Welcome to
VOLUME VI,
NUMBER 4 of Wine News, the e-Letter from the WineCountry.IT network. (Would you
rather see the e-Letter on your favorite browser? Use
this link. Usa il link seguente se vuoi leggere
le News in italiano).
Italian Flavor Forum XI
The 11th trade show featuring Italian quality wine, organic extra virgin olive oil, mineral water, and accessories for the wine lover, takes place on June 22, 2009 at the Museo Italo Americano, located at Fort Mason, in the Marina district of San Francisco, CA.
Find out more.
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Another month has gone by and we are very pleased to notice that the number of subscriptions to our e-Letter keeps growing at the rate of about 100 new readers per month, for a total now of 9,230 subscribers.
As the world economis still changing some of the habits that we have grown accustomed to, at WineCountry.IT we are working harder than ever to promote and bring quality wines to the US at accessible prices.
Beside traveling to Italy for the second time in less than 30 days to participate in the 43rd Vinitaly trade show in Verona, we also provided the wines for two California events: a weeklong Apulia cuisine classes and dinners at the Applewood Inn & Restaurant in Guerneville, featuring chef Francesco Paldera, and the Sardegna Sottoterra Dinner in Mill Valley.
In addition, we are currently organizing the next Italian Flavor Forum, the 11th, which will take place at the Museo Italo Americano of San Francisco. This time we are introducing two new exciting features: the Importer Desk, featuring Italian wines, balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil never imported to the US before, which are seeking importers / distributors, and a competition among barman / mixologists to create new cocktail based on the spirits and liqueurs produced by Cantine e Distillerie Mangilli, which we are introducing for the first time in California for the occasion.
As usual we provide good, informative articles for all lovers of Italian quality wine and food. Without further ado, I wish you all happy reading.
Loris Scagliarini, WineCountry.IT President |
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Articles |
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La Fufi Restaurant: When Simplicity Becomes High Cuisine |
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 I spent a great gastronomic evening at Cossano Canavese, a small town in the province of Turin, enjoying dishes which expressed the superior food culture of an excellent character, Fulvia 'La Fufi' Steffenone. Fulvia, a nice, young, smiling food trainer, teaches her culinary secrets to the pupils of the Istituto Alberghiero (Hotel and Restaurant School) and passionate amateurs alike, with the goal of teaching "the pleasure of eating healthfully and well," offered some fabulous examples of her great cuisine.
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Sagrantino Day International |
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 On April 20, 2009 the Sagrantino Day International took place in 43 different places, including 29 Italian cities and 14 international locations: New York and Washington in the US; Tokyo and Osaka in Japan; Berlin, Hanover, Hamburg, Cologne, Kassel, and Darmstadt in Germany; London in England; Amsterdam in The Netherlands, plus Brussells and Luxemburg.
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What Crisis? 2004 Grange Pre-sells at AUS$600 a Bottle |
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 The 2004 Penfolds Bin 95 Grange, released on May 1, 2009 is given as one of the great vintages of what's arguably Australia's top wine, has already reached AUS$599 a bottle at pre-release retail price, offered by Vintage Cellars, one of the major Australian fine wine retailers. This is the highest price ever for a new Grange vintage.
According to Peter Gago, Penfolds' chief winemaker, the wine is in the same league as the "wonderful" 1990 and 1996 vintages.
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Sardegna Sottoterra Dinner |
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 Because of the limited parking space, the 40 or so participating guests park their car in downtown Mill Valley and are shuttled up hill. As soon as the guests arrive they are greeted by Thy, then they come to me for a glass of Prosecco before heading to the buffet, or hit the buffet first then come to me for a glass of their favorite wine. Of course, to enable them enjoy the wines at their best from the first glass poured from the just opened bottle, I pour all the wines using the Centellino Areadivino wine decanter, with the exception of the sparkling Prosecco.
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| Wine Shipment to Consumers Legalized in Kansas |
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 Many states allow the practice, which has led to the popularity of online wine stores and numerous wine clubs. Until now though, Kansas was leery of uncorking a law which some lawmakers feared could lead to underage alcohol consumption.
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Gambero Rosso and Slow Food: Enogastronomic Divorce |
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 The collaboration between Slow Food and Gambero Rosso ends after 22 years. As a result, 'Vini d'Italia', the influential Italian wine guide whose well known 'tre bicchieri' (three glasses) recognition is assigned each year to the best Italian wines selected by the magazine editors, from now on will be published by Gambero Rosso alone.
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| Vinitaly 09 Sideways – Part 1 |
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 I've been back from Italy barely three weeks and here I am again, at the international gates of SFO, or the San Francisco airport, waiting to board the red eye to Munich, Germany, and from there to Bologna, Italy, for the 43rd Vinitaly trade show, the largest wine show in the world, which started back in the 1960's.
