75 Tuscan Summer Report From:   drwo@woteki.com Subject: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 3, 2004 8:03:04 PM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Security: Signed [Warning --> This is an essay on “How I Spent My Summer Vacation” for foodies and wine mavens with links to photos. No offense taken if you choose to drop out now. So... you’ve been warned.] Greetings! I’ve been off the air for a while literally traveling the world. By now you may have seen my message concerning our trip to Uganda (http://www.woteki.com/uganda) Following that marvelous trip we went to Italy, literally a world apart from our experience in Uganda. Specifically we were in Tuscany in the heart of the Chianti Classico region. We stayed at Antico Classico (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/navico/navico.html) in a converted farm building surrounded by vineyards and olive groves. The nearest towns to us were Castellino in Chianti (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/castellina/castellina.html) and Panzano in Chianti (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/panzano/panzano.html). Both are lovely towns were we could shop for dinner and wine or have a gelato. Tuscany is very beautiful with rolling hills alternately forested by oak or planted to grapes and olives. We also made day trips to Siena (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/siena/siena.html), Florence and Verona, where we took in Rigoletto in an old Roman Stadium. And of course we ate well. On a very long walk one day we found a country restaurant called Ristoro di Lamole (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/lamole/lamole.html). We had a lovely dinner on the terrace overlooking a valley with a gorgeous sunset in the background. One very fine dish we sampled was roast pork in a fig sauce. We also sampled some very fine fennel-seasoned salami as well as homemade pasta sauced with fresh porcinis. Another excellent meal we had was at another country restaurant, whose name escapes me. I ordered the chef’s choice menu, the “Menu Sorpresa”. Briefly: crostini with chicken livers accompanied by salumi; a chick pea salad that was wonderful; a sampler of 3 (!) pastas, followed by stuffed guinea hen. And finally there was dessert. And that was just for me! We also had a fantastic meal in Rome where we let the wizened waiter order for us: platters of roasted fresh porcinis selected from a huge wicker basket of same with a side salad of fennel and shaved fresh porcini; next a 2 pasta sampler comprising a heavenly homemade fettuccini sauced with butter infused with truffle plus shavings of truffle and spaghetti sauced with a lobster diavolo; and finally a whole sea bass (from the Med, not farm raised) roasted to perfection over wood. Oh man! But wait! There’s more and its better than all the above. My buddies at Schneider’s of Capitol Hill (http://www.cellar.com/home/default.asp) arranged some wine tastings (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/tastings/tastings.html) for us. One of those occurred at Uccelliera (http://www.uccelliera-montalcino.it/) where Andrea’s Momma (http://www.woteki.com/italy2004/tastings/tastings-Pages/Image9.html) prepared a 4 course meal comprising: chicken liver crostini and homemade prosciutto; cannelloni stuffed with summer vegetables, sauced with béchamel; fettuccini Bolognese; and finally a huge platter of roasted, home-raised, free-range chicken and home-raised rabbit accompanied by potatoes fried in olive oil made at the winery. But the highlight for me was the wine tastings. We tasted wines at 6 small wineries, each producing at most 8,000 cases, several much less. We met winemakers, passionate about Italian wines, wines with a sense of place, all of whom were dedicated to producing quality products. They were extremely generous with their time and their wine. We learned a lot about Sangiovese and the principal wines made from it, Chianti Classico and Brunello di Montalcino. These are delicious, very food-friendly wines that eschew fashionable international styles in winemaking and offer a sense of place for their wine. I gotta go back to Tuscany. But first, some Chianti…. Tom From:   Kkraditor@aapa.org Subject: Re: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 3, 2004 9:39:47 PM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Wow!  That sounds… well, like Italy! When Sherri and I were there a few years back, we had to keep a journal to remember all the food and wine we were lucky enough to taste.  Of course now I can’t find it, but mama mia it was good. From:   leslie.borden@comcast.net Subject: Re: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 4, 2004 10:17:54 AM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Ooh, you had a food journal and can’t find it?  Aaaaaarggggggghhhh!  I have journals from each of our trips, and consequently I can tell you (or write an article) about every meal I’ve eaten outside the U.S. since 1993, including what it was, where we ate it, what it costs, and loving descriptions.  God forbid, if we ever have to evacuate, I’m grabbing the journals right after the cats, a change of clothes, and the CD with my recipes. Sounds like a fabulous trip, Tom. See you around the kitchen, lb From:   Mkingston9@aol.com Subject: Re: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 8, 2004 2:28:20 PM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Tom,  thanks so much for sharing tales of the wonderful time you and Cathy enjoyed in Tuscany.  