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Slow Food, Comfort Food
The Food Traditions of Piedmont & Parma
Now an international movement in 132 countries, Slow Food began in Piedmont, launched by native son Carlo Petrini in 1986
after McDonalds opened its first fast-food outlet in Italy. It's easy to see why Petrini campaigned to preserve local food
traditions, given Piedmont's slow-cooked risotto, meat-stuffed ravioli, mountain cheeses, white truffles, porcini mushrooms,
and chocolate-hazelnut desserts. Emilia Romagna has an even longer culinary history. Home to comfort foods like lasagna,
tortellini in broth, and pumpkin ravioli, you'll also find the real deal in aged balsamic vinegar of Modena,
Parmigiano-Regiano cheese, and Prosciutto di Parma. A gourmet's delight! 2011 dates: [6 days/5 nights] October
23-28 | ||||
The Slow Food movement started in Piedmont, and so shall we. After a pick-up in Tortona, we'll shuttle to the Langhe hills and Castle of Grinzane Cavour, home to Italy's first Prime Minister, who (like Thomas Jefferson) was also a winemaker--and co-creator of Barolo wine. After a historical intro to Barolo, we'll have a complementary welcome lunch that features Piedmont's regional specialties, such as vitello tonnato (veal with tuna sauce), plin (tiny meat-stuffed ravioli), and bounet (chocolate-hazelnut pudding). The rest of the afternoon is dedicated to the bounteous truffle market and food fair in Alba. Dinner is at a Slow Food restaurant in Alba, where we'll hunt for white truffles on the menu. L, D | ||||
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Day 2 - Barolo: The King of Wine & Wine of Kings
King Carlo Alberto and his son Vittorio Emanuele maintained several hunting lodges in Piedmont. One is now the Ceretto winery. Producing wine for 70 years and still family-run, Ceretto has grown into a constellation of small-estate wineries that make benchmark Barolo cru and refreshing white Arneis. A buffet lunch follows at an artisan cheese farm, where we'll sample an array of fresh Murrazano cheeses and salumi, then have a private tour of the cheesemaking facilities. In the afternoon, there's a second Barolo tasting at the boutique winery Conterno Fantino, where we'll size up the more structured, masculine Barolos produced in the Monforte area. Dinner is on your own in Alba. B, L | ||||
Morning transfer to Parma (2-1/2 hours), the gastronomic cradle of Emilia Romagna and home of Parmigiano Reggiano and Prosciutto di Parma. We'll arrive in time for lunch, then visit a producer of Prosciutto di Parma, where we'll see the steps in making Italy's most popular DOP ham, from salting and fatting to aging in cold storage. We'll also learn about other cured-meat specialties of Parma, such as salami di Felino, culatello di Zibello, and spalla cotta di S. Secondo. Back in town, we'll have a guided walking tour of Parma, visiting its Duomo and baptistry, Piazza Garibaldi, and other major sites. Dinner in town. B, D Day 4 - In the Parma Kitchen This morning is devoted to Parmegiano Reggiano, aged cow-milk cheese which, produced elsewhere, is called parmesan. Our early-morning visit takes us into the dairy rooms where curds are worked and poured into molds, where salting takes place, and where the hefty rounds are aged for years or even decades, quality-tested with a special hammer. Then we head to a cooking lesson, where we'll venture into the world of stuffed pasta and other comfort foods that define Emilia Romagnan cuisine and lunch on our efforts. There will be free time in the afternoon to further explore Parma's museums, churches, and specialty food shops. Dinner in town. B, D
One hour south of Parma is the city of Modena, famous among foodies for two things: fizzy, fun Lambrusco and traditional balsamic vinegar of Modena. Many farms in the region produce both products, and we'll visit one such family-owned estate, Manicardi. In the viticultural subzone of Castelvertro, we'll find Lambrusco at its most intense-with deep violet color and full-throttle fruit-and we'll taste the fine distinctions between dry and off-dry versions, both perfect accompaniments to salumi and rich meats. Here we'll also see the aging lofts for balsamic vinegar, which spends years rotating through small barrels of various woods until it turns into a sublime, dark nectar. After lunch in Castelvetro, we'll visit a second Lambrusco producer, Vittorio Graziano, a long-haired, motorcycle-riding traditionalist who makes some of the most earthy, distinctive Lambruschi around. Our farewell dinner is at a trattoria that hews to tradition in its atmosphere and dishes, embodying Slow Food tenets at their best. B, D |
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Day 6 - Arrivederci! A shuttle to the Parma train station and assistance with your travel plans. B For GoogleMap, click here | ||||