Sweetness

Yes, Valentine’s Day is upon us. The hearts, the greeting cards, everything coming up roses, pink and other shades of flesh and blood. Do I sound cynical and jaded? Nah. Just single. But seriously, I really don’t mind this somewhat saccharin day. If anything, it is an excuse to eat copious amounts of chocolate. And let people know you love them (or don’t love them at all and would NOT like to be their Valentine.) 3rd grade traumas seem to be arising. I think I shall take this moment to look back at some of my favorite sweet Italian things this year. It helps balance the “bitter.”

Uva Fragola= Strawberry Grape. A wild Italian grape that mysteriously tastes like fresh strawberry. I need these in my life. Why do they not grow in America?

Limoncello. In the words of the wise Clune McClune, “It’s like a musical instrument, but you can drink it.” Wise, indeed. It is thick and lemony and sweet. I like it chilled over ice. Just delicious.

Moscato grapes dried on the vine for sweet moscato passito wine. Peach-candied burnt orange-tangerine raisin candy. I could have spent the whole day in the vineyard with a lawn chair, a book and my arm within reach of a cluster.

In a small village an hour south of Rome, I was handed these by someone’s mother. They were the best macaroons I’ve ever had. And I’ve had plenty. I am a veritable macaroon freak. Chewy, dense and lightly crunchy from the granules of sugar and toasted coconut.

While in Italy, I challenged myself to come up with the best gelato flavor combinations. I know, tough challenge. In Orvieto, I had this:  yogurt frutti di bosco (wild berries) and bacio (hazelnut and chocolate). Like the best raspberry filled truffle ever. And it came in a cup with a parrot on it.

This was a truly awesome day. I hung out with one of the finest winemakers and master of Sagrantino- Giampero Bea. This was the drying room for the sagrantino grapes, which create one of the best dessert wines I’ve ever had: his Montefalco Sagrantino Passito.

Emozioni Lato R. Emotions Side R. R as in Rosso. And Really deliriously good. Leone Conti is not only one of my more favorite people in the great country of Italy, but a fantastic winemaker in Emilia Romagna making crazy aromatic wine from practically unknown grapes like centesimino. This dessert wine was a lavender, rose and pomegranate explosion.

In Friuli, there is a woman named Elena Parovel. She is a very smart woman. She not only made a beautiful wine, but created a cookie to be eaten with it. Elena, I bow down to you and your genius.

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I hope this walk down dolce memory lane:

1. Sweetened your day.

2. Made your mouth water. I like having that kind of  control.

xoxo

Tagged as: centesimino, cookies and wine, dessert wine, friuli, gealto, giampiero bea, leone conti, macaroon, matos nonet, moscato, orvieto, parovel, sagrantino, sweet wine, uva fragola, valentine's day