We first met Angelo Coluccia some years ago – perhaps seven, maybe eight years hence. And unlike the majority of our Italian friends, we did not discover him. Rather, he found us in his research on Italian specialty shops in the U.S. At the time this young man from Puglia, Italy’s southern region known as “the heel of the boot” was in the business of promoting food and wine from his native Puglia and, more specifically, from his home town of Gioia del Colle. We responded to his forthright email offering to introduce us to the treasures of Puglia and a friendship was born.
This week we were introduced to the love of his life, Maria Carmela, and attended our first Italian wedding.
This was our fourth or fifth visit to Puglia, a region of Italy that continues to strike us as a land of contradictions and surprises. Traditionally a region of poverty it is rich in so many ways, from its bounteous fields (Puglia produces more grapes, wheat and olives than any other region and the town of Andria itself produces more olive oil than all of Tuscany) to its seaside resorts to it its tidy and surprisingly modern towns to its storied history. And while Suzy and I have been working diligently over the past six years developing a network of friends and connections to fuel our business of Experience Umbria, Angelo has simply had to look inside to offer his own counterpart – Experience Puglia.
It was Angelo who introduced us to Puglia and through Angelo that we have made friends with Filippo Mancino, who runs his family’s olive oil business and who is so ingrained in this community that it is impossible to walk down the street with him without having people wave to him or stop and chat. It was Angelo who introduced us to Gianni Zullo and his Primitivo wine, teaching us an appreciation for the indigenous grape and the pride that surrounds it, correcting us when we described primitivo to our friends “as the same grape as zinfandel” by noting that “zinfandel is genetically the same grape as primitivo,” and backing up its lineage with reference to monastic records in Gioia del Colle that trace its history in his home town 
centuries ago, long before California vintners even settled the Golden State. It was Angelo who invited us into his home to meet his family and to share lunch with them. It was Angelo who invited us to his wedding to share his joy. Joy in Gioia.
I am not going to write a lengthy tome on Italian weddings, their cultural significance and how they differ from American weddings. With only one data point it would be presumptuous even for me to make such sweeping generalizations (although such things are typically precisely my modus operandi). I do feel fully confident to make one observation about Italian weddings, however. They are fun. They are completely awesome (to overwork a tired expression that in this case fits perfectly) and if you ever have an opportunity to attend an Italian wedding, do.
It doesn’t matter if you can’t speak the language. Italians speak with their hands but even more with their eyes. And if you keep a smile on your face the entire day, which is not difficult, you will communicate plenty. And bring a big appetite because you will eat all day long, which also helps keep that smile on your face. And be sure to watch and observe, to preserve memories of what others are experiencing, because while an Italian wedding reception is a celebration of the bride and groom it is an experience for the entire community of friends, colleagues and family.
In America you often hear the expression “God, Family, Country” thrown around, particularly around election time by people who seemingly care about none of the above. But in my eyes, the entire wedding day – from the wedding ceremony that featured more sitting down and standing up than you’d find in a hemorrhoids ward to the reception that stretched on for nearly eight hours so that we could allocate all the food eaten to two separate meals – was a study in God, family and to a lesser extent, country.
One of the striking things about Angelo’s wedding was watching the families. In church children sat with parents and parents sat with their parents, the youngest mostly squirming in the laps of mamma, occasionally clasping her neck and often kissing. A particularly memorable moment was when a woman with an adorable and beautifully dressed daughter of perhaps seven or eight years rose and walked to the altar, leaving her daughter behind to read some comments she had prepared about the nature of love. The address was well received, so much so that the congregation broke into applause at the end (the only such time during the service) and when the mother returned to her seat two rows in front of us her adoring daughter gave her a memorable hug and kisses, lasting for well over a minute. Well done, mamma. I’m so proud of you.
The reception took place at an impeccably beautiful manor, the Relais il Santissimo about twenty minutes from Gioia, if you actually know where you’re going. For us it was more like three quarters of an hour and about a gallon of perspiration away. The relais was nothing short of spectacular, from the moment we turned down the tree lined stone drive. Looking like a cross between a French chateau and a Puglian masseria, it featured numerous indoor spaces where aperitivi were served and dinner was held and dancing ensued, as well as several beautiful outdoor terraces, a central courtyard and manicured gardens to wander between courses.
