Thursday, May 18, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 12

Forlì – Reggio Emilia, 237 km

 Where are we?

 Forli: The central city of Romagna. 
The city is situated along the Via Emilia, to the right of the Montone river, and is an important agricultural center.
From the Giro site:
FOOD: Codfish stew, pappardelle with meat sauce, tagliatelle with stridoli (silene vulgaris leaves), tripe, tortelli with corn poppy, piadina della Madonna del Fuoco.
WINE: Doc Colli di Faenza (white, red – from Pinot, Trebbiano and Sangiovese grape varieties), Doc Pagadebit (white, both dry and sweet); Sangiovese and Cagnina di Romagna (red), Trebbiano di Romagna (white).

Reggio Emilia: The city belonged to the Este family (from 1409 to 1776). It is a rich industrial and commercial center located on the Via Emilia.
Food: Parmigiano Reggiano, balsamic vinegar of Reggio Emilia, gnocco fritto (fried dough puffs), erbazzone (spinach and beet greens pie), tortelli verdi (with a spinach filling), ciccioli (crisp pork tidbits).
Wine: DOC Colli di Scandiano e di Canossa (red and white, from Malvasia, Lambrusco, Cabernet, Marzemino, Malbo and Spergola grape varieties), DOC Reggiano (Lambrusco and Lambrusco Salamino); DOC Bianco di Scandiano (Sauvignon).

The stage:  The longest stage of the Giro and one that should end up in a bunch sprint.






While things are quiet, which might describe this entire stage, I suggest this piece and this piece on concussions in cycling, focusing on a frightening incident earlier this week during the Tour of California. 

 Under thirty kilometers to go and the gap was under 1:30. Twenty five kilometers to go and it was approaching one minute. 



 It would be all together, soon enough. Would there be a late attack or was it full speed ahead to the expected sprint? Zhupa would attack, but would be caught. As sprint trains fell apart, Gaviria with another win. 
Wine: La Stoppa 07 Ageno
From the importer: La Stoppa is a 50 hectare property located in North-West Emilia-Romagna. Founded in the late 19th century by a wealthy lawyer named Gian-Marco Ageno, the estate is currently run by Elena Pantaleoni and head vignaiolo Giulio Armani. 32 hectares of vines are planted in Barbera and Bornada for red, as well as a small amount of Malvasia Candia, Ortrugo and Trebianno for whites.

 I say: Orange wine alert. 30 days of skin maceration with natural yeasts creates a deep "orange" color.

Food: A Bolognese again. Why? Because I have the flu and the thought of food is unappealing, yet I have some in my freezer.
 
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Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 11

Firenze – Bagno di Romagna, 161 km

 Where are we?
Firenze: Well, now Florence. The art, the renaissance, the bridges, the river. Or, if you have listened to me babble, the Medicis.
 FOOD: Tuscan (saltless) bread, extra-virgin olive oil, meat (the legendary “fiorentina” T-bone steak), salt cod, lampredotto (made from a cow’s fourth stomach – the abomasum), pappa al pomodoro (thick tomato soup), tripe, ribollita (bread and cabbage stew) and fresh pasta with wild game sauce.
WINE: Barco Reale di Carmignano (red), Chianti (red), Colli dell’Etruria Centrale (red), Pomino (white, red, Vin Santo), Vin Santo del Chianti, Vin Santo di Carmignano.

Bagno di Romagna: As it sounds, a Roman spa town. 
Food: Basotti, tortelli sulla lastra, focaccia dolce di Bagno (Easter cake), Raviggiolo cheese.
Wine: Colli della Romagna Centrale DOC, Romagna DOC, Rubicone IGT.

