisine, with local products. And Italy exerts a great fascination here....»

18 restaurants awarded

During the day, there was also the presentation of certificates to the most popular Italian establishments selected for an initial inclusion in the Top Italian Restaurants in the World guide, as many as 18 from Nairobi, Mombasa, Malindi and Watamu.

The Best Contemporary Wine list Award went to the delightful restaurant-wine bar The Wine Box - Cave à Manger in Nairobi, which is strong with more than 50 Italian wine labels and a prestigious international assortment.

Some moments of the Top Italian Wines Roadshow tasting in Kenya at Michelle Girardi's Shamba Cafe, inside the experimental fields of the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Nairobi Left the Italian Ambassador, Roberto Natali

World Tour Europe. Zurich

One out of every four bottles of wine consumed in Switzerland is Italian.

The return of Gambero Rosso in Zurich

by Giuseppe Carrus

The temperature is low, but the day promises to be beautiful and perhaps the sun will come out in the afternoon.

A charming mist envelops Zurich. As we are about to head to Lake Side, an event space about half an hour's walk from the city centre for the Gambero Rosso's Vini d'Italia tasting, we come across some thought-provoking news.

A fourth of the wine consumed in Switzerland is Italian and the figure is steadily rising.

Italian wines in Switzerland exceed by double those of France

In recent years, as is the case in several countries in Europe, average consumption per capita in Switzerland has fallen, by a good 7 percentage points, but despite this, preferences for labels from the Belpaese are growing

(an even more encouraging fact if we think that foreign wines have fallen by 9%). A love, that of the Swiss towards Italian wine, which blossomed about twenty years ago and has never been interrupted since. It is surprising if we think that at the end of the 1990s the wines of their French cousins dominated the market, driven above all by the important crus of Bordeaux and Burgundy. In 2023, Switzerland imported almost 800,000 hectolitres of Italian wine, about twice as much as France. Among these, the preference goes to reds (about 75%), but there is growing curiosity for whites, rosés and bubbles. The latter enjoy undisputed success, if we consider that more than 60% of the sparkling wines sold in Switzerland are strictly Italian. The last figure worth highlighting is the ratio of Italian wine exports to Switzerland and the other main

importing countries. The Swiss confederation ranks sixth (after Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Canada), but - considering how small the country is compared to the others - the figure is astonishing. In fact, if we consider per capita consumption, Switzerland jumps to first place, with no less than nine litres of Italian wine drunk per citizen, a figure far higher than Germany, second in the ranking with less than seven litres consumed.

Over 160 Italian labels for the tasting

All this helps to understand the success of Gambero Rosso's Vini d'Italia event, organised annually in Zurich, with the organisational collaboration of the prestigious magazine Vinum: more than 40

On Monday, 5 February, more than 40 wineries presented their wines, reviewed in Gambero Rosso’s Guida Vini d’Italia, in the Lake Side event space. From 3 p.m. onwards, an audience of professionals occupied the rooms and tasted some of the best Italian sparkling wines, whites and reds made from indigenous grape varieties, not forgetting the increasingly popular pink wines

The best restaurants in Zurich

In Munich, Italian restaurants are very popular, as you can imagine. Among the eight awards of the Top Italian Restaurants in the World guide, we would like to point out the Contemporary Best Wine List Award of Ville Sandi, which went to the very rich wine cellar of L’Acetaia (Two Forks), curated by sommelier Michele Perego, while the historic osteria Der Katzlmacher (One Fork) was awarded the prize for the Best Selection of Italian DOP Cheeses of the Consorzio Asiago.

The prestigious Three Forks was confirmed to Mario Gamba’s Acquerello, which this year celebrates thirty years of extraordinary success. The thunderous applause he received from the entire room was the ideal seal to this extraordinary day. Auf Wiedersehen Münich!

wineries presented over 160 labels, including whites, reds and sparkling wines. Giulia D'Alema, owner of the Umbrian winery La Madeleine, told us: «This is the first Gambero Rosso event I have attended and I am very pleased with the audience present, both in terms of quantity and above all quality. Wine experts, well prepared, showed great interest in our products, in our case especially the bubbles, as well as the reds».

She is echoed by Paola Gatti, who with her brother Lorenzo carries on the winery of the same name, founded by their father: «We have practically run out of wine, the public was already very enthusiastic by 3 p.m. and eager to find out all about the Metodo Classico and Franciacorta».

In their case, the curiosity was even greater given that the latest

edition of the Guide awarded their Franciacorta Nature Millesimato '16 the Special Prize as Bubble of the Year. To coincide with the start of the event, a tasting of the Guide's 12 Special Prizes took place. Led by Giuseppe Carrus, it was addressed to 30 professionals in the sector, including journalists, importers and restaurateurs. Timothy Lane, American by origin but now based in Zurich, told us: «I am a consultant and I deal with the marketing and trade of Italian wine in Switzerland and I really appreciated the authenticity, character and territoriality expressed by the 12 wines awarded by the Guide. Barolo and Amarone were great confirmations, while Chardonnay del Collio, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi and, last but not least, Marsala turned out to be wonderful surprises».

Born to be Together: Grana Padano DOP and Oltrepò Pavese DOC e DOCG wines enchant German wine Lovers in Frankfurt, Köln, Munich and Düsseldorf

German wine lovers had four fantastic occasions between the end of 2023 and the first few months of 2024 to deepen their expertise on European quality wines, and of those from Oltrepò Pavese in particular. The European Program Born to Be Together hosted a series of very successful dinners presenting the quality wines from this denomination paired to fine menus based on Grana Padano cheese proposed by award winning Italian restaurants. Ascovilo is the Association of Consortia for the Protection of Lombardy D.O.C.G., D.O.C and I.G.T wines. And to explain the rich and complex wine scene from Oltrepò and the thousandyear history of Grana Padano, Carlo Veronese, director of Consorzio Vini of Oltrepò Pavese and Marco Sabellico, longtime journalist from Gambero Rosso and senior editor of Vini d’Italia Guide were chosen. They hosted all the events and were happy to share their life-long knowledge of products and terroirs with the guests.

FRANKFURT

Great food and great wines from Italy in Frankfurt, on November the 28th. The “Born to be Together” campaign had a fantastic evening in the largest Hesse city. The restaurant Roadshow organized by

Gambero Rosso on account of the Grana Padano cheese Consortium and Ascovilo, had a bright night in one of the best Italian restaurants in town, L’Unico. A delicious dinner enlightened by the wines of Oltrepò Pavese was created by the chef of this classic modern Mediterranean restaurant offering the authentic flavors of Southern Italy. A tunafish tartare with mango was paired to the classic method sparkling Oltrepò Pavese Pinot Nero, fresh, mineral and vibrant; then a fantastic Safran Risotto with Grana Padano, a fragrant Dorade Fillet with Grana Padano and Herb Crust, and a succulent Beef Tagliata with Arugula and Grana Padano were all paired with Oltrepò Pavese Bonarda, a fresh and fruity - lightly fizzy according to the tradition - red wine. A perfect match, as was the Panna Cotta with Berry Sauce paired with the sweet and luscious Sangue di Giuda from Oltrepò. A match made in heaven. The guests were enthusiastic, thanks also to the introduction and comments made by Veronese and Sabellico, who hosted the evening. Each premiere evening was led by the editors of the Top Italian Restaurants guide and wine experts from Gambero Rosso in order to offer not only a tasterelated experience, but also an enrichment on the heritage.

KÖLN

Fabulous Italian dinner also on November the 29th in Köln. Again Gambero Rosso, Grana Padano Consortium and Ascovilo created a perfect Italian experience for a selected number of guests at Da Damiano restaurant. Not far from the Cathedral Damiano Pizzichetti and his wife Maria, originally from Oria, Apulia, created a fascinating Italian atmosphere offering the best of “Bel Paese” flavors inspired by the seasons and the fresh vegetables bought every day at the market. The dinner was centered on Grana Padano cheese and Oltrepò Pavese wines from Lombardy. Damiano’s menu was excellent, and started with a brilliant Quail Breast Filets on Sweet Potato Puree in a basket with Grana Padano, paired with a fresh and lively sparkler: classic method Pinot Nero from Oltrepò Pavese. Carlo and Marco provided a lot of information on Oltrepò wines and Grana Padano during the dinner, but this didn’t distract the guests from the delicious courses served: a fantastic Eggplant Flan on Grana Padano Cream Sauce, and then an appetizing fresh Orecchiette Pasta with Sausage Ragout and Grana Padano Flakes. And these were a perfect match with the refined fragrances of the classy Oltrepò Pavese Pinot Nero. Damiano created a great cheese based dessert, Carpaccio of Grana Padano and Pear with Chestnut Mostarda that ravished the guests, thanks also to the perfect match with the sweet Sangue

di Giuda, intense, fruity and lightly sparkling. A great Italian night enlightening Oltrepò Pavese wines and the celebrated Italian Grana Padano cheese.