A short while after arriving and the perspiration had dried, aperitifs were served, with dozens of tables set with small sandwiches, pastries, meats, cheeses, seafood of all sorts cooked and raw. Outside in the courtyard tables were set up along side two enormous carts that were preparing and serving fried delicacies, my favorite being sublimely delicate fried shrimps as well as fried vegetables and sage leafs. An hour or so into the reception and I had already eaten enough to qualify as a small meal.
We were then invited to have our picture taken with Angelo and Maria Carmela, which everyone did, to be surprised and honored just before departing with a copy. A most memorable souvenir of a wonderful day.
And then the reception began. We were led into the main reception room, a spacious ballroom with dozens of beautifully set tables and proceeded to be alternately stuffed with course after course of delicious dishes served by superior staff decked out in uniforms complete with white gloves and to escape the table to work up an appetite for the next course. The menu may give some idea of the avalanche of food that made its way down our throats and directly onto our hips:
Carpaccio of red tuna
Sword fish with caviar
Timbale of calamari
Marinated salmon tartare
Capocollo
Caciotta cheese stuffed with olives
Cavatelli pasta with seafood and fava puree
Crudites (with Filippo delivering a bottle of his orange infused olive oil to our table to enjoy them with)
Truffle pasta
Swordfish wrapped in leek with mazzancolle shrimp
An endless array of sweets
Wedding cake
Between each course there was the dancing. And the dancing was joyous, perhaps because guests were really into the occasion or perhaps because it was an opportunity to work off the previous dishes and make room for more food. But whatever the reason it was truly special just to be able to take in the smiles on the faces, the sight of little boys and girls being urged to overcome their shyness and to dance with each other, grandfathers tangoing with their granddaughters, groups of friends huddled in tight circles throwing their heads in the air, overcome with laughter. There was wine flowing throughout the evening but there was no intoxication other than the intoxication of the atmosphere and pure joy that bound everyone in the room together.
And there were Angelo and Maria Carmela. She in her beautiful gown and he looking dapper in his tux. The two radiated such happiness you would have thought they had just got married. Which they had. But what was clear from that intangible spirit in the room was that they were not just happy for themselves. Their happiness was more than just the sum of their two happinesses. Theirs was a joy that came from sharing their joy with everyone at the church that morning and at the relais that afternoon and into the Puglian night. And, if you will forgive me for making another sweeping generalization, that may just be the magic of an Italian wedding.
Ci vediamo!
Bill and Suzy
Often – well, pretty much always -we take for granted the little stuff, the daily stuff, the routine stuff. And this is certainly true when talking about our first activity of the day here in Italy – breakfast. 
We have cooked with Salvatore on just about every visit to Umbria over the past few years. This internationally known and beloved chef, formerly proprietor of Foligno’s favorite restaurant il Bacco Felice has, for two years or so taken up residence at the Arnoldo Caprai winery, serving as the house chef, cooking class instructor and all around ambassador for the winery and its owner Marco Caprai. There at the winery Marco has given Salvatore the resources and support for him to flourish and to do what Salvatore does best – being Salvatore.
Our visits often start out, as it did yesterday, meeting Salvatore at his orto just outside Cantalupo to harvest fresh produce for the class but even more as an excuse for an aperitivo in the natural setting of his garden. And what a garden it is. Here, rows of various types of tomatoes – dateri, paccheri, heirloom – as well as okra, lettuces, zucchini and the like grow well tended and lovingly cared for. A tour through the orto is an opportunity to see firsthand how Salvatore truly loves the land and all that springs from it. Fruit trees, especially this time of year hang pendulous with ripe and unripe fruits, Salvatore plucking them off and putting them in the red plastic basket or woven reed one or, more often, popping them into his mouth, eyes rolling and 
“meriviglioso” streaming from his mouth as he hands you a fresh fig or a ripe cherry tomato. A trip to the pig sty to see Wilbur, his enormous pig kept not for butchering but as a pet, together with the new ones has been supplemented with the addition of a chicken coop where a dozen or more chickens now lay eggs and await their turn to be featured in Salvatore’s cooking.