The stage:

Lots of action today. In front Landa and Fraile. Behind a large chasing group with chasers: Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida), Hubert Dupont, Matteo Montaguti (AG2R-La Mondiale), Dario Cataldo, Tanel Kangert (Astana), Ben Hermans (BMC), Pierre Rolland, Hugh Carthy, Davide Villella (Cannondale-Drapac), Ivan Rovny (Gazprom-Rusvelo), Tomasz Marczynski, Maxime Monfort (Lotto Soudal), Andrey Amador, José Joaquin Rojas (Movistar), Ruben Plaza (Orica-Scott), Laurens De Plus (Quick-Step Floors), Igor Anton (Dimension Data), Martijn Keizer (LottoNL-Jumbo), Philip Deignan (Team Sky), Laurens ten Dam (Team Sunweb), Rui Costa and Simone Petilli (UAE Team Emirates).









Forty five kilometers to go and the gap between the front and chasing groups had dropped to just over one minute. Forty two kilometers to go and it was down to thirty seconds, and three minutes plus to the main peloton. 
Forty kilometers to go and the front two groups combined.
 


 That front group would continue to shrink with Landa dropping back to hand out bottles to the peloton. Ahead, attacks from the front group. Twenty seven kilometers to go and Nibali attacked from the peloton, followed by the other favorites. Dropped from the group, Geraint Thomas.
Ahead, Rolland had a small gap. Coming up quickly, Fraille, to take the mountain points. Twenty kilometers to go and they had seventeen seconds over the group behind. Two minutes back to the main bunch. 



 Eight kilometers to go and Costa caught the front duo. 



 Kangert would reach the trio and it would be a quartet as they hit the final kilometer. Wow. A great win for Fraile!
 


Stage: 



GC:




Wine: Montesecondo 2014 Il Rosso from Dig
From the importer: Silvio's father purchased the property back in 1963; besides olive groves and forest, there were vineyards whose fruit was sold to the local co-op. Silvio bottled the estate's first wine in 2000 from their vineyards of Sangiovese, Canaiolo, Colorino, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot; they are being replanted over time with massale selection vines.
Montesecondo wines have a tendency to run afoul of the powers-that-be in Chianti Classico: while Silvio's methods in the vineyard and cellar yield what many would and do consider pure, classically expressive Sangioveses, the way he gets there and occasionally the actual results (higher acidity, lighter color or darker color, etc.) led to enough issues over time that he bottles only one Classico and the rest of his wines as IGT Toscana. Silvio ferments with native yeasts only and does various-length macerations and aging in a variety of vessels (concrete, barrels, amphorae but with no new oak) . 
Food: Pecorino Toscano is a firm-textured sheep’s milk cheese produced in Tuscany. Since 1996 it has enjoyed protected designation of origin (PDO) status. 

 Academia Barilla has a short history of the cheese here. Among other things, they say that "Sheep have been raised in Tuscany since the time of the Etruscans. The Romans are responsible for maintaining the tradition and also began to make cheese using the sheep’s milk.
The first to mention of “cacao,” or sheep’s milk cheese, is attributed to Plinio the Elder who wrote that it was made in the area of Lunigiana, the territory surrounding the ancient city of Luni located at the mouth of the Magra river. Tuscan pecorino is also mentioned by the most important authors of the 1400s who referred to it as cacio marzolino.


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Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 10: Time Trial Time

Foligno – Montefalco, 39 km TT

 Where are we? Umbria--the only Italian region having neither a coastline nor a border with other countries.
Foligno:The third largest city in Umbria, located along the River Topino.
From Michelin:
Situated 18km southeast of Assisi, this small town is worth a visit for its Romanesque dome and the frescoes adorning the 14C Palazzo Trinci.
From the Giro site: FOOD
Grass-pea soup, strangozzi and pappardelle with wild game sauce or truffle, cheese bread, rocciata (savoury strudel); Colfiorito lentils and red potatoes; extra-virgin “Muraiolo” olive oil.
WINE: Montefalco DOC: Montefalco Bianco DOC, Montefalco Grechetto DOC, Montefalco Rosso DOC e Montefalco Rosso DOC Riserva. Main vine variety: Grechetto, Trebbiano Spoletino, Sangiovese, Sagrantino.

