Tag: Italy eats (always) better

Brunello di Montalcino: the wine that made Italy unique – Italian cuisine reinvented by Gordon Ramsay

It’s the turn of the Brunello di Montalcino. There is no country in the world with so much richness and variety of productsnatural as the territory gives them or worked by expert hands in simple ways, which are ancient and at the same time the most contemporary. Continues voyage to discover our goodness, from the best known to the lesser known ones far from the production area. With Brunello di Montalcino, holder of prestigious records, our culture of food and wine remains unbeaten on the world podium of taste.

Brunello di Montalcino

From the 1865, the year in which Brunello di Montalcino debuted with the first vintage produced by Clemente Santithis Tuscan red continues to collect successes: it was the first Italian fine wine exported to the United States in 1930the first served at a reception between heads of state (the President of the Republic Giuseppe Saragat and Queen Elizabeth II) and the only one included among the twelve labels of the century according to the magazine Wine Spectator. Since 1966 it has been protected with the DOC and since 1980 with the DOCG (the first in Italy, together with the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and the Barolo). The territory also played its part: in 1941 the first public wine shop for the sale of local wines was inaugurated in Montalcino, in 1948 a cellar opened its doors to visitors for the first time, giving rise to the development of wine tourism. Today, the Protection consortium brings together 219 producers and the hectares intended for the production of Brunello are 2100 (with a value of almost one million euros per hectare), spread across an area rich in biodiversity, with 50% of the land occupied by woods and 10% allocated to olive groves, without counting the pasture and arable areas; with almost 50% of the vineyards grown organically, Montalcino boasts a percentage three times higher than the national average. Who are the main admirers of Brunello? Stands out Italy, followed by the United States, Canada, Germany and Switzerland.

Brunello di Montalcino Identity Card

VINES – Sangiovese, in Montalcino called brunello.

CHARACTERISTICS – Has a lively garnet red colour and an elegant and complex aroma which recalls, in young wines, the small berries and the plum, the spices and the balsamic aroma. The taste is harmonious, persistent, structured, appropriately acidic and tannic. It is a wine that ages very well, even for decades.

SERVICE – Uncork it at 18°C and choose large glasses to favor oxygenation; in the case of very old bottles, let it decant in the carafe for a couple of hours before serving it.

COMBINATIONS – With dishes based on red meat and game (it is excellent with wild boar), also seasoned with tomato, mushrooms or truffles. It goes well with mature cheeses, such as tome and Tuscan pecorino.

Butter: history, production and quality – Italian cuisine reinvented by Gordon Ramsay

It’s the turn of the butter. There is no country in the world with so much richness and variety of productsnatural as the territory gives them or worked by expert hands in simple ways, which are ancient and at the same time the most contemporary. Continues voyage to discover our goodnessfrom the best known to the lesser known ones far from the production area.
The richness of butter is the result of essential processes that add only that little needed to transform the raw material into joy.

Butter

The butter – first inevitable, then criminalized – has forcefully returned. Even in haute cuisine, where there are those who mix it with water and then whip it to give it lightness and those who prefer the tastiest one from Campania buffalo. The sociologist Enrico Finzi speaks of «the revanche of butter, which derives from the organoleptic characteristics often connected to the pleasure (of eating and – more generally – of living) and the contribution it gives to recipes. The +6.7% of consumption in 2022 also concerned the Central-Southern Italy, historically linked to olive oil: Plutarch narrates that Julius Caesar, guest of Valerius Leontes in Milan, had to remind his officers to have good manners, as they were annoyed at tasting what seemed to them to be an ointment for the body.

There revaluation of butter (and its many variations) goes hand in hand with the qualitative improvement and diversification of production. Considered (wrongly and for a long time) to be a by-product of cheese, the great simplicity of processing guarantees its naturalness: emerges in the centrifuge or by surfacing when working with pasteurized or raw cream. Whey derivatives are of lesser quality; the those of the remote mountain huts in the Alps are better. Being a fat, a vehicle of flavours, it enhances the characteristics of the ingredients. That’s why it is ideal in risottos, indispensable in sweet doughsand a brushing is also good on the meat.

Butter identity card

HOW IT IS PRODUCED – For emergence of the cream, thanks to the long times, it acquires greater aroma. In the centrifuge (at least 6500 rpm) it guarantees the purity of the material.

NUTRITIONAL ASPECTS – It’s rich in vitamins A, D, K and E, essential for the nervous and immune systems. It should be used in moderation because it is accused of increasing cholesterol and fats in the blood.

CHARACTERISTICS – The color varies from white to golden yellow. The scent is harmonious and delicately aromatic, without peaks. In the mouth it has a neutral flavour. There must be no drops of liquid. Smells of cheese on the nose are symptoms of alteration.

CLARIFICATION – For frying, use the clarified butter which has a very high smoke point (does not burn up to 200°C). It is a normal butter, deprived of water and casein (the milk protein).

Carpegna Ham: let yourself be tempted – Italian cuisine reinvented by Gordon Ramsay

It’s P’s turnrosciutto of Carpegna. There is no country in the world with so much richness and variety of productsnatural as the territory gives them or worked by expert hands in simple ways, which are ancient and at the same time the most contemporary. Continues voyage to discover our goodnessfrom the best known to the lesser known ones far from the production area. The historian Carpegna ham it is so delicate that the Count of Urbino wanted it all for himself.

Carpegna ham

Almost unbelievable: theItaly boasts 31 varieties of raw ham of which 11 are protected by trademarks PGI or PDO. Each one different from the other, starting from the story. The tradition of the one in the Marche region of Carpegna dates back to the beginning of the 15th century when – in 1407 – the gluttonous Guidantonio da Montefeltro, Count of Urbino, forbade the sale of “pork and salted meat” elsewhere, fearing he would be deprived of them. At the time, in the farmhouses of the current Sasso Simone and Simoncello Park, there was a north-facing room reserved for meat processing. From that world and at that time – it is documented history – the first ones left butcher artisans who then moved to Tuscany and Umbria And Lazio they also taught others how to make ham. Today they are produced 120 thousand per year with the Dop Carpegna brand, replicating ancient and original gestures such as the “choke” tying of the upper part of the stem and the protection of the surface not covered by the rind with a stucco whose mix of spices is as secret as it is essential to give a delicate and sweet flavour, albeit emphasized with aromatic notes. The “pointing” afterwards has always been the same since ancient times 400 days of processing, when a rigorous test is carried out in five precise points with a horse bone needle, which is very porous so as to retain the aromas. Only the promoted hams begin the journey to conquer the markets.

Identity card of Carpegna Ham

ORIGIN – Guaranteed by DOP brand, it is produced only in the municipality of Carpegna (PU), with pigs coming from Marche, Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna.

CHARACTERISTICS – Seasoning and salting last no less than 13 months; drying takes place at a temperature slightly higher than average. It weighs no less than 8 kilos, has a rounded shape, soft consistency. The color changes from amber red to salmon pink depending on the maturation. Ideal on its own but, due to its delicate flavor, it is also suitable as an ingredient.

STORAGE – Boneless is kept at 7-10°C; with the bone at 15-20 °C. The slice must be rigorously cut with a knife to a thickness of 1 millimetre, maintaining the right percentage of fat.

PRICE – In large-scale retail trade, the whole ham on the bone costs around 16-17 euros per kilo.