MUNICH

On February the 6th the tour touched in Munich. Luca and Elena Martinelli started with an Artichocke Variations on Grana Padano Mousse, paired with Oltrepò Pavese Classic Method Pinot Nero sparkler, followed by a gourmand egg yolk and Grana Padano filled Raviolo on a Cotechino Carpaccio with Spinach Sauce, which went perfectly along with the fresh and bubbly Oltrepò Pavese Bonarda. Sabellico illustrated the long history of Grana Padano and its territory, production process and how the different types of ageing can be accompanied to different wines, alongside with Veronese who offered a precious insight of the terroir and the wines. The evening faded elegantly with a delicious Grana Padano

mousse with strawberries and Aceto Balsamico sauce. A love marriage for the sweet Sangue di Giuda dell’Oltrepò Pavese!

DÜSSELDORF

Two days later a similar play was replicated on the banks of Rhine River. The stage on February the 8th was Piazza Saitta, a classic of Italian fine dining in Düsseldorf. And again, a competent parterre of food and wine writers, bloggers and professionals, alongside with lifestyle journalists. There a tempting Beef tartare with Grana Padano Flakes (Oltrepò Pavese Pinot Nero Spumante), a superb Risotto al Grana Padano (Pinot Nero dell’Oltrepò Pavese) and as Gran Finale three different ageing of Grana with grapes and a delicious fruit chutney inevitably married to the red, fragrant and sweet Sangue di Giuda. As always Marco and Carlo guided the happy guest through a fascinating gastro-cultural itinerary in Oltrepò Pavese.

The European project "Born to be together" unites two top products of European taste: the Grana Padano PDO and the wines of Lombardy, united under the aegis of Ascovilo.

An essential component is the quality: the Protected Designation of Origin and Protected Geographical Indication products belong to the top in Europe

Find out more on social media or at www.borntobetogether.eu

World Tour Europe. Munich

The Tre Bicchieri return to Munich and they meet Asiago

Munich has a special place in the history of Gambero Rosso. It was the first stage in our international experience, when the first edition of Vini d'Italia translated into German was presented there back in 1990. It was an incredible success that kick-started the international activities of our publishing house, and the beginning of an (oenological) love affair with the Bavarian capital that has never been interrupted. This was confirmed by the great success of this year's presentation of the German edition of Vini d'Italia. On 7 February, in fact, in a packed party hall in the historic Löwenbräukeller in the heart of the city, the best Italian producers received an uninterrupted

stream of visitors.

«This is an important event for Munich, which loves Italian wine very much and has a historic relationship with Gambero Rosso. Its events have made Italy's northernmost city even more Italian than it already is!» Monika Kellermann, a historic signature of the German food and wine scene, is speaking. «These are events that cannot be missed», echoes Jens Priewe, another wellknown writer of wine gems, who has always been a specialist in Italian wines.

The German market, even in these difficult years, remains with the USA the most important destination for our wine exports. And Bavera is certainly

Producers at the tasting

the most receptive German region.

«This is my first experience with Gambero Rosso on this market», says Abruzzese producer Chiara Ciavolich, «I found attentive and interested consumers, certainly passionate about our wines, and interested above all in the healthiness and sustainability aspects of the wine. An evolved and stimulating market, in short».

«Germany has always been a friend of Italian wine,» echoes Franciacortanative Riccardo Ricci Curbastro, «and we are here because all relationships, even the oldest, must always be cultivated. And the presence on this market is very

The best restaurants in Munich according to the Top Italian Restaurants guide

important to us».

As was easy to imagine, the tasting of 12 wines that won the Special Prizes on the 2024 edition of Vini d'Italia was a great success. Marco Sabellico of the Gambero Rosso and Luca Cracco of the Consorzio Asiago Dop, in fact, conducted the tasting of the award-winning wines enriched by five types of Asiago, which sold out. «A fascinating journey with spectacular wines,» commented sommelier Peter Werner , «which then, with the pairing with the different maturations of Asiago Dop, turned into a real workshop. It's always nice to pair great wines with top cheeses like those of today».

A fantastic masterclass: Gambero Rosso Special Awards and Asiago PDO Cheese thrill Munich

Asiago PDO Cheese was the guest of honor during the Tre Bicchieri Celebration on February the 7th, and sponsored the hyper-crowded masterclass at the hystorical Löwenbräukeller which gathered wine bloggers, sommeliers and wine professionals, food and wine journalists from the Bavarian Capital and neighboring cities. This is probably the most fascinating among the tutored tastings organized by Gambero Rosso around the world, because in 12 wines the taster finds encapsulated the spirit and the philosophy that inspires the Vini d’Italia Guide every year. And so it was…

Starting from the Franciacorta Millesimo Nature ’16 by Enrico Gatti (Sparkler of the Year), to the Barolo Vigna Rionda Ester Canale Rosso by Giovanni Rosso (Red Wine of the Year) up to the Marsala Vergine Riserva ’11 by Florio it was a fascinating pilgrimage throughout the best vineyards of Italy in twelve stops… And to make it a special experience there was Asiago PDO cheese.

Marco Sabellico from Gambero Rosso and Luca Cracco from the Asiago Cheese Protection Consortium hosted the event, which turned out in a fascinating cheese-and-wine pairing workshop. Asiago provided 5 different maturations, starting from the 20 days Fresco (excellent with the Franciacorta!) to the Stravecchio Prodotto della Montagna with 24 months of ageing. Each found at leat one perfect partner with the fantastic Special Award wine… “Unforgettable experience - said Ruf Thilo from Radio Lora - a real dive into exciting Italian flavors. Stravecchio and Marsala Vergine? A match made in Heaven!”.

During the event, the Asiago PDO station had a high turnout and a great deal of interest, and all participants were able to sample different types of Asiago PDO. At the Top Italian Restaurants in the World guide award ceremony, the Asiago Consortium honored 'Der Katzlmacher', one of the most traditional Italian restaurants in Munich, with a special award for its cheese selection and service. Munich loves cheese, and Asiago in a special way!!!

Asiago Cheese Protection Consortium

Via Giuseppe Zampieri 15 36100 Vicenza (VI) - Italy asiagocheese.it $formaggioasiagodop

Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris is growing

but there is much space for improvement

On

its side it has a calendar that plays in advance and an easily accessible city, but it is not enough. Too few international buyers and the organisation needs to be reviewed. Exhibitors say: “We need differentiation from Prowein”.

by Lorenzo Ruggeri

“Billets, billetts!”. Welcoming us to Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2024 is a scalper wrapped in a long white down jacket. Yet the temperatures are absolutely mild for being in the middle of February. The three days of the fair give us mixed impressions, between a desire to restart and very distant evaluations.

No, it was not a vibrant edition. The favourite hobby of many visitors and exhibitors was to bring up the German competitor to try and raise the level: "still better than Prowein". A refrain we heard most frequently among the pavilions.

But is Wine Paris really the international fair capable of taking the leading position on the global stage that Düsseldorf had until three years ago? Our answer is blunt: no. At least for the time being.

Fewer Asians at the trade fair

The official numbers tell of 4,070 exhibitors and 41,253 visitors (+14% over 2023) from 137 countries, with 41% international attendance. We may have been unlucky during the three days of the fair, but we saw very few

Asian faces. If we think back to the editions of just five years ago - when Vinexpo found its home in Bordeaux - the drop in Asian attendance is impressive. This year, the nearby Chinese New Year and the resulting holidays may have played a role, but attendance from the East, which was the real strong point, was definitely below expectations.

The comparison with Prowein

Positive, on the other hand, was the feedback on the online matchmaking platform between producers and operators, which is estimated to have produced 10,146 appointments between winemakers and buyers. "For us, who had prepared it well, it was a good edition in line with expectations," emphasises Roberto Bruno, director of Fontanafredda, "we will reflect on the priorities we will give to our participation, increasing the space here and reducing Prowein. For a whole series of reasons, this is a location, a city, and a time of year that offers many advantages. It is a fair that is very focused on the French, who have a great following in

the world, a strong appeal that attracts qualified international operators. Moreover, you can decide to attend even at the last minute: you can find everything from flights to hotels at the prices you want. You don't need to plan like Düsseldorf year after year: a great advantage.

Also rooting for the French fair is Markus Schulte, director of Franz Haag, one of the best-known wineries in the Moselle region. "Düsseldorf has become unsustainable due to its pricing policy, starting with the hotels, and we are looking for alternatives. Vinexpo has a nice international propensity, overall we are happy with our first participation, we worked well," he tells us.

On its side, the Paris fair seems to have above all the calendar, with the move to February it is a candidate to take the first steps in the chessboard of international wine fairs, playing in advance.