Harvesting wild greens – nettles, boracchio and other herbs and plants that most people would not even notice – has become a highlight of our visits with him. And when we return to the kitchen at Caprai and with our basket of bounty it is often hard to imagine how we could possibly use these weeds and leaves. But we do. But not before first enjoying a glass or two of wine, shaded from the bright sun by a canopy of nature, enjoying Salvatore’s excitement and each other’s company before packing up and making the short drive to Bevagna and the Caprai winery.
For guests who have never before seen the Arnaldo Caprai winery the entrance is, while perhaps not rising to the level of breathtaking, at least headshakingly memorable. In a land where many wineries are operated exclusively by family members and which typically are comprised of 10-20 acres, Caprai is a temple, an elegant structure dominating the top of a hill, surrounded by well maintained vines in every direction. And the vines go on and on, Caprai being the biggest winery in Montefalco. But in addition to being the biggest Caprai is credited with being one of the leading forces that put Montefalco on the international wine map, helping develop Sagrantino secco, the dry red wine made from the region’s indigenous grape of the same name and leading the promotional effort that brought Montefalco and its wines out of the shadows. No one is at a loss for an opinion about Caprai but it is undeniable that it has played an essential role in shaping the Montefalco of today.
Salvatore’s kitchen is an impressive, well outfitted space with modern equipment, plenty of light and, being located above the cantina, a refrigerator full of wine. Wine which Salvatore freely pours and sometimes even shares with his guests. As he is fond of saying in halting English, “I like to cooka with the wine. Sometimes I putta it in the food.” Often while in the middle of preparing a dish, such as his unbelievably sumptuous nettle pasta lasagna, he will look up realizing his glass is empty and break into song. “Vino, vino, vino” and we will search for a bottle before returing to the task at hand.
Cooking with Salvatore is one great big slight of hand and he is a magician of considerable skill. Just like a conjurer, he often seems to be running down a dark alley, destined for a dead end when, voila, he changes course and an unforgettable dish takes shape. Bruschetta with figs. Whoda thunkit? We are so conditioned to turn on the salivary glands when we see toasted bread topped with glowing red tomatoes that we tend to stop thinking about other possibilitites. Not Salvatore. In the orto we harvest a dozen or so ripe figs as well as handful of hard 
unripe ones, the soft figs being spread on toasted bread rubbed with garlic and drizzled with olive oil. It is a combination of tastes that would never have crossed our imagination but it is still just a “work in progress” according to Salvatore, although in our estimation it seems to have already arrived at its destination. A veritable Italian Fig Newton. Similarly, the unripe figs are diced and added to a pasta dish with tomato sauce, adding a vegetal taste that amplifies the traditional. Now who woulda thunk of that?
the porchetta to finish roasting in the oven we might as well work on other dishes, such as the nettle pasta for the lasagna or the béchamel sauce for the same. And if you get tired of cooking you can always rest your feet and maybe play with Rosa, Salvatore’s faithful retriever. Or with Mose, the newest addition to the Denaro family, this adorable two month old pincer only just coming up to your ankles and finding much to keep him busy around your shoes. If there is an easy, 
unrushed and unstructured feel to a day with Salvatore it is because it is easy, unrushed and unstructured. Despite all the hard work, the concentration and artistry that cooking at this level requires, Salvatore makes it feel spontaneous and natural. And it is this feeling of peacefulness and joy which makes you forget that all is not so simple or automatic. A day with Salvatore is truly the definition of la dolce vita, yet another example of that elusive feeling of well being that is not so elusive here in Italy.
For Bobby and Meryl it is their first trip to Europe in some time, so we decide to ease them into Menardworld, a place our good friend Frances once described as being similar to a Roach Motel. “Menardworld” is a place you can get in, but you can’t get out.” I’d like to think that most people don’t really want to escape.
