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About Piemontegirl

I am a wine lover currently located in Boston. I drink wine mostly from Piemonte and Burgundy. Two summers in a row I have worked at Vietti in Piemonte.

Giovanni Corino and his geese. Did you say fun fact?!

You heard me: Giovanni Corino has geese

Most of you think of wine when you hear Giovanni Corino. And they still make wine (don’t worry), but they also have geese! How cool is that?

Giuliano Corino and the Geese

I am actually terrified of geese, so the pictures are really zoomed in. These geese are not really scared of humans so they will come right up close, especially if Giovanni is there. They LOVE him. And his vegetables. Giovanni is also known for his garden (I wrote about it earlier), and it turns out the geese are just as big a fan as me. Rumor has it they ate all his lettuce and some of the carrots. Oops. Anyway, maybe it’s just me that’s fascinated with farm birds. But if you go, let me know! Are you brave enough to pet them? I was!

Giovanni Corino and the Geese

Just casually petting his goose

tbt – what have I been up to lately?

tbt – throwing it back to the past few weeks

Who doesn’t love a tbt? I know I am very fortunate to be able to look back on these wonderful memories. You’ll see that I make pizza very often, both by myself and with others. You’ll see that I went for a joyride with Lorenzo and his girlfriend (and that we made Lorenzo sit in the back!)

Looking back I get a smile on my face. Especially when I see the picture of my dad hugging the kick ass chef at Centro Storico. Or Silvia working hard in her garden (as usual). Oh, and when the grandmother of Bruno (the owner of Corte Gondina) cooked and egg with me in the kicthen. How cool is that?

Bartolo Mascarello: The Woman, the Myth, the Legend

Bartolo Mascarello: A legend

Maria Teresa Bartolo Mascarello is an incredible woman. If you haven’t been to her winery, you definitely should. You’ll find her in Barolo (the town), but don’t try to find her email adress to make an appointment. She doesn’t really use email. Or the internet. So call or ring the bell.

Bartolo Mascarello

MT is a busy woman so you may be shown around by Alan, a wonderful man from the United States who has worked with Bartolo Mascarello for years. Before Maria Teresa was the boss, her dad Bartolo was the boss. This winery has always been firm “traditionalists”, which means they only use big botti (and not small barrique).

Bartolo Mascarello

Winemaker Selfie

Maria Teresa is one of the most passionate winemakers I have ever met. She makes wines because that’s what she loves, and she’s not shy about it. Hearing her talk about her work is enchanting and I love listening every time I get to do it.

Wine 101

Wine 101, maybe it sounds like something you might need? Jack Prenter at Knownman.com reached out to me about an infographic he had created (along with some wine people) and asked me to share it with you. Read his excerpt below.

Wine 101 by Jack Prenter

One of the main excuses people give for not exploring and learning more about wine is that it’s too complicated and intimidating. This graphic was created for the purpose of teaching people the basics of wine pairing, selection and ordering.

Most people will admit that they enjoy the taste of wine, but they might be too intimidated to order it on a date or to ask for basic advice. One of the easiest ways to ‘get into’ wine is to understand the basic rules that underly selection.

Once you understand the different taste profiles of the most popular wines and what foods they are generally paired with you’ll have the confidence to be more explorative with your choices. Not only that but the average person has such a lack of knowledge that just memorizing the key points on this graphic will probably make you the go-to wine expert in your group of friends.

Enjoy the infographic and make sure to share this with a friend!

Wine 101

Friday Pizza with a twist

How to make Friday Pizza Mario Batali style

As you know, I make pizza almost every friday, also known as Friday Pizza. I have been making the same pizza for years, so I recently tried a new recipe. And you know what? I will probably make it this way going forward instead of the old way.

Because H-O-L-Y C-O-W: It turned out amazing!

IMG_8471

Friday Pizza Ingredients

Dough:

  • 1 1/4 cups warm water
  • 1 1/4 ounce pack active dry yeast
  • 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
  • 3 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 tbsp salt
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Sauce:

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 3 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
  • 1/2 medium carrot, grated
  • 2 (28 ounce) cans peeled whole tomatoes
  • Salt

 

Friday Pizza Ingredients

Friday Pizza steps:

Pizza dough:

  1. Combine yeast. warm water and sugar, let sit for 10 minutes (until frothy)
  2. Combine flour and salt in a large bowl
  3. Add yeast mixture and mix the ingredients until the dough is too stiff to stir. Continue with your hands until the dough doesn’t stick to the sides (add flour as necessary)
  4. Leave to rise.

