Veneto

Prosciutto and fig pizza rocks with Terso Bianco

Prosciutto and fig pizza rocks with Terso Bianco

Posted on by Pat and David
Celebrity chef Todd English first made a name for himself in Boston with his fig and prosciutto pizza, It was a sensation because it departed so radically from classic tomato and cheese pie. When we were brainstorming a pizza to pair with a bottle of Marchesi Fumanelli Terso Bianco 2014, we were inspired by English's signature pie. We had some amazing dried Greek figs on hand that had soft skins and deeply flavored sweet flesh. We thought about other tastes of the corner of the Veneto where the Marchesi Fumanelli family has been growing grapes and making wine since 1470. We finally settled on sliced figs, slivers of prosciutto, and a walnut cream base. Instead of the pungent Gorgonzola that English uses, we topped our...Read More

TWL: Prosecco lifestyle at Villa Sandi

Posted on by David
Villa Sandi (Via Erizzo 112, Crocetta del Montello; +39-0423-665-033; www.villasandi.it) is one of the most striking producers of both Prosecco DOC and Prosecco DOCG wines. The winery's headquarters and cellars sit amid formal gardens in a verdant landscape. The property resembles a fairytale version of how a distinguished Italian winery should look. Nestled into the hills of the Marca Trevigiana about 25 kilometers northwest of Treviso, the estate borders the Piave river. The cellars once had a passageway that led to the riverbank, which Italian soldiers used to move surreptitiously during World War I. The villa itself, pictured above, is a splendid example of Palladian architecture built in 1622. It is a real period piece, with several rooms maintained in high 17th-century style, complete with...Read More

TWL: Prosecco over the line in Friuli

Posted on by David
The most rarefied Prosecco may come from the hills between Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, as suggested in an earlier post but some superb examples also come from the plains and river valleys eastward toward Pordenone in Friuli. It may be an entirely different political region from the Veneto, yet it's less than 40 km (25 miles) from Conegliano. Driving east on the A28, it's even worth taking a 15-minute detour to the village of Francenigo to see the historic power-hammer smithy — the Maglio di Francenigo — that's one of the last touchstones of the agricultural heritage. The Pessot family started making tools to till the fields and vineyards, using water power from a falls on the Livenza River to raise and lower the power hammer...Read More

TWL: Visiting the school for Prosecco

Posted on by David
[caption id="attachment_2618" align="alignleft" width="510"] Vineyard of Glera clones at Oenology School.[/caption] According to the Prosecco DOC consortium, farmers in the Friuli Venezia-Giulia village of Prosecco began making sparkling wine from the grape now known as Glera around 1600, and it became so popular that it spread to nine provinces in the 17th century. (Those provinces now lie within Friuli and the Veneto, and the symbol of Prosecco DOC is nine wine glasses.) Originally a farmhouse wine, Prosecco would stop fermenting in the fall when the weather cooled, then begin again in the spring, when it was sold as a “frizzante” wine. Antonio Carpenain invented modern Prosecco in the mid-19th century when he began using a pressurized tank for a second fermentation. His adaptation of France's...Read More