But not so fast. While the Lufra’ stop provided some road munchies for our new visitors (mozzarella di bufala, salami and casatiello, a cheesy bread from the south, with bits of salami, cheese and hardboiled egg that we call “breakfast bread”) a half hour after leaving Orte Wendy guided them up the hill to il Castello di Casigliano, a stone fortress of a town with a popular and atmospheric restaurant called il Re Beve (the King drinks). This would be the place where they would enjoy their second meal in Italy in the few hours since their arrival. And boy, did they (and we) enjoy lunch at il Re Beve, sitting on their outdoor terrace overlooking the expansive valley below, the weather a picture perfect clear, cool, bright Italian summer day. We took our cues from the restaurant’s name and joined il Re, enjoying a bottle or two of local wine together with a mixed antipasti platter that included an assortment of brewsketta, cheeses, sliced pork goodness, and goodness knows what else. Well Vicky knows what else, because the other chef in our group was taking copious notes on the simple food that simply amazes. In typical Umbrian fashion, our “light” lunch continued with a spectacular nest of pasta garnished with shaved summer
truffles. And then just one more pasta course for balance sake, a trofie pasta with a pesto sauce. We said our goodbyes to Antonio, the cheery proprietor who had served Suzy and me so ably during our two day stay at il Castello in April, our group having made a new friend as well. And we were off on our next adventure, although I am pretty sure Wendy could have turned around and put them on a return trip to Florida and they would have left Italy happy.
But then they would have missed our visit to the Scacciadiavoli winery and our appointment with the magical Liu Pambufetti, the young, attractive owner and manager of the family’s winery operations. We have visited Scacciadiavoli increasingly over the years for a number of reasons, one of which is that this winery, the oldest in the region, is so ingeniously designed and so elegantly suited for the purpose of making wine. It also helps that their wines – which include two sparkling wines made in the traditional metodo classico or methode champagnoise from the local sagrantino grape – are outstanding and that Liu is a wonderful ambassador for her family’s wines. There we were treated to a tour of the winery and afterwards a tasting in one of the 
converted stables. Bobby, already amazed at the winery, remarked that the tasting room had been completely unexpected. “I thought it was just a stable and when we walked in we got this??”
At the villa our group forsook a nap in favor of a refreshing dip in the pool in order to stave off jetlag. And an hour later we were back on the road again, this time to nearby Bevagna and one of its finest restaurants, Redibis. This gem is built into the ruins of Bevagna’s ancient Roman theater, the main room of the restaurant sitting below an enormous curved archway above which the theater’s outdoor seating had been built. Underneath we enjoyed a dinner of traditional Italian food but traditional not in the traditional sense. At Redibis the menu includes items that were staples in the Italian kitchen at the turn of the century – the 20th century – rather than what we call 
classics today. The most interesting was passatelli, a homemade pasta made not from flour and water, but from bread dough (with yeast), forming a soft gnocchi-like noodle that springs back when you chew it. Also amazing the group was the restaurant’s veal cheeks, braised and falling apart on the plate. Under the ancient archway we ate our way nearly into the next morning, welcoming our guests into our very own Italian Roach Motel. Over the course of the next week or so we’ll see if they can find their way out. Or if they want to.
The big news from yesterday is that Giorgione is back. Last year one of our favorite local restaurants, alla Via di Mezzo, closed its doors when the little borgo where this atmospheric osteria was located suddenly decided to convert itself into a hotel or some such nonsense. While we are still not quite sure what fate has befallen this charming village one tragic thing was made clear. Giorgio’s beloved little restaurant was being shut down.
We departed the villa for the short drive to Bevagna aound 11am, where we met with our coach for the day, Simone Proietti-Pesci, chef-owner of one of our favorite nearby restraunts, le Delizie del Borgo. Simone is well known to many of our customers and friends in the Washington, DC area, having travelled to our nation’s capital for the past three years to organize a series of private dinners in Washington-area homes. He was also well known to all six of the Cucinapaloozers.