However, as Massimo Furlàn of Vigneti Le Monde points out, there are many wineries that, in February, do not yet have the new vintages ready to present.

On the other hand, the exhibition calendar does not reward Prowein either, since it has now moved too close to Vinitaly.

Between the two disputants, Vinitaly prevails

Beyond the comparison with ProWein, there were many who were disappointed with this edition of Vinexpo Wine Paris.

'I don't know if we prepared the fair badly or perhaps it is not ripe, but it did not go well. In general, there are many of us who wonder whether these events still make sense for what they cost, for speed of execution of the events and quality. The face to face in the cellar or directly on the markets for me is even more important. For sure, the Italians will love France, the restaurants in Paris, but we are still a long way from Prowein as a business,' comments Daniele d'Orta of Feudi di San Gregorio. "Vinexpo and Prowein are too close together as dates, they should be divided by vocation and identity; Vinexpo could focus on Europe and Prowein as New World given its even

more international character. For the moment, doing them both makes no sense, the only certainty we have is Vinitaly," analyses Nicole Vezzola, owner of Costaripa.

There is certainly an urgent need for a clearer differentiation between the Paris and Düsseldorf fairs, to attract different wineries and visitors. Talking to several French producers, the will of Paris would seem to be to present itself as the model for fine wines, leaving Düsseldorf a focus on wines in lower price brackets. But segmentation is still on paper, the game is far from closed.

The feeling is that of all three international fairs, the one in the best position is the one that a few years ago was given up for dead: our Vinitaly. Wine Paris is trying to expand its global vocation, but 4 out of 7 pavilions were reserved for France, one for spirits.

The curse of Pavillion 5

The biggest criticism came from the Italian producers hosted in the unfortunate Hall 5, which had a colourful collection of exhibitors from every corner of the globe. 'Half-

Tre Bicchieri at Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris

As many as 60 Italian wineries animated the Tre Bicchieri event on 14 February at Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris, a numerical growth that confirms the interest of Italian producers in the French fair.

The masterclass dedicated to the Valtènesi territory was well attended, with 10 wines in pink being tasted, and the classic preview launch of the new vintage, 2023, on Lovers’ Day.

Among the Tre Bicchieri, in a slow flow of operators and journalists, the best addresses of Italian flavour in Paris were awarded according to the Top Italian Restaurants guide ratings. Dilia, led by chef Michele Farnesi, snatched Tre Forchette, the maximum score; new entries included Come a casa (Una Forchetta), Anna (Two Bottles).

Among the pizzerias, Manifattura (Uno Spicchio) and Baldoria (Due Spicchi), a format that has cleared Italian-style pizza by the slice in the city.

The Villa Sandi Best Contemporary Wine List award went to Il Vicolo, a family-run restaurant that offers a rich and characterful menu, with many little-known Italian producers and polite and competent service.

MAY 2024 28 VINEXPOASIA.COM #VINEXPOASIA

HONG KONG

assed, let's be honest. We were in the middle of a fried paranza, you didn't know what fish you were going to find there. The location was really unfortunate, central-northern Italy was all gathered in Pavilion 2 (the one dedicated to Italy for the first time; ed.), the unlucky ones ended up in 5. A sort of B series,' comments frankly Daniele Girolami of Poggio Le Volpi.

Rumours also tell us of a strong discontent among Bordeaux producers, especially for the Grand Crus tasting hosted in Hall 7, amidst truffle gin and avocado vodka. The flow was incredibly lower than

expected, which we also noticed while tasting the less than memorable 2021 vintage in Bordeaux. Even the off-fair, despite the flaunting of the OFF programme to involve the entire city, does not exactly sound exciting. Paris still seems quite disconnected with what is happening at the trade fair , without giving continuity to the appointments. Is this the great international fair that should oust its competitors?

All that remains is to wait for Prowein (10-12 March) and Vinitaly (14-17 April). In the meantime, Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris looks forward to 10-12 February 2025.

On top, Top Italian Restaurants Awards Ceremony in Paris and some moments of the tasting and masterclass

World Tour Usa

The drop in imports of Italian wines does not indicate a decline in interest.

The report from the Tre Bicchieri Usa Tour 2024

by Marco Sabellico

Four stops for the Gambero Rosso tour in the States. Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco have enthusiastically welcomed the Tre Bicchieri wines of the 2024 guide, despite the less than brilliant moment for the overseas wine market.

International tensions, the climate of expectation for the presidential elections in November, still high interest rates... These are some of the causes of the momentary slowdown in consumption.

Our export figures, let's say right away, are not brilliant at the moment: xxxxx, but it must be considered that while 2023 closed with a slight drop compared to the record postpandemic figures of 2022, importers and distributors are lightening their stocks and warehouses, and even in

January there were signs of cooling in both 'on premise' sales and in the large-scale distribution channels and specialised shops. However, optimism tends to prevail when talking to restaurateurs and trade operators: spring is just around the corner, there are many new restaurant openings across the country, and the economic picture is basically healthy. We are, according to many operators, at the beginning of a new positive cycle...

CHICAGO

A large crowd gathered at the Bridgeport Art Center - in the atmospheric Skyline Loft to meet one hundred of Italy's top wineries and taste their best wines. During the event, Chicago's emerging Italian restaurants were honoured by the

Top Italian Restaurants in the World guide. And the winner of the Villa Sandi award (which evaluates the wine lists that best represent the contemporary taste of consumers) went to Coco Pazzo and in particular Tamra Presley Weiss, wine director, who is always on the lookout for new labels - especially Italian ones - to propose to her clients.

NEW YORK

Great vibes in Manhattan. As every year since 1992, it was the big Italian wine festival for professionals, gourmets, restaurateurs and winelovers in the Big Apple. The event took place again this year at the Metropolitan Pavilion on 18th Street, which now barely manages to

contain the producers and the crowd of guests. The atmosphere in the city is always dynamic - if not freneticand stimulating. The event, with more than 150 producers of excellence, culminated with the award ceremony for the best restaurants in the Top Italian Restaurants in the World Guide.

The Villa Sandi Award for the wine list went to the excellent selection of a beautiful traditional Apulian restaurant: La Masseria dei Vini.

LOS ANGELES.

In the City of Angels, the event took place at the City Market Social House. There is no air of crisis in the city: «Especially high-end wines are going strong here,» Giancarlo Lauro of Signature Fine Wines & Spirits tells us. «If I may summarise, we are in the phase beyond just Pinot Grigio. Today we sell Barolo, Brunello, Chianti Classico, Bolgheri and Amarone more easily than a few years ago. Italy has an important space on all wine lists and in the cellars of wine lovers. If anything, there is a moment of tiredness for Californian wines, which are very expensive and a little 'predictable' for the American palate. There is a desire for the authentic, the new, and Italy always has something surprising to offer in the kitchen and in the cellar». Prosecco Doc and Docg also did well, which, Lauro continues, «is very popular and acts as a 'pathfinder' for all the other denominations». The Villa Sandi Best Contemporary Wine List award went to the Marino brothers of the restaurant by the same name.

Scents and flavours of Lombardy in New York

A walk through the vineyards of Lombardy in 10 stops. This was the theme of the crowded masterclass held by Gambero Rosso at the Metropolitan Pavilion. Marco Sabellico of Gambero Rosso, Carlo Veronese of the Oltrepò Pavese wine consortium and Juri Pagani of the Valtènesi consortium illustrated the styles, grapes and terroir of this fascinating region. «We want to tell consumers that our region, in addition to industry, art and fashion, is also an extraordinary agricultural area, rich in food and wine excellence... and wine is one of our most important assets,» said Alessandro Beduschi, Lombardy’s councillor for agriculture, who sponsored the event. Excellent wines from Oltrepò, Lugana, Valtènesi and Valtellina were poured for the audience of wine experts. «We invite you to visit the region,» concluded Beduschi, «and the 2026 Winter Olympics could be a fantastic opportunity to do so.»

Some moments of the tasting during the US world tour

SAN FRANCISCO

The last US stop was at the Festival Pavilion in Fort Mason. «Those were difficult years,» says importer Alessandro Mazzone of Style-Italy, «But now the air has changed, there is optimism and a desire to do, which in my job means visiting many new openings. And if I am here it is to expand my portfolio. Italian wine always pulls, between wines from little known indigenous vines, and small artisan producers».

A total of 14 restaurants were awarded by the Top Italian Restaurants in the World Guide. Among these, a special mention goes to Pausa Bar & Cookery in San Mateo (Due Forchette), which also won the prestigious Villa Sandi Best Contemporary Wine List Award thanks to its special selection of artisanal Italian wines from small producers, which are often unattainable even in Italy.

Finally, icing on the cake, a great special guest: Consorzio Vino Sannio with its best producers.