Pizza sauce:

  1. Heat the olive oil in a pan, add onion and garlic, cook until soft and light golden brown (about 8-10 minutes)
  2. Add thyme and carrot, cook 5 more minutes, until carrot is quite soft
  3. Add the tomatoes and juice, bring to boil, while stirring (and crushing the tomatoes)
  4. Lower the heat after it is brought to boil, let simmer for 30 minutes
  5. This is where I put my twist: put it in a food processor. This will make it a smooth sauce (I don’t like lumps).
Friday Pizza

Friday Pizza

When you have made the dough and the sauce, roll out the pizza (or toss it if you are that good), add the sauce and whatever ingredients you like. In the picture there is regular margherita and a four cheese pizza, also a recipe from Mario Batali. Here are some of his recipes. 

Mauro Veglio’s Arborina is to die for

Mauro Veglio Barolo Arborina 2011

If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you know I spend a lot of time with Mauro Veglio and his wife. And you probably also know that I am a huge fan, not just of their wines but of them. And their Barolo Arborina is no exception. 2011 was a good year, especially for my palate. So it’s no surprise I love their Arborina from that year. Barolo’s are heavy, and I struggle with the tannins, and although this wine has tannins, it’s very well balanced!

Mauro Veglio Arborina

Wine: Barolo Arborina

Producer: Mauro Veglio

Region/Appellation: Piemonte, Italy

Grape varieties: nebbiolo

Vintage: 2011

 

Eye: dark ruby color

Nose: strawberries, floral, blackberries, licorice, hint of tobacco

Mouth: dark cherries, prunes,  well balanced

 

Price Point: $40

Available at Vinmonopolet: no

Available at Systembolaget: yes

Fun Fact Friday: Elio Altare and his side project

Elio Altare is more than just a wine maker

Elio Altare is known for his amazing wines, but what you may not know is that on the side he also makes salami! If you sneak away during one of the tours at the cellar you can find his salami hanging form the ceiling, waiting to be “harvested”. He doesn’t really  sell them, they are mostly for family and friends. He is a farmer, to the core, so these projects are never about the money.

Elio Altare

Photo by Torstein Harildstad

What is next for Elio Altare?

Elio has tons of energy and he puts all this energy into many “side” projects. Everytime I see him he has something new in the wings. Last I heard he was thinking about making bubbles. I wonder what it will be next time!

Fun Fact Friday

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Photo by Torstein Harildstad

Elio Altare is known for his amazing wines, but what you may not have known is that on the side he also makes salami! If you sneak away during one of the tours at the cellar you can find his salami hanging form the ceiling, waiting to be “harvested”. Elio has tons of energy and he puts all this energy into many “side” projects. Everytime I see him he has something new in the wings. I wonder what it will be next time!

Winery Wednesday: Manzone

Winery Wednesday: This time I am taking you to Monforte

In case you haven’t been paying attention, I have been doing Winery Wednesday for quite some time now, recommending wineries to visit in the Piemonte region. This wednesday it’s Manzone’s turn.

Winery Wednesday

Mirella Manzone

Manzone is located a little “out of my comfort zone” (we all know I am a La Morra fan), but you should make the trip! And if you’re lucky you get to meet Mirella (pictured above). Mirella and her brother Mauro recently joined their father Giovanni at the winery, and the three of them work together to produce the wines.

Manzone has a pretty good selection of wines as you can see below. And what’s cool about them is that all their wines have names. Normally all the cru barolos have names, but Manzones dolcetto is called “Le Cilegie” and the Barbera superiore is called “La Marchesa”. They also produces a white wine, Langhe Rossese Bianco, a fairly unusual grape that originally comes from Cinqueterre.

Winery Wednesday

Manzone Lineup

Anyways, if you are looking for a winery to visit, stop by Manzone. You can check out their website here.  And stay tuned for another Winery Wednesday next week!