Saturday, May 22, 2021

Wine and Food of the Giro 2021: Stage 14 Cittadella to Monte Zoncolan

Where are we? Heading from the Veneto to Friuli
Cittadella: a splendid medieval walled town. It was founded in 1220 when Padua decided to build a fortified castle “ex novo” in the central Venetian plains in order to protect its country borders.
Cittadella is the only walled city in all of Europe to have a medieval, elliptical, fully walkable Parapect Walkway.
The Walls can be visited with a panoramic walk at 15 meters high, a unique experience of “Walking on History”.

Monte Zoncolan: Perhaps just go here and read. 


Giro  specialties:
Cittadella: In Cittadella and the surrounding area, there is great respect for ancient culinary traditions, the main influence on the kitchen coming from rural life and countryside. Polenta in all its possible forms plays the leading role: yellow, white and even sweet cake “La polenta di Cittadella” a typical dessert with origins dating back to the 1850’s.
Traditional Venetian dishes from surrounding areas have influenced the Cittadella kitchen, for example, the use of chicory and baccalà (a salt-cured cod).
The best known first courses are “risotto ricco alla Padovana”, rich Padovan rissoto, “il risotto con asparagi” asparagus risotto, the typical “Pasta e Fagioli” pasta and beans, “bigoli all’anitra”  thick spaghetti with duck sauce and of course all the other fantastic homemade pastas.
Second courses of meat offer typical rural flavours, like “il cappone alla canevera” (boiled capon) and fish, mostly fresh sturgeon and trout, that are fished in the lakes next to the Brenta river.
In several towns surrounding Cittadella the millennial-old cheesemaking tradition is continued and the flavourful Grana Padano and Asiago produced. Here are some DOP (Protected Designation of Origin) products made in the Cittadella region: yellow and white polenta, Biancoperla corn flour, Montasio cheese, asparagus from Fontaniva, San Martino di Lupari nougat, Pinza cake, the typical cake “La Dama dei Carraresi”.

Monte Zoncolan: Cjarsons: it is a main course typical of the Carnia region. They are dumplings filled with wild herbs, raisin, cinnamon and potatoes. The mixture is very easy, made using flour and water. The dish is seasoned with melted butter and grated smoked ricotta cheese. In the Carnian valleys there are many current varieties (more than thirty), different for size and ingredients.
Pastorut: traditional cheese from “Caseificio Sociale Altobut”. It’s a niche product exclusively made by alpine whole pasteurized cow’s milk. It’s a fat and soft cheese, the production of which requires a significant manual intervention and control. Thanks to its unique taste, harmonious blend of sweet and spicy, it was awarded at the 8th national cheese contest “Infiniti blu” promoted by Slow Food Gorgonzola of Milan with the license plate of excellence ranking among the best 8 blue cheeses in Italy.
Local trout: the agricultural society “La Trute” is specialized in salmon trout and brook trout breeding in its own breeding facility powered by spring water coming from the mountains situated around Mount Zoncolan. Besides the direct sale of the products fished, the enterprise has embarked on a path of multifunctionality specializing in the production of hot smoked salmon trout, in the preparation of sliced fillets of trout and trout burgers. These preparations got the enterprise prestigious awards both in a national and international context over the past few years.
Cured meats: authentic flavors, cured and smoked meats according to the Carnian tradition in the butchers of the village: “Macelleria Piazza” and “Vecje Becjarie”. During the festival “Fums, profums e salums” Sutrio’s suburb realizes a gastronomic tasting of meats of the territory.
High-quality eggs: in the meadows of the fraction of Noiaris the agricultural enterprise “Nearhof” rears his hens outdoors. To produce high-quality eggs on a small scale to offer on the local market is the challenge that Nearhof has undertaken. This is how Near ûfs are born, which are eggs from hens reared outdoors in Carnia.

The stage:The viewers have been waiting for this one. The riders have likely been dreading it. The finishing line was looking a bit menacing.
Also, our break of the day:
Sixty eight kilometers to go and the gap was at 8:33. Fifty kilometers to go and the gap was 5:46. Wow, a big gap within the main bunch on that descent and word that there were actually three groups there, with Evenpoel and others behind. There would be regrouping. Thirty seven kilometers to go and the gap to the break was five minutes. Though almost as soon as I typed that, the gap went back out.
Twenty kilometers to go and it was six minutes.

A reminder though, that this was to come.
Up front, the break group was shrinking.
As the remaining group started the climb, the gap was about 6:24. Sean Kelly thought they might make it!
Remaining in the break: George Bennett, Nelson Oliveira, Bauke Mollema, Alessandro Covi, Jan Tratnik, Andrii Ponomar, and Lorenzo Fortunato.
As they climber higher, Fortunato surged ahead of Tratnik and with an amazing ride, he would hold on for the stage win. Behind, Yates jumped from the gc group, followed by Bernal. Bernal would surge ahead, gaining a lot more time. 








The wine: 2015 Venezia Giulia “Morus Alba” • Vignai da Duline

Back to Kermit Lynch and they say: This unusual Friulan blend combines an ancient, near-extinct clone of Sauvignon with old-vine Malvasia Istriana, aged in barrel and bottled without filtration. The tiny yields give an intensely concentrated wine of immense complexity, with delicate aromas of white flowers and ripe citrus soaring over a deep, rich structure, the whole balanced on a taut beam of minerality. It already drinks well, but will age like an electrically charged, exotically scented premier cru white Burgundy. A creamy risotto is the perfect match.

—Anthony Lynch

The Food: Cjarsons Ravioli with apples? Yes please. 
Here's a recipe from La Cucina Italiana:
Apple Ravioli Recipe
Ingredients for 4 people
For pasta
1 lb flour, 1 lb boiling water
How to make ravioli
For the filling
3 big potatoes, a handful of sultana raisins soaked in water, half a grated apple, a little bit of grated peel, a tablespoon of sugar, a pinch of salt, a pinch of grated cinnamon, a tuft of parsley, a tuft of mint, a tuft of lemon balm all chopped up, half onion thinly sliced, clarified butter ("ont"), smoked ricotta
Filling
Boil the potatoes and mash them then put them in a large bowl. Brown the onions in a non- stick pan with a little clarified butter over low heat when they are nicely cooked add the chopped herbs and after a moment of cooking add them to the mashed potatoes. At this point add the raisins, lemon peel, sugar, salt, apple, cinnamon. Mix everything together until you get a well amalgamated mixture called "pestum". Let it rest al fresco for a couple of hours.
Pasta
Add boiling water to the flour and make a quick dough. Form cylinders as you would when making gnocchi, cut them into chunks and with the help of a glass widen them to form many circles. Now put a teaspoon of stuffing inside each one and close properly by pressing on the edges.
To complete the dish
Cook the cjarsòns in boiling salted water and when they come to the surface collect them with a perforated ladle and place them on a plate, season with grated smoked ricotta cheese and a little melted clarified butter on top.
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