Prosecco Doc… goes to Hollywood

The most loved and appreciated Italian sparkling wine in the world has also conquered the City of Angels. This is why Gambero Rosso and the Prosecco Doc Consortium organised a special masterclass during the Tre Bicchieri event in Los Angeles on 27 February. Marco Sabellico for Federdoc and Equalitas illustrated the Italian system of designations of origin and the Equalitas sustainability certification. This was followed by a masterclass, conducted together with Arianna Pizzolato of the Consortium, in which six Prosecco Doc wines were tasted, including two Rosés. The history of this wine, its terroirs, production styles and techniques were discussed, as well as its fantastic ability to accompany food from all over the world and to be a protagonist of the international mixology scene.

Finally, icing on the cake, a great

special guest: Consorzio Vino Sannio with its best producers.

ProWein lays bare

The 30th edition of the Düsseldorf fair was supposed to be a comeback. For many it was more of a missed opportunity. The truth is another: trade fairs are a mirror of a crisis that affects the whole wine business, proved by the huge number of exhibitors of spirits and no alcohol.

by Lorenzo Ruggeri photo: Messe Düsseldorf / ctillmann

The fears of the Wine World

Something has changed, but it is not just the Düsseldorf trade fair. There is more and it affects us all. The perception is stark as soon as we set foot in ProWein. We pass through halls 15 and 16, dedicated to Italy, then we take the first exit with momentum and join our French cousins, gathered between 9 and 10. The influx is quite slow, continuous, but phlegmatic for a fair of this magnitude. After a few minutes, we reach Hall 5, the one dedicated to spirits. There are a lot more people than in the halls housing large producers of Barolo or Bordeaux, the average age? Definitely lower. We had experienced a similar scene a few weeks ago at Wine Paris, with the revamped spirits space far busier than many of the pavilions hosting emblazoned territories. In both cases we experienced a chill down our spines. Yes, something seems to be jammed in the wine world. And the international wine fairs are only mirroring a crisis whose full extent is not yet understood, but which generates fear and uncertainty. It is not only the export numbers, which are falling everywhere, or the shift in consumption that are worrying, but the idea of a different perception of the wine product, starting with a new usability and a different awareness about alcohol. That is not yet well understood, or at least difficult to read, given the exploit of fermented grape musts or the growth of various spirits. The risk is mistaking the symptom for the illness.

Fewer visitors, but prowein is still alive

How did the Düsseldorf trade fair go? The 1,200 Italian producers in attendance - Italy excelled in numbers at this edition as well - returned on average less than satisfied. Still, the overall feeling is that it went slightly better than the 2023 edition, which was plagued by strikes, but there was not that hoped-for revival. The best day for meetings and business was confirmed to be Monday, March 11, just as the level of key players remains high, but has been stagnant, if not declining, for years.

«No other fair offers such a wide range as ProWein. All international wine-growing regions are

represented in Düsseldorf," said director Peter Schmitz warmly. «We are pleased not only to record the highest quality from exhibitors, but also to see high-level people traveling to Düsseldorf from all over the world, including an increasing number of managers with decisionmaking power."

Numbers released by the fair speak of 47,000 visitors over the three days of the fair, 2,000 less than the 2023 edition, from 135 countries and as many as 5,400 exhibitors representing 65 nations.

«Beware of giving ProWein away. There is certainly a current that wants to scuttle it, but the truth is that Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris will not replace the customers who bring Düsseldorf," comments

photo: Messe Düsseldorf

/ ctillmann

Flavio Geretto, Villa Sandi's sales director. «It is true that Paris is perhaps better organized, this year I have seen management that is failing and if they do not react they will lose ground. Cabs that only accept cash, chemical toilets outside the pavilions, stopped escalators. However, with great honesty we have to admit that there were many more Asian operators here than in Paris, also many operators from the United States and South America, as well as a lot of Eastern Europe.»

Geretto then points the finger at the companies themselves, «I still see too many wineries that don't prepare for the fair, and you have to know how to do business by going around and getting information. I still see so many people standing still and watching, a passive attitude. What are they waiting for, Godot?»

The comparison with Win Paris

«Here on the left is a consortium, on my right two bottlers, there one selling bag-in-box and bulk wine: Prowein is becoming this thing here, a volume fair. For the individual quality producer, it has become too much of an expense,» Luca Cuzziol, president of Cuzziol Grandi Vini and the Excellence club, which brings together the largest importers of Champagne in Italy, tells us. «Certainly, the main reason to come here, given the offer, is to tour the New World. But once again Düsseldorf has shown that it doesn't want to support ProWein, between very inflated hotel rates and complicated air connections. And there is a historical problem. Northern Europe is historically a market where average price comes before quality.

I'm thinking of Germany, Baltic

countries. This increasingly conditions the nature of the fair,» he adds. Alongside him, Bruno Paillard, of the famous Champagne house, confirms how much more affordable the Paris offer is, starting with hotel and travel prices. Prowein managers, on the other hand, stressed the positive feedback from German exhibitors - comments that were confirmed in our tastings and interviews in Hall 1 - praising the professionalism of the operators present and the confirmation of an unparalleled international vocation. In general, we saw great participation in masterclasses and all those meetings where wine was proposed in a different formula from the usual banquet tasting.

For Perrucci, a sad fair in a sad market

Direct and focussed is the thought of Gregory Perrucci of Felline winery: «A sad fair. A difficult Prowein, uncertain and under

Zero alcohol and loads of sugar: tastings at ProWein are nightmarish

First day of Prowein. After a couple of crackling tastings in the Der Feinsmecker section, a sort of Teutonic Red Prawn, we walk confidently toward Hall No. 1, the one dedicated to the hosts. In the midst of producers from the Mosel and the Palatinate, a large section devoted to alcohol-free products stands out: Zero Tasting. It’s all anyone talks about at the fair, the apprehension about the non-alcoholic wave and a new awareness about alcohol is the constant among the pavilions, from the New World to Old Europe: “We are in front of a new Protestantism that has in the battle against alcohol its mission and in young people its disciples,” Gernot Kollmann, one of the best-known German producers, tells us jokingly, but not too much. Intrigued, we go to the free section organized by Meininger to taste unfermented grape musts.

But soon we are faced with the sad truth: take away the alcohol and the sugars fly. Impressive are the data sheets that accompany the bottles, the average residual sugar is between 40 and 70 grams per liter. And in the glass you can really smell them all, along with artificial and improbable scents, from rubber to resin, green notes and untied acidity dominate. The gustatory horror is punctuated by exclamations that we hear repeated in different languages. The brands are all very structured, we have tasted more interesting things on other occasions and from certainly more virtuous producers, but the underlying theme remains. Can one really think of drinking a healthy product, just because a 0 appears on the label? Isn’t the high sugar content, in some cases even higher than that of

the banner of menace (of market crisis, operator absences, strikes and disruptions). And indeed, the eve was scarred by the many flights canceled by Lufthansa, which left at home or caused countless delays and frustrations for visitors who were departing from all over the world.

On the first day it became clear that not only was the attendance lower, as well as the number of exhibitors, but that the services were also in disarray (no coffee distribution points, no water) but even the indoor toilets were suppressed and replaced with

a Coke, associated with a host of problems: obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease?

The bubbly section is the most unlikely. They are soft drinks, perhaps designed to be drunk iced, but it is not clear how they can be associated with food. And how they can compete with much more interesting and healthy soft drinks, starting with Kombucha, Proxies, fruit juices or fermented Kefir. There is still a long way to go...

unique "container toilets" for men and women... Finally, the last day was marked by the strike of all public transport, which prevented the regular flow to the fair. Cabs unavailable, trains to and from the fair skipped, as did many Lufthansa flights. Result: very few visitors and general stampede of exhibitors, desperate to find an escape route home.»

Unappealable conclusion: «f the world is in chaos, Germany is in a total mess, and for once we can say that we are not at all worse than the

others in this Europe exhausted by pandemic, war, energy, financial and social emergencies. Even its cultural garrison that is wine is suffering the consequences.»

AND NOW IT'S VINITALY'S TURN

Summing up. Prowein 2024 has seen the defection of a number of top producers, who gave vitality and resonance to the German fair, the feeling confirmed by our interviewees is that it is shaping up to be a fair for big companies, leaving

photo: Messe Düsseldorf / ctillmann

Tre Bicchieri does a full house

Italian wine makes its home on the Rhine. The event dedicated to the best wines of Italy, which, as usual, anticipated the kickoff by a day, was one of the most well-attended events in Düsseldorf. On March 9, the Rheinterrasse played host to some 150 wineries awarded Tre Bicchieri, resulting in a veritable bath of crowds among operators from all over the world, with an impressive quota of buyers from northern Europe, journalists, masters of wine and a relevant representation from South America. At the end of the day, there were more than 1,200 entries with as many as 45 countries represented.