 Montefalco: Mount Falcon! Apparently aslo known as the ablcony of Umbria. An agricultire center. Apparently grape growing  is largely and with much care proved in legal documents dated year 1,000.

Food: Umbria DOP extra-virgin olive oil, honey, strangozzi (square spaghetti), gnocchi al Sagrantino (dumplings in wine sauce), maritozzi con il mosto (sweet must buns), la ‘ntorta (apple cake)
Wine: Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG: Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG e Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG passito. Vine variety: 100% Sagrantino.

The stage:
Our first time trial of the race. 
Lots of riders falling on the course. With the top GC ready to go, this was the status:


Wow. 51:26 for Geraint Thomas. Behind Tom Dumoulin, the favorite for the stage, was setting impressive intermediate times. Would he be in pink at the end?
Close for Bob Jungels, but he would come in seven seconds behind Thomas.
Nice ride from Nibali, finishing 1:18 down to Thomas.
Dumoulin in at 50:37, 49 seconds ahead of Thomas. Wow.



Stage:



GC:
 Wine: Bea 07 Pipparello from Dig 
If it is Umbria it must be time for a Bea wine.  

 From Italian Wine Merchants
As with all of Paolo Bea's wines, the estate uses non-interventionist techniques to grow grapes for its Montefalco Riserva Pipparello--a blend of about 60 percent Sangiovese with the rest split evenly between indigenous Umbrian grapes Montepulciano and Sagrantino. This natural wine is traditional in spirit, undergoing a long and unusual maceration of six weeks, extended aging in large neutral casks and delivered to market with additional bottle aging for approachability. Offering aromas of ripe blackberry layered with black pepper and licorice, this wine offers a soft, structured palate with a distinct streak of acidity and notes of ripe Morello cherry, blackcurrant, game, truffles and baked earth. An exceptional vintage in Umbria, this ’07 Montefalco Riserva Pipparello presents immediate drinkability combined with age-worthiness; soft, round, herbaceous and juicy, it’s a delicious bottle from one of IWM’s favorite cult producers.

 Food:  Umbrian lentils
From Market Hall foods: In the hills of southern Umbria, the Bartolini family have been growing olives, grains, and what they call pulses (legumes) since the 1850's. Their lentils are famous throughout Italy and beyond for their outstanding color, texture, & flavor. Pale brown and tan in color, the crops of Umbrian lentils are actually quite small, so the demand often outweighs the supply.
The fabled Castelluccio lentils are not a protected DOP product - this means the Italian government hasn't yet clamped down on imposters and refined the market to include only the authentic lentils of Castelluccio.  The tiny tiny tiny town in Umbria called Castelluccio simply can't produce enough lentils for the world's demand. That said, these lentils are the same variety, but we cannot attest to their exact origin.
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Sunday, May 14, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 9: A Crash and a Climb

Montenero di Bisaccia – Blockhaus, 149 km

 Where are we? Abruzzo
Montenero di Bisaccia: Per the Giro site it is a quiet village in the province of Campobasso, lying about 273 metres above sea-level, in the Molise hills that gently descend towards the sea. The “black” Mountain covered in thick woods was originally a fortress surrounded by imposing walls with 10 tall towers dominating the surroundings, of which only two ancient gates remain: Porta Nuova and Porta Mancina. Marina di Montenero di Bisaccia, better known as “Costa Verde”, has five kilometres of clean waters, beaches, a marina with over 400 boat moorings, a seafront promenade and ample accomodation facilities.

From the Giro site: FOOD Ventricina di Montenero (pork sausage), f’ssrat (fried pork), cavatelli alla ventricina (fresh pasta with meat sauce), cill (pastries with an almond and cooked must filling), calgionetti (pastries with a must and chickpea flour filling).
WINE: Doc Tintilia (red and rosé) 

Blockhaus is one of the highest peaks in Abruzzo and is part of the Majella range. The word Blockhaus is German and can be traced back to the Habsburg domination in the south. It means “rock house” and is the name given to the little military forts built by the Italian army as outposts to combat the brigantry that was rife in some areas in the south of the country following the Unity of Italy.
The Giro site lists no food or wine.