I could practically taste that pork in fig sauce and the Brunello etc.  It reminded me of a similar trip Joe and I took in the Chianti region about 5 years ago, and all those wonderful “white roads” leading to vineyard after vineyard. Margo From:   Joshua_Cohn-NR@raytheon.com Subject: Re: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 21, 2004 2:00:15 PM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Tom, Don’t know if I am responding to everyone or just you.  No matter.         So, what can you tell me about Brunellos?  I have read quite a bit about Brunellos since there has been a string of good to excellent vintages.  Not too much more than Costello Banfi makes it consistently to the Old Pueblo.  Banfi is supposed to be a good textbook introduction to Brunellos, but I am sure that is just that, an introduction.         Have you explored Californian Sangioveses much?  How do they stack up?  I’ve had a few.  Jeff Runquist, the winemaker for McMannis wines has a more boutique label, Runquist, which makes a Sangiovese.  This is a very interesting wine if you can find it in Washington.  It is much more of an intellectual wine; mushrooms and earth over fruit.  This might make for a good counterpoint to the more traditional Brunellos that it sounds like you are keen on at the moment. -J Sometimes a Great Notion Josh Cohn ph 520-794-1176 fax 520-794-2077 Joshua_Cohn-NR@raytheon.com From:   Kkraditor@aapa.org Subject: Re: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 21, 2004 3:35:22 PM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info If I may interject – there are many good to great Brunellos with complex flavors and textures.  When I was in Montalcino I was fortunate enough to taste about a dozen of them.  One of my favorites was Poggio Antico, but my aim is always to try as many as possible.  The worst Brunello I ever had was delicious, and the best ones are beyond description.  One other thought – they are usually best when consumed on or near the vineyard. Kevin From:   drwo@woteki.com Subject: Re: Tuscan Summer Report Date: September 23, 2004 9:21:13 PM EDT To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Reply-To:   aroundthekitchen@aroundthekitchen.info Security: Signed Hi Josh and welcome to the list. Sorry I’m a bit tardy in reply. Sounds like you have been tasting some Brunello and know a little something. However, you asked what can I tell you. Here is my rundown. Brunello refers to Brunello di Montalcino. Montalcino is a small town in the southern part of Tuscany about 50 km south of beautiful Siena. By law, Brunello must be made from grapes grown in a small defined area surrounding Montalcino and it must also be bottled within the same area. By law the wine must be 100% Sangiovese grapes. Sangiovese requires careful viticulture and vinification. Like pinot noir, and unlike cabernet sauvignon, it is finicky to grown and challenging to make great wine. Sangiovese is also the principal grape in Chianti. Chianti Classico (CC) must be at least 75% Sangiovese and may range up to 100%. The other up to 25% may be anything. The “Super Tuscan” wines one hears about blend mostly either cabernet or merlot with the Sangiovese but other, more traditional, grapes are also used. As long as the other grapes stay below 25%, and as long as the grapes come from the defined CC area, they can call the wine CC and place the famous black rooster on label. The CC area is rather larger than the Montalcino origin, and the Chianti area, which encloses CC, is larger still. The difference between a CC that is 100% Sangiovese and a Brunello is about there they are from, what is called terroir. There are 2 recognized Sangiovese wines of Montalcino. One is Brunello, the other Rosso di Montalcino. The difference, by law, is in how they are aged. Brunellos have legally required longer minimum times in both barrel ( I believe the requirement is 3 years) and in bottle before they may be released. The longer aging, and therefore longer time until return on investment, means that Brunellos are generally much more expensive. Wine makers also select their best grape lots for the Brunello. The wine makers we spoke to suggested that a good Brunello will benefit from at least 2-3 years additional bottle aging in the cellar after release  whereas Rossos are ready for immediate consumption. Here is a little of what Victor Hazan, Marcella’s husband, had to say about Brunellos: “”If one is in doubt about how the terms austere, big and full are applied to wine, a mouthful of Brunello will give a forceful demonstration of their meaning.“ and ”The bouquet, an exciting mingling of floral essences, of tar, of spice, of fur, is a prelude to the palate coating flavors that follow.“ He goes on. His book was written in 1982. I think his comments on austerity may be somewhat outdated as wine making techniques have changed significantly around the world, Italy no exception. The wines are more approachable younger than his remark would suggest. Hazan’s book is out of print and so, I believe, is Victor himself, RIP. I have heard tales that he wrote goodly portions of Marcella’s cookbooks because she was enjoying a bit too much wine in the kitchen. (And did anyone hear the deconstruction of Julia Child by Mark Bittman on NPR a week or 2 back?) Finally, Kevin and I and our mates enjoyed a bottle of the ‘99 Banfi Brunello a few days ago along with the Uccelliera that we had tasted in Italy. Both were sublime. Sante, Tom