Two masterclasses, extremely well attended. The first dedicated to Valtènesi, led by Juri Pagani and Lorenzo Ruggeri with a beautiful vertical in pink from 2023 to 2019; characterized by an exciting average quality, with increasingly defined and territorial wines in the name of Groppello. The second was led by Marco Sabellico and Costantino Gabardi, focused on Custoza, with a vertical tasting of 10-year-old whites, still in excellent shape, capable of original and unpredictable taste trajectories, with that typical saffron stamp that delicately accompanies older vintages.

During the event, awards were also given to the best Italian restaurants evaluated in Gambero Rosso’s Top Italian Restaurants guide. Linguini was awarded Una Bottiglia, Saittavini confirmed Tre Bottiglie, imposing itself once again as one of the largest collections of Italian wine in the world, joined by Gallo Nero, also Tre Bottiglie, in Hamburg. New entries, for Riva and G.Saitta, awarded Una Forchetta for the former, while Chef Gianluca Casini’s Arte in Cucina won Two Forks, same score for Piazza Saitta. Recognition also went to Da Damiano restaurant in Cologne, Two Forks and the Villa Sandi Best Contemporary Wine List Award, thanks to a list perfectly calibrated to the cuisine, correct mark-ups and careful wine research work. Finally, Scala at Hagen am Teutoburger Walde, which snatches instead Due Spicchi thanks to an authentic Neapolitan dough.

Wine Paris with a character more centered on medium and small companies. Although Paris, despite the progress of the last two editions, still retains a strong French vocation - 3 out of 7 pavilions - on both the visitor and visitor fronts. Commenting on both fairs, however, we don't see much feedback on the real perception that now wants Prowein in checkmate and Paris with the full wind in its sails.

Beware of giving Düsseldorf a pass; 10 years ago it was supposed to supplant Vinitaly, today it seems to be on the sundown path for many. The Verona fair's path, however, traces that of Canadian skater Steven Bradbury, who won gold at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. He starts out last, but his competitors, in this case Prowein and Wine Paris, fall off in a roundabout way one after the other. And he finds himself crossing the finish line first.

Above, A

of the Top Italian Restaurants award ceremony, and some moments of the Tre Bicchieri - Prowein edition event, which took place last March 9 in Düsseldorf, on the eve of the fair.

group photo

Springo is the new trend!

Springo wines, a sparkling collection of bubble trends, never been soo fashionable!

info@spaulnco.design

Radici Virtuose live in Düsseldorf

The Salice Salentino DOP & Brindisi DOP on tour continues. On Saturday 9 March, the roadshow dedicated to the two Apulian denominations made its home in a romantic corner of Düsseldorf, the restaurant L'Arte in Cucina led by chef Gianluca Casini. The restaurant is among the best in Germany according to the Top Italian Restaurants guide ranking where it is awarded Two Forks. The tasting dinner is part of the Radici Virtuose (Virtuous Roots) project, created as a response to the spread of Xylella Fastidiosa in the Ionian-Salentine area, thanks to the work of Mipaaf (Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies) and Dajs (Distretto Agroalimentare di Qualità Jonico Salentino - Jonico Salentino Quality Food District). It was a true exaltation of regional flavours, thanks to a wide repertoire of Italian recipes, with a Tuscan accent, but not only, that met with no less than 13 wines, the absolute protagonist being Negroamaro, which found in Malvasia Nera its partner for the evening. Among the most successful pairings of the evening were pappa al pomodoro with a 2001 Brindisi Rosso Riserva, baccalà alla livornese with

A dinner dedicated to Negroamaro and authentic Italian flavours

a Salice Salentino Rosso Riserva 2020 (surprising, to say the least, thanks to the use of tomato and olives to bind the dish and glass) and rabbit with a Salice Salentino Riserva 2019. In closing, the pairing of a 36-month Parmigiano Reggiano and a Salice Salentino Riserva 2015 still perfectly intact and snappy was perfect. The evening was hosted by Gambero Rosso journalists Marco Sabellico and Lorenzo Ruggeri, in the company of Federico Chimenti, marketing manager of the Consorzio Tutela Vini DOP Salice Salentino. The producers gave a first-hand account of the wines to an audience of journalists and sector operators, who demonstrated an increasingly in-depth and punctual knowledge of the region.

Consorzio Tutela Wines

Salice Salentino Dop

Salice Salentino (LE) – Casina Ripa via P. Leone – 0832 732592

consorziosalicesalentino.it

Consorzio Tutela Wines

Brindisi e Squinzano Dop

Brindisi – c/o CCIAA – Bastioni Carlo V 0831 652749 – Winesbrindisisquinzano-

INIZIATIVA REALIZZATA NELL’AMBITO DEL “PROGRAMMA DI RIGENERAZIONE ECONOMICA, SOCIALE E AMBIENTALE DEL TERRITORIO JONICO-SALENTINO COLPITO DA XYLELLA FASTIDIOSA, RADICI VIRTUOSE”, FINANZIATA A VALERE SULL’AVVISO MIPAAF N.10900 DEL 17.02.2020 “CONTRATTI DI DISTRETTO XYLELLA”. 57

Global Agribusiness Summit, growth equals sustainability

Second edition of the convention organised by Gambero Rosso with the protagonists of the supply chain

Sustainable is ethical, but also convenient. This is what emerged from the second edition of the Global Summit ('Sustainability as a growth factor for agri food companies') organised by the Gambero Rosso Foundation with the participation of Intesa Sanpaolo, which hosted the event in its Turin headquarters: the Skyscraper designed by Renzo Piano.

For Anna Roscio, executive director sales & marketing enterprises of Intesa Sanpaolo: «ESG (environmental, social, and governance) factors must not be experienced by the business world as a compliance issue, but as an impulse for the entire system to accompany the country towards sustainable transition. Today,

EU regulations require banks to incorporate the sustainability profile of companies into their assessment models, implying an evolution on the

The Gambero Rosso Global Summit, organised in Turin at the Intesa Sanpaolo building Auditorium

photos by Michele D’Ottavio

part of SMEs towards non-financial reporting models and the sharing of information with the banking system». Hence, never before has growth been linked to a commitment to sustainability, in all its forms, as indicated by the title of the event.

Agribusiness and Intesa Sanpaolo

It is no coincidence that Intesa Sanpaolo has launched the Agribusiness Directorate to support those embarking on a path of green transition: «Intesa Sanpaolo has always been attentive to the issue of sustainability: in our business plans, one of the most important drivers concerns the ecological and digital transition,» reveals Massimiliano Cattozzi, head of this Directorate. «Among these, par-

A moment of the Global Summit. From left, on stage, Director Marco Mensurati, Anna Roscio (Intesa Sanpaolo) and Chairman Paolo Cuccia

ticular importance is given to S-Loan Climate Change financing: financing dedicated to companies that invest to protect themselves against the risks of climate change and to seize the main opportunities arising from the adoption of more sustainable business models. In this context, a total of 123 million euro of S-Loan Agribusiness was disbursed in 2023, confirming our commitment to rewarding those realities that are able to redefine business strategies in terms of innovation and sustainability, in line with the initiatives of the NRP».

Self-evaluation for enterprises until April 30th

Gambero Rosso Foundation and Santa Chiara Next (a spin-off of the University of Siena) have launched an assessment analysis for companies, based on the sustainability performance achieved (here is the link sostenibilita.santachiaranext.it/en)

«We cannot manage phenomena of which we do not know the data,» said Gambero Rosso President Paolo Cuccia, «And this is where the need to collect information comes from. Alongside the questionnaire, however, we will also launch training pills to help companies understand how to approach the subject».

«With this analysis,» explains Angelo Riccaboni, President of Santa Chiara Lab, «we want to promote agri-food companies that are committed to environmental and social sustainability and, above all, to communicate this to the outside world, as we did in 2022 through the green label awarded by Gambero Rosso to the first 47 companies that achieved the best performance.»

If wine is, in fact, ahead in the path of sustainability certification (thanks, for example, to the Equalitas standard), the food sector still has to work in this direction, bearing in mind, as Riccaboni recalls, «that consumers demand more information and need certainty and reliability».

The criteria taken into consideration are environmental, social and governance sustainability. A first step to accelerate the path that is leading more and more companies to draw up their own sustainability report, alongside their economic balance sheets.

The data collection, by means of a questionnaire, will be active until 30 April 2024, and in the following months the list of the best sustainable companies in the agri-food sector will be drawn up.

Improved profitability for organic businesses

The data, which come from Intesa Sanpaolo’s research for the agrifood sector, tell us that, despite a still complicated economic situation, including inflation and unpredictable geopolitical scenarios, there is some optimism on the investment front for 2024.

