Bottling day at Montefioralle

The Lamborghini tractor

De-stemming the Sangiovese

Bottling day at the vineyard is when all friends and family are called to lend a hand. The small producers like the Sieni family at Montefioralle do not have the space or money for their own bottling plant so rely on the mobile bottling unit which is hired once a year to do the job. It can cope with 2,000 bottles an hour and within the day every wine from the Chianti Classico to the Supertuscan is corked and labelled and ready to ship

Fagioli borlotti freschi

Pasta integrale e fagioli freschi per salutare l'arrivo dell'autunno.

Not on the label

I noticed a few days ago that not many of the jars and bottles found in our kitchen have labels. None on the olive oil. None on the jam. Certainly none on the conserva di pomodoro. As for wine, the bottles with labels usually make an appearance only with guests. The reason? Well, we don't need labels. I know where the olive oil comes from, the trees on which the olives grew, the person who who picked and pressed them. What more reassurance could a label give?

For those not lucky enough to be on first name terms with their local producer of wine the Italian government brought about the regulatory structure of Denominazione di origine controllata DOC in the 1960's as a means of quality assurance. Later a more restrictive denomination DOCG was introduced to identify those products of a particularly high quality. All Chianti Classico wine bottles earn their DOCG only after being analysed and tasted by the government licensed inspector.

The 'Gallo Nero' or black rooster is a registered trademark of the Chianti Classico consortium, allowing purchasers an easily recognisable symbol with which to identify the wine. If you want a Chianti Classico, look for the black rooster.

But don't take my word for it...come to Italy and find out for yourself on the Slow day in Tuscany.

Conserva di pomodoro

Anche se l'estate sembra non voler finire noi pensiamo già alle conserve per l'inverno.

Ingredienti:

pomodori succosi,

basilico fresco,

barattoli riciclati

e un pò di pazienza.

Quando nei prossimi mesi i barattoli verranno aperti, il loro profumo ci ricorderà questa calda estate in città.

The Wines of Montefioralle

Montefioralle must be one of the most beautiful parts of Tuscany to sit down with a glass of wine. It's all there in the name: Monte- meaning mount or small mountain and fioralle - of the flowers.
The south-east facing slopes at around 300m above sea level are ideal for the Sangiovase grape which by law must make up at least 80% of a bottle of Chianti Classico. It will come as no surprise then to learn that the church once owned these slopes and used them for exactly the same purpose. Whatever else can be said of the Catholic church in those times you can be sure it would have had its pick of the best locations for starting a vineyard. But all this was a long time ago...well, about 600 years ago.
The wines produced by the Sieni family are Chianti Classico (of course), a Riserva Chianti Classico, SuperTuscan and Vin Santo. If you do come for a wine tasting here remember to pace yourself; there are at least 4 vintages of the Chianti Classico to compare and wines get stronger as you progress from the Riserva to Vin Santo.

Insalata di seppie

Amo cucinare ma non sono mai stata brava a descrivere con precisione le mie ricette, mi limiterò quindi a raccontarle. Quest'insalata, per esempio, nasce da una manciata di seppioline fresche comprate al mercato. La prima idea era stata quella di preparare un primo piatto con un sughetto alle seppie ma il caldo dell'ultima settimana mi ha fatto desistere.

Un pò di foglioline di radicchi misti, una carota, una patata, un cipollotto e un ciuffetto di prezzemolo, tutto del nostro orto, hanno fatto il resto...

Dopo aver fatto dorare leggermente la cipolla in un tegame con un filo d'olio di oliva extravergine, ho aggiunto la carota, la patata a tocchetti e un pò di pepe nero e infine le seppie. A fine cottura ho "sfumato" con una spruzzata di vino bianco. Ho preparato un letto di insalatina sui piatti e adagiato sopra le seppie. Prezzemolo è il gioco è fatto!

Un piatto leggero, veloce e buono anche freddo.

The heat goes on.

Florence is hot. Tuscany is hot. I can't remember the last time it rained, moreover I can't seem to remember the feeling of rain. The vines and olives survive, even thrive, when put to the test of producing their crop in the driest of clay soils.

The roots of the olive trees get their moisture by spreading out far and wide; their renowned hardiness proven by some living more than 2000 years. The vines send down roots to ten or fifteen feet where the dampness remains year round.