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Join us each month as
a Babbo staff member gives travel tips for a region of Italy.
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| THIS
MONTH'S REGION |
| COLLIO
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| By
Mario Batali |
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The
food and locales of the Collio Goriziano region of Friuli Venezia
Giulia reflect the mittel-europe feel of Austria and the former
Yugoslavia much more than the Roman influence of the Aquileia
just 50 kilometeres to the southwest.
The town of Cormons is probably the hub of the region in the
sense of commerce, but Gorizia and its eastern wing Nova Gorica
in Slovenia capture all of the micro regions delicious flavor/ideology
and its unique hospitality. >From the tops of the hills in the
Collio you can still see the Adriatic in the southern horizon
and yet feel very much part of the Austro Hungarian empire with
leafy forests and little hamlets of teutonic nuance ubiquitous.
Just above Cormons is my favorite place in the region called
La Subida. (Trattoria "al Cacciatore" de la Subida tel 0481
60531) As much a rustic game retreat as a simple elegant
restaurant, the food at La Subida is in my mind the expression
of Collio as I have seen and tasted at its best. We started
with a plate of lightly smoked prosciutto and a smoked deer
"carpaccio" with raw apples and horseradish that cleared my
mind as much as my sinuses. I was with my partner Joe so each
course came with at least 2 if not 3 wines upon which we would
meditate and discuss, more vividly as the evening went on.
The first pasta was a plate called mlinci, a kind of
thick yet delicate fresh squiggle, boiled and then browned in
butter and served in evanescent sauce of woodcock legs cooked
slowly in local Malvasia. The second pasta was ricotta gnocchi
served with hammered sweet peppers and showered with a delicate
smoked ricotta redolent of rosemary and pine tar. These two
masterpieces were followed by a whole roasted pork shank, stinco
di maiale, at once crackling and crunchy on the outside
and supple and succulent within, a triumph of cook and animal
that sang choruses along with the pickled and boiled turnips
called brovada served with it. A rolled spiced nut filled pastry
called Putizza rounded out the meal with 3 or 4 different
kinds of polenta-based cookies and a glass of the most delicious
sambuca> flower wine served stinging cold and we were
on to singing 70's rock classics with the chef and the owner,
plotting a "Subida" in New York City.
Headed directly north you will find a tiny little berg called
Dolegna you will find a highly rated place with a lot of money
sunk into it called Aquila d'Oro, but i found it too
precious, although it's position and view make it worth it to
try. For my taste I checked out the agriturismo called
Venica & Venica ( via mernico 42, tel 0481 61264) and
delighted in traditional "nonna" cooking as well as the opportunity
to stay in one of their 6 rooms amidst their vineyards. Fresh
heavy bread and a plate of local salumi started every
meal including breakfast, so knew I was in a spiritual mecca.
At lunch I had a plate of gnocchi di susine, traditional
potato gnocchi dough wrapped around pieces of sweet, tiny plums
and sauced in butter with poppy seeds that swooned me royally.
These were followed by a simple piece of grilled pork shoulder
in sauce of vinegary raisins with some cabbage cooked with cookie
spices and I knew I'd be staying for dinner.
Several hours later I started with the traditional salumi
with a slice of an herb frittata and went into a plate
of crepes called broccoli with soft ricotta and hop shoots
at once bitter and so creamy it made my mouth crazy with the
wine. After this seemingly literary conflict I settled into
a bowl of a spinach soup just thickened with polenta that makes
me cry to this day. Braised rabbit with apples and tarragon
followed by a strudel of pears and raisins and a couple
of rounds of rough and fiery grappa and I slept the sleep of
the princes.
A half hour drive toward Slovenia, right at the border in the
tiny town of San Floriano rests a perfect expression of the
Collio, Castello Formentini (piazza liberta, 3 tel 0481 884034).
The tradition of fine salumi as the antipasto continues
with a vengeance here with smokey prosciutto and even smokier
pancetta affumicata served with a light flan of Montasio
cheese and a salad of tender herbs. Ravioli stuffed with potatoes
and scallions followed by a perfect risotto with refosco
and dried ricotta were perfect brethren. The very rare venison
filet with some kind of pate underneath was odd at first, but
haunting in it sauce of tiny wild currants. To finish, a delicate
budino of picolit grapes served with a glass of wine
made from the same picolit grapes, followed by several
of glasses of grappa from picolit and the picolit
trifecta was in...... a winner on all accounts. |
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