«This,» emphasised Stefania Trenti, Head of industry & local economies research, Intesa Sanpaolo Studies and Research Department, «is also thanks to the presence of the NRP funds, and above all thanks to a clear vision on the part of companies with respect to the objectives to be pursued: circular economy, reduction of energy consumption, introduction of technology in processes. But there is more.

“The companies that have invested in organic products have shown more sustained growth in turnover at current prices, and better profitability, confirming how sustainability can translate into an opportunity for companies that invest in the right direction».

Sabrina De Filippis, CEO Mercitalia Logistics. Above, Stefania Trenti, Head of industry & local economies research, Intesa Sanpaolo Studies and Research Department

Ferrovie dello Stato invests in freight transport

The FS Group's Logistics Pole is at the forefront of achieving the EU decarbonisation targets and promoting an intermodal transport network to deliver goods in a more sustainable way. The key word is sea-roadrail integration, which is necessary to make rail transport the carrier of goods over long distances, leaving the so-called first and last mile to road transport. Not least because every truck taken off the roads and motorways means tonnes less CO2 in the atmosphere. The Pole's industrial plan envisages an investment of 3 billion, dedicated to fleet renewal, the upgrading of existing terminals and the creation of new ones, and digitalisation.

- Sabrina De Filippis, Managing Director of Mercitalia Logistics

Corporate governance is still not yet sustainable

The other theme that emerged from the Intesa Sanpaolo analysis concerns corporate governance, which requires greater attention in the future. «Companies that have a board made up entirely of under-40s have, in the recent past, recorded better performance in terms of turnover growth and margin stability,» Trenti reveals. «Moreover, the presence of at least one under-40 in the board facilitates the adoption of advanced strategies such as patents and quality and environmental certifications. We hope, therefore, for an accelerated generational change in the agri-food sector, because young people pay more attention to the issue of sustainability». That of generational change and greater attention to governance is a theme that returned several times during the event. Jacopo Schettini Gherardini, Director of Research at Standard Ethics (a company founded in 2004 to promote sustainability and governance principles in the EU) put the issue of gender equality at the centre of the debate: “Our approach is very concrete”; he said, “just count. And today there are still too few women on boards, especially in the agrifood sector. Without this step forward, we cannot speak of goals achieved, because sustainability is not so much about the product but about the path. And it concerns a series of criteria that must be met”.

Jacopo Schettini Gherardini, Research Director, Standard Ethics.

In the middle, Riccardo Ricci Curbastro, Franciacorta producer, President of Equalitas and unanimously re-elected EFOW President.

Above, a moment of the debate in the Intesa Sanpaolo building in Turin

food

The recipes of up-and-coming chefs

by Clara Barra photos by Lido Vannucchi

GIACOMO LOVATO

Born in Angera (VA)

Age 33

Resident in Milan

LAST ALBUM DOWNLOADED Intimate by Elisa

LATEST BOOK READ

The Saxon Stories by Bernard Cornwell

MOST LOVED INGREDIENT

Lemon

LEAST LOVED INGREDIENT None in particular

THE DISH OF A LIFETIME Tagliolini in smoked trout and onion broth with trout roe

GRAND MAESTRO WORSHIPPED

Claudio Sadler

MOST RESPECTED PEER

Enrico Marmo

NAME OF THE RESTAURANT

>Borgia – Milan

RESTAURANT CONTACTS

Milan via G. Washington, 56 02 48021442

borgiamilano.com

SEATS

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE AT Snowflake at Hotel Principe delle Nevi in Breuil-Cervinia (AO)

MY CUISINE

Down-to-earth, simple, creative, seasonal, pragmatic, contemporary

FAVOURITE RESTAURANT ABROAD

Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen in Parigi

ONE WINE ABOVE ALL OTHERS

Franciacorta DOCG by Andrea Arici

HAD I NOT BEEN A CHEF... A mechanic in motorsport

THE DISHES

Veal sweetbreads with Marsala and lime, hay almond cream, passion fruit borettane onions and pickled onion petal

Cauliflower, liquorice pine nuts and dill

Mackerel marinated in saôr, pine nut pesto with sultanas and bay leaf oil

Red mullet carpaccio, sea urchin soup, saffron and orange

SOUS CHEF

Matteo Sanvito

AGE

KITCHEN BRIGADE

Matteo Sanvito

Antonio Malaspina

Salvatore Condello

Lorenzo Grosso

DINING ROOM

Andrea Saglimbeni

Cristian Russomanno

Francesco Falbo

SOMMELIER

Cristian Russomanno

INGREDIENTS FOR 4

160 g sweetbreads, trimmed and boiled

50 g butter

For the roux

200 g veal jus

20 g Marsala reduced by 90%

20 g lime juice

For the almond cream

175 g hay infusion

100 g almonds salt

For the borettane onions

8 borettane baby onions

120 g passion fruit purée

80 g apple cider vinegar

40 g sugar

20 g di salt

Extra virgin olive oil

For garnish

16 sprigs of chervil

>Veal sweetbreads with Marsala and lime, hay almond cream, passion fruit borettane onions and pickled onion petal

For the base, combine the ingredients, let it thicken over medium heat and keep the sauce warm.

For the almond cream, soak the almonds overnight in the hay infusion, then blend until smooth. Season with salt.

For the spring borettane onions, steam them, then marinate overnight in the solution obtained by boiling together the passion fruit puree, vinegar, sugar and salt.

Brown the sweetbreads in a pan with butter, discard the excess butter, then deglaze with the Marsala sauce.

Fry 2 onion sections per person in olive oil.

On a flat plate place three drops of hay almond cream, arrange 2 browned onions on 2 sides of the cream and the glazed sweetbreads on the remaining 2 sides. Finish the dish with 4 sprigs of chervil and a section of unroasted borettana onion.

INGREDIENTS FOR 4

1 white cauliflower

weighing approx. 700 g

For the cauli broth

350 g water

200 g vegetable stock

200 g roasted cauliflower scraps

For the cauli florets

200 g cauliflower florets

100 g cauliflower broth

5 g apple cider vinegar

1 g soy salt

For the cauliflower and liquorice pesto

200 g cauliflower waste from the broth

15 g roasted pine nuts

8 g apple cider vinegar

3 g liquorice salt

For the cauliflower oil

250 g sunflower oil

60 g cauliflower leaves

25 g parsley

For the cauliflower couscous

200 g cauliflower extra virgin olive oil salt

For garnish

32 toasted pine nuts

20 sprigs of fresh dill

>Cauliflower, liquorice pine nuts and dill

Trim the cauliflower for the various preparations.

For the cauliflower broth, roast the scraps in the oven at 200°C for 20 minutes, then put them in a vacuum bag and seal it. Steam the broth in the oven at 85°C for 2 hours, then strain through a fine sieve and set aside.

For the cauliflower stalk, put the water, vinegar, sugar and salt in a small saucepan, then bring it to the boil to dissolve, then leave to cool. Place the stem and liquid in a vacuum bag, then steam in the oven at 100°C for 6 minutes. Once cooked, leave to cool, then cut the stalk into 3 mm cubes.

For the cauliflower florets, make them about 8 mm thick, place them in a vacuum bag together with the cauliflower broth, vinegar, soya and salt. Steam in the oven at 100°C for 6 minutes. Leave to cool, then drain the florets and season with oil and salt.

For the cauliflower and liquorice pesto, put all the ingredients in the blender and blend until creamy, then season with salt.

For the cauliflower oil, place the ingredients in the thermomix, run at 50°C for 15 minutes, then strain through an etamine.

For the cauliflower couscous, peel and crumble it into couscous, then season with oil and salt.

In a bowl, place the cauliflower and liquorice pesto in the centre, arrange the sweet and sour cauliflower stalk cubes on top, add the cauliflower florets and couscous, then 8 toasted pine nuts. Pour a drizzle of oil over the cauliflower and finish with 5 sprigs of fresh dill. Pour the cauliflower broth into the serving dish.

INGREDIENTS FOR 4

For the mackerel 2 large mackerels weighing approx.

300 g each

250 g salt

200 g sugar

For the onion sauce

600 g water

300 g white vinegar

200 g yellow onions

200 g sugar

For the pine nut and sultana pesto

75 g soaked sultanas

25 g roasted pine nuts

25 g stale bread

25 g apple cider vinegar

15 g capers

7 g extra virgin olive oil

½ anchovy

For the bay leaf oil

300 g sunflower oil

40 g fresh bay leaves

20 g parsley

For garnish chervil sorrel

>Mackerel marinated in saôr, pine nut pesto with sultanas and bay leaf oil

For the mackerel, clean the fish, remove the bones and fillet them, then marinate them for 20 minutes in salt and sugar. After this time, rinse them and dry them on paper towels, remove the outer skin and place them in the freezer at -18°C for 4 days to eat them raw.

