Heading North.

As mentioned in the previous blog we recently visited the Viniveri and Vinnatur. These ‘fiere’ used to be one but at some point in the past the group split up. Now we have two natural wine fairs.

Not a lot of Umbrian wine producers on either (unfortunately) but we did spot oil and very good lentils from our lovely green hilled area.

Because Umbrie to Verona is quite a drive and we wanted to arrive early in the morning, we had decided on a overnight stop in Ferrara. Nice town, sunny sky and remarkably, already a lot of tourists!
Next day off to Viniveri which has been transplanted from its Villa to a rather modern complex near Cerea. Not a bad space but the guide they supplied was a mess and the food, ai the food… It was to put it kindly not up to standards and the prices were on the high side. I melancholically remembered last year when big slabs of meat where roasted on an what seemed impromptu bbq made out of bricks. We made our way round the winemakers having a taste and a chat and more than once received a welcome as if we had come back from the dead.

Names? Too many to mention all, but Montesecondo is always nice, he’ll be all over the United States in the near future he told us, so make sure you catch him to taste his fresh Tuscan wine. Also outstanding are the people and products of Tridente Pantalica. Their wines are made by a vietnamese who grew up in Germany and somehow has managed to become more Italian than many an Italian. Oh and their olives… madonna.

Also managed to lay our hands on a copy of the just out, Vini Naturali d’Italia numero uno. First in a 4 part series on natural wine in Italy. Only had a quick look in it yet but looks like a nice read. Next up Vinnatur…