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 Among other noteworthy moments we take part in the Donne Sommeliers (Women Sommeliers) magazine's Vigne d’Italia in Rosa (Italian Vineyards in Pink) award given, among others, to Signora Mariele Galanti, owner of Tenuta Ca' Boffenisio, in the Veneto region, and Signora Claudia Reggianini, owner of Fattoria Coliberto in Tuscany.
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 Later in the day we visit the acetaia (traditional balsamic vinegar from Modena factory) of my friend, Daniele Malagoli. As usual Daniele and his wife, Barbara, are welcoming and, after a visit to the attic where the over 800 various sized barrels hold the 'black gold, as the traditional balsamic vinegar is called around here, we sit around the wide, antique wooden table in the living room and taste the 7-, 14-, and over 20-year-old balsamic vinegars.
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Part 4 |
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 Mid afternoon I start cooking for a few friends who will join me at my mom's for my last Italian dinner of this trip. I make trofie pasta with a vegetarian sauce, followed by sausage prepared in two ways: stewed with veggies and plain roasted. To round out the meal, there is a mixed green salad seasoned with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar from Modena, cold cuts including prosciutto, coppa and salame, plus my mom's fried lemon-flavored dough for dessert.
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73rd Trentino Wine Show |
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 From the 15th to the 18th of May 2009, the 73rd Mostra vini del Trentino (Trentino Wine Show), the most important event dedicated to wine and grappa produced in the region, takes place in Trento. Thanks to the 70 or so producers who, for four days will pour their wines and meet with buyers and wine lovers in two central locations – the Teatro Sociale (Social Theater) and the Palazzo Roccabruna, the city will become a drawing room of pleasant encounters.
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Vino d'Autore (Author's Wine) |
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 Thursday, April 14, 2009, at 6:30pm, the first installment of the series of events entitled Vino d'Autore. The event took place at Villa Savonarola, in the city of Portici, in the Campania region, and included four wine tasting labs moderated by well known enologists, such as Vincenzo Mercurio, Maurizio De Simone, Sergio Romano, and Nicola Trabucco, among other activities.
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Barcelona Food Technologies (BTA) &
International Packaging Exhibition (HISPACK) |
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 Barcelona Tecnologías de la Alimentación (BTA, or Barcelona Food Technology) is one of Europe's most important trade fairs in the sector in terms of exhibition space, number of visitors, and variety of products presented. Through its three shows – Tecnoalimentaria, Tecnocárnica, and Ingretecno – the BTA offers technological solutions in machinery and intermediate food products, from ingredients to additives and more, to every sector of the food and beverage industry.
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The London International Wine Fair 2009 |
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 With around 1,300 exhibitors and 25,000 wines, the LIWF brings samples from the entire world of wine to London for three days of information, discovery and business. This is in fact strictly a trade only, free event, with air conditioned halls to make it a perfect environment for conducting business.
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New Italian Denominations: DOC Prosecco e DOCG Conegliano Valdobbiadene e Colli Asolani |
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 "We had promised ultra-quick time for the protection of the Prosecco and we have kept our promise: thanks to the work carried out by the Work Ministry, the Wine Committee and the Regions Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia, already from the next grape harvest all the Prosecco will be protected at the EU and international level as a Designation of Protected Origin," said Italian Agriculture Minister, Luca Zaia.
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WineCountry.IT
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WineCountry.IT Producers |
Villa Sarchese, the headquarters of the Azienda Agricola (Commercial Farm) Sarchese Tommaso, is located in the municipality of Ortona, between the Adriatic coastline and the Majella Apennine range, in one of the most pleasant hillside locations in the Abruzzo region.
The area is particularly favorable to viticulture and olive cultivation, and the proximity of both mountains and seaside contribute to creating an ideal environment for the Montepulciano d'Abruzzo native grape, which makes a wine appreciated worldwide.
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We continue the presentation of Italy's 155 products of Protected Designations of Origin (PDO, or, in Italian, DOP, Denominazione di Origine Protetta) and Protected Geographical Indications (PGI, or IGP in Italian, Indicazione Geografica Protetta).
This month we present two types of fish, the Tinca Gobba Dorata del Pianalto di Poirino DOP from the lake waters of Piedmont, and the Acciughe Sotto Sale Del Mar Ligure IGP from the Ligurian Gulf, in the Mediterranean.
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The 'Balla degli Spaghetti alla Bolognese' plays on the ambiguity – better still, on the multiplicity of meanings – of the key word. It references 