For the onion sauce, peel the onions and cut them irregularly. Pour the water, vinegar and sugar into a saucepan, add the cut onions, put on the heat and cook until soft. Drain them, then whisk them until you get a smooth sauce, if it is too thick add a little cooking liquid. Sieve the cream through a fine sieve.

For the pine nut and sultana pesto, cut the stale bread into cubes and let it moisten with the oil and apple vinegar. Once softened, blend it with an immersion blender together with the other ingredients.

For the bay leaf oil, put all the ingredients in the Bimby and run for 15 minutes at 50°C, then strain with an etamine. Place in a piping bag and remove the water that settles at the bottom.

On a flat white plate lay a piece of salted and oiled mackerel, place the pine nut and sultana pesto on the side. Drizzle 3 drops with the onion sauce and drizzle with bay leaf oil. Finish with 2 sprigs of chervil and 2 sorrel sprouts.

INGREDIENTS FOR 4

4 reef mullets seed oil

extra virgin olive oil salt

For the soup

150 g sea urchin pulp

35 g water

10 g extra virgin olive oil

0,15 g saffron salt

For the orange cream

5 oranges sugar

>Red mullet carpaccio, sea urchin soup, saffron and orange

Clean the mullets, scale them, debone them and fillet them. Pour some seed oil into a frying pan, bring it to 45°C, then lay the fish fillets in and cook them lightly for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat (they will still be raw) and pat them dry to absorb the oil, cut them into carpaccio and season with olive oil and salt.

For the urchin soup, whisk together all the ingredients to obtain a smooth sauce, then adjust seasoning if necessary.

For the orange cream, peel the oranges with a peeler and keep the albedo peels aside. With a very sharp paring knife, remove the inner skin, keep the segments, squeeze the rest and keep the resulting liquid aside. Blanch the peels in water 7 times. In a saucepan, place the blanched peels, the peeled cloves, the juice and the sugar (10% by weight of the total weight of the other ingredients). Cook over a gentle heat until the oranges cook through and the liquid reduces, then whisk to form a smooth sauce. In a bowl, place the sea urchin soup at the bottom, lay the seasoned mullet carpaccio on top and finally drizzle with the orange cream.

Gobbledygook in the kitchen How (not) to write a menu

The use of articles and adjectives mystifies content and often makes us feel full before we even eat

by Michele Vaccari

The Christmas and Christmas Eve revelry is behind us For all those who may not have felt like cooking (almost 5 million Italians in 2022, a growing trend), it will have been time to try a new place to eat out but, more importantly, a new menu.

The dictionary

On this occasion, the real battle was not played out with the à la carte proposals. The real battle was with the dictionary. It is precisely in the writing of the holiday menu, 25 or 31 December makes little difference, that the vocabulary used to describe what we will find on the plate often falls into an unintentional sequence of unbearable heaviness of being. For years, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, we witnessed ‘seafood

triumphs’ that turned out to be lukewarm mussel salads when tested on the plate. At the beginning of the 2000s, the gastronomic exploits of certain cunning osterias aspiring to a place in the sun in the gourmand world imagined that the road to the culinary spotlight did not pass exclusively through the elaboration of something truly creative, but it was enough to propose the usual dish, even the most predictable, in a new lexical form. It was the great rock ‘n’ roll scam of spaghetti al pomodoro that became “the spaghetto (singular) di Gragnano in its tomato sauce”, a type of syntactic approach that, with the exponential spread of the concept of modern trattorias, has partly come back into fashion.

The article bluff

Not to go too far from home, and stop at the menus of the 36 best trattorias in Italy according to Gambero Rosso, it is above all on the tables of metropolitan restaurants that research and product quality choices are combined with a bulimia of determinative articles that turn every definition into an a priori value judgement that risks degenerating into a bit of a gobbledygook when very ordinary fettuccine, of an unspecified nature, turn into “fettuccine al mattarello” (fettuccine made with a rolling pin) or some probable lasagne simply rolled out become “the rough sheets of homemade egg pasta made with flour from ancient grains

with Grandma Felicia’s famous sauce”. The determinative article is used when one wants to call to the reader’s ear something that is known, and should be so well known as to be so. This is not the case, of course, for all those preparations that are known and well-known to the chef and his brigade but much less so to diners. There are very few gastronomic inventions that are so well known as to afford such merit, as one can imagine. If a possible sauce from Grandma Felicia is salvageable and tender, it is less cheerful to find oneself having to decipher what is hidden behind the phantom “ancient grains’”. “Homemade”, finally, is not as bad as homemade, clearly, but tells of the same basic linguistic mystification (it would be enough to think that a professional kitchen, however domestic, is not a home anyway). The game is played, of course, and the criticism could be extended to other little foibles that risk seeming like useless turns of phrase when, all of a sudden, ragù becomes “our ragù’”. One might wonder whether, in the same proposal of first courses, a canonical dish of gnocchi al pesto, with that poor pesto lacking the possessive adjective, would be an invitation to think it was made by someone else. It’s like when, to stay in my Genoa, to the delight of tourists, next to the same pesto mentioned

above, the craze of writing “alla genovese” started to arise for fear that someone would confuse it with, I don’t know, Sicilian pesto? In Genoa?

Menu and conceptualism

Besides, it should be emphasised that the conceptualism that is now the main matrix of menu writing in most modern trattorias is such that, on the other hand, the risk of an excess of essentiality may render aseptic, cold and cerebral even types of proposals born to be the land and guts of our

tradition revisited in a contemporary key. In fact, reading the list of dishes of certain realities, one often happens to read lists of ingredients, traditional and exotic, that seem to be placed next to each other to contribute to the competition of amazement, of image, that our time seems to require rather than for a basic choice of taste capable of truly innovating the recipe of the origins.

The golden rule

In modern trattorias of quality, the real ones, the many that have contributed to founding an alternative movement that, due to an economic and agrifood sustainability now impossible to leave unheeded, will be the future of Italian haute cuisine, alongside the ingredient there is always the preparation, the way in which those ingredients become culinary magic. If the menu is, therefore, above all information, more than theatre it is communication, more than bulimic ego it is truth: more than panegyric, it is the middle way between evocative definition and punctual explanation, and this seems to be the way forward. Forever reminding us of the golden rule we like to leave as a reminder to the future: nobody wants to feel full before they have even eaten.

travel

Umbria New Wave Gourmand revival with a green heart

Chefs,

producers, farmers: the protagonists of the revival after the earthquake seven years ago

by Antonio Boco

Umbria has never played a central role in the geopolitics of Italian catering, especially in ‘high-end’ catering. It is a small, isolated region, with a population historically unaccustomed to investing in ‘eating out’ and a limited industrial fabric that does not support the sector. Because certain tables are frequented for the sake of it, of course, but without a business clientele it is hard to make ends meet. For this reason, what has happened in recent years is incredible. As if someone had triggered a fuse, giving rise to a series of numerically outsized quality openings, capable of distorting the very identity and external gastronomic perception of the region.

Celebrity tables and chefs

Let’s be clear right away: there have been great chefs and excellent restaurants in Umbria in the past too, but that’s not the point. The success stories have always seemed episodic, the result of individual experiences rather than of a fertile terrain, much less a ‘system’. It is no coincidence

An evocative sunset over Assisi, one of the towns where the new wave is making itself felt with different signs

that one of the most crystalline talents the region and Italy have ever had, Angelo Paracucchi from Cannes, sought and found glory far from home. Others? Obviously Vissani, for a long time the most innovative, famous and media-savvy chef, then Sette Consoli and Trippini, to remain in Orvieto’s land. At Trasimeno, Luciano’s star shone, at Foligno Luisa Scolastra’s (Villa Roncalli), at Spello Marco Gubbiotti’s (La Bastiglia, now involved in the original Cucinaa project), at Città di Castello Marco Bistarelli’s with his Postale, at Perugia the Osteria del Bartolo. More recently the Vespasia in Norcia, Michelin Star since 2016 and now also Green Star. Cases that are both isolated in space and mixed in time, and which have nothing to do with the richness and collective scope of the current proposal. The Umbria of taste is here and now: a hothouse of young promises in the kitchen and contemporary establishments, capable of drawing an ever brighter and more articulate firmament. A modernity that arrived suddenly, but perhaps not by chance. In the meantime, the region has an increasingly pronounced tourist vocation and is a destination for travellers who are less ‘hit-and-run’ than in the past, eager for authentic experiences and with a good high-spending

bracket. Then there is a generation of locals much more curious than the previous ones, attentive to the quality and origin of raw materials, more willing than ever to invest in satisfying dining experiences. Making names and lists is not easy because the scene is effervescent and dynamic, capable of expressing different vertices but also a central body that has never been so nourished and interesting.