Upon our arrival at le Delizie del Borgo Simone presented each team with a list of ingredients to go shopping for in Bevagna. The list included specific items, such as artichokes and asparagus as well as more general items such as a meat for the dinner’s main course. The idea behind this treasure hunt was to require the participants to do some comparison shopping, to ask questions (as best they could with limited language skills) of the proprietors about the use of particular ingredients and how to identify the best quality and how to gauge quantities for cooking. Unbeknownst to the participants, Simone had telephoned a number of shops beforehand to warn them of the American invasion and to ask them for their patience and help.
And after being congratulated for a job well done, Simone’s partner Ombretta began the customary assault of the plates, filling our table and our stomachs with an assortment of dishes tied together by their use of the local Sagrantino wine as a primary ingredient. But even before the plates began to arrive Ombretta – a certified master sommelier – brought forth a small plate with a few dollops of individual flavors and an inscription scrawled on the plate that announced “the scents of Sagrantino.”
The idea behind the plate was to help us identify the scents and flavors found in Sagrantino wine, the most important red wine in Umbria. This highly tannic, fruity elixir with hints of spice has put Umbria and particularly the Montefalco area on the international wine map and as a result the locals have increasingly adopted it and made Sagrantino a focus of their food, wine and promotion. Ombretta’s masterstroke of putting together on one plate the various components one finds in Sagrantino – raspberry, blackberry, cherry, rose, honey and spice – allowed us to smell and taste the various Sagrantinos we were drinking and then to isolate the individual scents and flavors locked inside them. It was the simplest, most straightforward and yet the most easily accessible and memorable method of improving one’s sensory abilities that we have ever come across. And it was fun!
After lunch we returned to the villa and began reviewing our purchases and menu planning with Simone. And the two teams then began to draw up a fabulous dinner plan, each team being charged with preparing an antipasto, pasta and secondo. Simone gave each of the teams help planning the menu and worked with them in the kitchen to prepare the dishes, passing on his experience in making pasta, marinating vegetables, doing all the other magic he achieves in his restaurant on a daily basis. The results of his teaching and our learning can be seen in the featured video. It was, if I do say, a very worthy meal.
We have cooked with Ernesto, the chef-owner of Cannara’s Perbacco restaurant numerous times and eaten at his excellent restaurants countless times. And while we designed the Cucinapalooza tour to be something different that other cooking tours – a relaxed, unrushed cooking experience – more of a journey than a destination – we have always found our time cooking at Perbacco to be exactly that, an hours long (nearly days long) journey of discovery with Ernesto as pilot and us as copilots and grateful passengers. Ernesto is good company.
And as we sat down to lunch many hours later at Perbacco, having spent several hours with Ernesto and Anna Rita learning the secrets of preparing meat, once again we were joined by Jennifer, this time not just with the newborn but with her soon to be three year old daughter. Upon their entrance into Ernesto’s restaurant, it was obvious that they had spent much time here and with Ernesto and his family, amd her daughter was doted on by Ernesto who took her back in the kitchen and gave her cookies. What a wonderful example of how we Americans can move easily in Italian culture, how much we can benefit from it while not giving up what it means to be American. In this regard we can only hope to do as well as Jennifer.
Back to Ernesto, for it is not entirely fair to shortchange the extraordinary day spent with him. We did indeed learn to prepare meat dishes in many ways. At the restaurant we prepared a veritable who’s who of the quadriped world for finishing later in the afternoon at the villa. We roasted it (porchetta or pork shoulder), barbequed it (pork and chicken skewers wrapped in caul fat), pan seared it (prosciutto wrapped filet), boiled it (muscoli of vitellone), sauteed it (ragu of mixed meats), simmered it (veal cheeks) and baked it (lamb rib chops), the latter one more of a traditional American dish – Shake and Bake (“it’s not fried chicken, Ernesto, it’s Shake and Bake. An we helped!”).
Moving back to our villa to finish the work we started at Perbacco, we used every source of heat available to us – our outdoor barbeque, our outdoor wood burning stove, our indoor oven, a pressure cooker and stovetop burners. Perhaps next time we will cook something in the living room fireplace, but that will have to await Cucinapalooza II. All this wonderful food enjoyed in the comfort of our own villa in the company of Ernesto and his lovely wife Simona. This is what Cucinapalooza is all about.
