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B.Y.O.B. AT CAPRICCIO!
We are trying something different just to see how it goes. I guess you can call this "experimenting". Starting next Wednesday (October 21) we will have a "Bring Your Own Bottle" 2 week period. Of course, the liquor laws don't allow us to sell any wine and/or liquor during that period but I think this will be a good thing to try. We will also have some wine (at no charge) served during this period in case you forget to bring your bottle or you just don't feel like going to the liquor store to buy some. It doesn't matter but just please let us know how you feel about this - either thumbs up or down.
Cheers!
Gerry |
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VOTE FOR US IN CITYSEARCH - PLEASE! Yes, I know... there are so many contests out there (specially online) that is even hard to keep track of them. But I only follow the important ones. This one seems to be important because it names the "Best of Citysearch". Please vote for us when you get a chance. It may be a bit of a pain because you have to be a "registered user" but registering is not a big deal after all. Some cyberspace coverage helps a lot so we REALLY appreciate your support. Here are the links to vote for Mezzanotte and Capriccio:
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BACK FROM TUSCANY!
CHAPTER 5 - MONTALCINO
After a (relatively) early breakfast prepared by our personal chef Alessandra we were ready to hit the road in the direction of Montalcino to visit the Canalicchio di Sopra winery. Our driver Leonardo got lost and we ended up touring the immense Banfi property - Banfi is the Mariani family (from Long Island, NY) winery which is the largest producer of wines in Montalcino. Leonardo is a local (born and raised there) and carried a GPS device in the minibus; I can just imagine the difficulty in finding our destinations if we were to drive by ourselves! But getting lost was wonderful as we really enjoyed the scenery. This is a picture of the Castello Banfi; a 12 century castle renovated by the Mariani family:
And here is a view of the walled town of Montalcino up on the top of the hill:
Finally we made it to our destination about an hour late after our involuntary detour. Here we are with the owners of the winery. This small, family owned, winery produces only Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino wines. Our host was Francesco who is in the picture with his parents. Francesco (age 22) is in charge of marketing while his brother is in charge of production and his older sister runs the operation. The winery produces 20,000 bottles a year (very modest quantity compared to large wineries such as Banfi).
Our visits to the wineries were very personal. We visited wineries that don't offer tourist tours. The visits were more like visits to friends' homes. Here is our wine tasting at Canalicchio di Sopra:
Of course we enjoyed the magnificent views of the surroundings and the tour through the winery:
After the visit we went to town to have lunch at the Osteria di Porta al Cassero. Our friends from the winery had made the reservation for us and sent us a nice bottle of the 2004 Brunello di Montalcino (absolutely outstanding wine). At the Osteria we had bruschettas and a local favorite: Picci al Ragu (a thick local spaghetti with a bolognesa type meat sauce). This is supposed to be a "lite lunch". Here is the gang enjoying our lunch and wines:
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CHAPTER 6 - SIENA
After lunch we hit the road again in the direction of Siena. We walked through this beautiful walled-in town that boasts a magnificent medieval cathedral (Duomo) full of beautiful art. Here we are in the main plaza:
And here we are having a casual conversation at a street corner (perhaps discussing what to eat or drink next!):
Talk about streets!! just about around any corner we found wonderful views. Siena is a rather difficult town to explore because of the many ups and downs. This and the altitude requires that you are in relatively good shape:
And, of course, the Duomo:
At the end of the day I had made reservations at a very good restaurant: La Compagnia dei Vinattieri. Here we had a very nice tasting menu. We started with a Prosecco with a couple of small bites: a ricotta cheese souffle and a seafood "sformatto" with spinach. Then we moved on to a Super Tuscan from Corte alla Flora paired with a Picci (tuscan pasta) with sauteed liver and a creamy pasta. The third stage was a Giugollo Tuscan wine with a Brasato di Manzo (braised beef) and ended up with a spicy chocolate fondue, an apricot pastry and a chocolate cake paired with... God know what (at this point we had stopped taking notes!). The restaurant had its own underground cellar. Fascinating:
After such a nice dinner we jumped into our mini bus and endured the 90 minute drive back to our villa. Tomorrow will be another day!!
Will continue the chronicle of our trip in the next issue.
Cheers,
Gerry |
FEATURED WINES OF THE WEEK
FEATURE WINE AT MEZZANOTTE
This week I have 2 wines for you to try. I have been very Italian wine centric at Mezzanotte, with some California and Argentinean variations. But today I came across this great Australian Chardonnay. Yes, Australian!! How far could that be from Italy??
Chardonnay - Fonty's Pool - Pemberton, Australia
Bottle 30 / Glass 8
Fonty's Pool classic cool climate Chardonnay that saturates the palate with citrus juiciness, hints of stone-fruit and discrete mineral elements. There is textural softness, with refined oak influence and an overall charm and elegance. Fresh, racy and opulent.
Montepulciano D'Abruzzo DOC - Dario D'Angelo - Abruzzo, Italy
Bottle 28 / Glass 7
Dark ruby red with purple highlights this wine is rich and full bodied with balanced acidity. The texture is silky on the palate with aromas of black fruits, raspberries and cherries. Great structure and a real depth of flavor.
Drunk lots of Montepulciano D'Abruzzos while in Rome (Abruzzo is right next to Lazio/Rome) but this one is just outstanding.
FEATURE WINES AT CAPRICCIO
Our feature this week is a superb wine from the Toro region. I am very partial to Toro as it produces probably the "biggest" reds in Spain. This one happens to be 100% Tinta de Toro (a Tempranillo clone):
Toro DO - Canto Petirrojo (El Curato) - Toro, Spain
Bottle 36 / Glass 9
This wine, produced by the Aragon brothers of Cillar de Silos, aims at breaking down the stereotype of Toro wines as very hard, tannic and alcoholic. The goal is to make an intensely fruity wine, pleasant and far from the traditional concept of wines from this zone. Produced from 20 - 40 year old vines. Inky violet. Expansive, jammy, blackberry and blueberry on the nose. A juicy midweight, showing impresevely sweet, deep dark fruit flavors, with light tannins adding support to the long, supple finish. Impressive!
We also have a very nice flight that includes our featured wine:
The Spanish Reds Flight - 12
- Monastrel Sierra Salinas "MO" (Alicante)
- Tempranillo Tinto Vivir, Vivir (Ribera del Duero)
- Toro El Curato (Toro) |