From L’Acciuga to Luce

In Perugia, starting at Luca Caputo’s L’Acciuga is a must. Not only because he has brought a ‘macaron’ back to the city, but above all because of the style with which he has done so; as much in the kitchen as in the management of the dining room and furnishings. A restaurant that started out in the suburbs, but was able to carve out a central role for itself with stubbornness, vision and a formula that has grown over time. Chef Marco Lagrimino’s ideas are seemingly simple but technically complex and render with cleanliness, detail and immediacy the great work done behind the scenes. A place where you feel good and drink very well, with cocktails and a selection of first-class wines; once almost exclusively the prerogative of ‘natural’ and hyper-artisan pro-

ductions, today capable of ranging on all fronts, with several iconic bottles on the list. Also in Perugia, but in the heart of the acropolis, is Luce. An evocative and atmospheric restaurant that brothers Francesco and Paolo Gori, chefs by training but able to divide their time between the dining room and the kitchen, have built in their own image and run to perfection. The proposal starts from the best of the territory and ends up in original, tasty, immediately comprehensible dishes, with an “inclusive” rate of creativity that does not flatten on any cliché, equidistant from bare and raw tradition and from “fine dining” for its own sake. The hall of Elementi, the realm of Andrea Impero.

Next to it, Ada Gourmet’s spaghetti with white tench ragout

From Ada to Annina

The second city star is thanks to Ada Stifani, surprising for the speed with which she grabbed it. The Ada Gourmet restaurant, which follows the successes and innovative spirit of L’Officina, is located on the ground floor of a building in the Sant’Ercolano area: characterised by brick vaults, elegant furnishings, an open kitchen and an evocative underground cellar. The style is that to which the chef has accustomed us, rich in creative grafts, combination of elements and articulated flavours, nevertheless taken to the highest possible level. And we are only at the beginning. The Perugia circle is closed by another young bet: Annina Locanda of brothers Matteo and Lorenzo Rossi. A splendid place, immersed in nature but just a few kilometres from the city, with a crazy view and cuisine based on “Basque” references to barbecuing and smoking. We shall see where it goes from here.

From Torgiano to Foligno

Torgiano, a land long devoted to food and wine tourism, also touches unexplored culinary heights with Elementi Fine Dining at the beautiful Borgo Brufa Spa Resort (another brand new Michelin Star). Here, Andrea Impero, an acquired Umbrian, has made a sensational investigation of the raw materials and artisans of the territory to create menus of gluttonous elegance, capable of uniting reasoned itineraries with immediate satisfaction and perfect scenic representation. Another starred table, but of totally different inspiration in terms of technique, experience, concept, ambience and spirit is that of Giulio Gigli and his crew. Une was born in an old mill in Capodacqua di Foligno and is among the most dynamic, contemporary and rockin’ places on the Umbri-

Elementi’s chicken: the chef selects it directly from Laura Pieri’s farm

Artisans and producers make the difference

To fully understand the state of grace of Umbrian catering requires a broad and transversal look. In addition to the surge in quality, there is no doubt that the region’s best tables have accelerated on the front of stylistic identity and territorial representation, possible thanks to a series of local suppliers of an extraordinary level. Farmers, market gardeners, breeders, butchers, fishermen, oil mills, cheese makers, bakers who, more than ever before, offer raw materials and products of the highest level, raising the bar of taste and freeing menus from possible standardisation. Here, too, the group is being defined, but we cannot fail to mention some virtuous cases. That of Diego and Davide Narcisi’s La Clarice synergistic vegetable garden, for example, planted in their grandfather’s abandoned field with hundreds of herbs from different areas of the planet, founded on permaculture and ethical principles. Also vegetable-themed is La terra è bassa by Maddalena Berretta, increasingly at home among vegetables and edible flowers of all kinds, and the green enterprise of Simone Schiavolini. There are also many fine projects on the meat front. The most significant is called Etrusco and encompasses the entire supply chain in a practically autarkic manner, from sustainable breeding to the processing and valorisation of all parts of the animal. For pork and charcuterie there is Urbevetus by Alfredo Angeli, without forgetting the great work of extraordinary butchers such as Santa Croce and La Carneria. Fish from Lake Trasimeno can be bought at the Cooperativa dei Pescatori di San Feliciano while small snail “farms” are multiplying, a decidedly interesting tradition that is making a comeback. Bread and bakery products deserve a separate chapter (in this regard, we recommend the flours of Bio Alberti, Torre Colombaia and the Silvestri water mill). Notwithstanding the bakeries of more ancient tradition, some young projects deserve the cover: O’ Ma’ in Foligno, Ora Forneria in Bastia Umbra, Centumbrie in Agello and Lale Backery in Perugia. On extra virgin olive oil, the totemic and founding plant of the region, one is spoilt for choice. That’s Umbria, that’s beauty.

an gastronomic scene. It could not be otherwise, given the chef’s long history around the world and in particular in Albert Adrià’s playground: the Disfrutar in Barcelona. Buckle up, here the flavours of memory travel in a channelling flow of technique and imagination, providing sparks. In the city of Foligno, another novelty on the launching pad is Silene Piccolo Ristorante of chef Nicoletta Franceschini, formerly in the kitchens of Niko Romito and Antonia Klugmann. A sensitive hand, especially with vegetables, and unusual combinations for flavours that transcend purely territorial perimeters.

Une restaurant in Capodacqua (Foligno). Below is a reinterpretation of Pici all’aglione, typical of northern Umbria (photo Andrea Di Lorenzo)

From luxe to nature

As mentioned, the list could go on and it is impossible to include everyone in the reconnaissance. Among the newcomers, however, we bet on two realities that are distant, both geographically and stylistically, but which share a strong underlying idea that does not bend to compromise. We are talking about the restaurant Radice del Relais La Chiaracia at Castel Giorgio, in the Orvieto area, and Tenuta Santa Cecilia, near Gubbio. In the luxury of the former, chef Daniele Auricchio plays at contrasts and proposes dishes that are anything but accommodating, with great grit and intensity, while the dining room is masterfully directed by Mauro Clementi, one of Umbria’s best in the role. The second is an extraordinary place in terms of landscape, nature and design: 320 hectares of woodland, olive groves, forage, wildlife, lambs and pigs reared in the wild (from which come marvellous cured meats), diffuse suites and a restaurant. Here, patron Giuseppe Onorato takes care of the reception and cellar while the kitchen is in the hands of returning Eugubinian Alessio Pierini and Serena Sebastiani Truly immersive, the dishes evoke the territory with class and acumen, evoking the flavours of the forest and wild nature in an original way. For us among the best experiences in the region.

Creativity and tradition

Mention should also be made of insignias that are perhaps less ‘hype’ but of quality, such as San Giorgio, Bosco 131, Osteria del Posto, Officina dei Sapori, Al Divino, Il Frantoio in Assisi and others that, in some way, have taken paths that leave their mark and contribute to the scenic polychromy. It would also be unfair to confine Umbria’s state of grace to ‘fine dining’ restaurants alone. On the “tradition” front, things are no less good, with some consolidated strongholds such as Il Capanno, near Spoleto, and Stella

Ristorante Vineria, in Perugia, but also with more recently opened tables run by young people. On this front, experiences such as La Risulta in Ponte San Giovanni and Lillero in Terni deserve attention, gems of a trend that we hope will bear further fruit. And then there are places that have made the territorial context a clear stylistic feature, becoming bastions of their respective products. Il Rosso di Sera and Il Molo for fish from Lake Trasimeno, Re Tartù and San Pietro a Pettine for truffles, just to give a few examples. Not to mention the positive momentum of quality pizzerias (did someone say Meunier in Corciano?) and ethnic restaurants, starting with the magical world of Il Vizio in the Best Western Quattrotorri in Perugia. Today’s is an Umbria that takes itself higher, certainly, but that also knows how to take completely new and in some ways unexplored paths. Full of fresh forces, full of dreams and energy, that seem to want to keep running and playing.

Gin Vettore, a distilled liqueur from the Monti Sibillini

Andrea, Marco e Matteo, sono tre amici originari di Macerata: in comune hanno un progetto ambizioso e una impresa, Sibillini Spirits. Tutto inizia con Gin Vettore, con “passaporto” marchigiano ma da un terroir che sta a cavallo tra Marche e Umbria: distillato che nasce ai piedi della montagna di cui porta nel bicchiere tutta l’essenza grazie anche ai 35 test di distillazione. La produzione si è ampliata con due liquori il Bitter del Redentore e l’amaro Priora. Le botaniche utilizzate da Sibillini Spirits sono coltivate e raccolte interamente nel territorio del Parco seguendo una filiera botanica sostenibile. Ginepro, melissa, aneto, assenzio e mela rosa dei Sibillini, genziana, timo arancio e altre essenze danno vita a prodotti figli di una meticolosa ricerca e contrassegnati da una fortissima componente territoriale.