The stage: Well, now. Here we have a preview of the climbing to come later in this Giro.  The break of the day:



 Movistar to the front behind. Maybe Quintana has hopes of the stage? 
Ahead:


Forty kilometers to go and 1:30 to the break. Just over twenty kilometers and they were swallowed up.



 Just under fifteen kilometers to go and a big crash, with most of the Sky team. It looked like a rider hit the motorbike on the side of the road and like dominoes they went down. Geraint Thomas looked hurt, but did get back on his bike. Landa also struggling. Nine kilometers to go and Thomas was 2:40 behind the leaders group. 



Ahead, with 8.8 kilometers to go and Jungels was dropping.  Movistar still at the front. The lead group was getting very small, very quickly. Just over seven kilometers to go and it was down to nine. And there went Quintana! Following him: Nibali and Pinot. Quintana would continue to attack. They countered a bit, but he would get a gap. Three kilometers to go and he had 18 seconds over Nibali, with Pinot in between. Passing Nibali,  Dumoulin and Mollema. 



 One kilometer to go and Nibali was about a minute back. Quintana would take the stage. Now to watch the others come one by one or two by two across the line. Alas, Thomas. Five minutes down on the stage.



 Stage:



 GC:
Wine: Vini Rabasco Vino Rosso Cancelli 2015
From Biondivino
From the importer:  
The 3.5 hectare estate of Iole Rabasco is located in the village of Pianella, province of Pescara, in the heart of Abruzzo.  The area offers a unique set of meso and micro climates particular to this north-central corner of Abruzzo; the Adriatic is some 40 kilometers away while the base of Gran Sasso flanks the western edge of the Rabasco property.  Iole benefits from inheriting her family’s small vineyard and olive grove both of which are soils that have never been treated with chemicals. 
The vines across the property, almost all montepulciano with a couple rows of trebbiano, are also quite old, 40 years average and rest at some 450 meters above sea level.  Soils are calcareous clay mixed with alluvial sediment and fossil remains.  Vines are trained in the traditional tendone style pergola, all worked by hand.  Yields are kept low but not excessively low as Iole prefers her wines with more acidity and freshness than power and extract.

Tasting notes: Cherry and some funk. 

Food: Caciocavallo cheese:  From cheese.com: The history of Caciocavallo goes back to 500 BC when Hippocrates first mentioned the cleverness of the Greeks in making it. Cheeses similar to Caciocavallo are common all over the Balkans and Southern Italy. In fact, Ragusano DOP from Sicily had to drop the name Caciocavallo Ragusano to achieve the DOP label.
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Saturday, May 13, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 8

Molfetta – Peschici, 189 km

 Where are we?
Molfetta: The local tourist site tell me that: Many different peoples have left their mark: the Byzantines, Lombards, Normans, Saracens, and Swabians  with Frederick II, who made  it a "royal city", the pilgrims who made it a crossroads on the way to the Holy Land. With its 65,000 inhabitants, Molfetta, 25 km from Bari, stands out for its dynamism in the field of trade and industry. Always industrious, dynamic and culturally active, just waiting to be discovered and experienced.
From the Giro site: FOOD: Stuffed focaccia, seafood dishes, almond sweets.
WINE: Doc Castel del Monte (white, red, rosé), Doc Gioia del Colle (white, red, rosé), Moscato di Trani liquoroso.


Peschici Lonely Planet tells me that: Perched above a turquoise sea and tempting beach, Peschici, like Vieste, is another cliff-clinging Amalfi lookalike. Its tight-knit old walled town of Arabesque whitewashed houses acts as a hub to a wider resort area. The small town gets crammed in summer, so book in advance. Boats zip across to the Isole Tremiti in high season.
Food: Traditional Peschici bread, homemade pasta, seafood dishes, caciocavallo podolico, pettole (fritters served with fig must). 
WINE: Daunia IGT (white and red)

Stage: 



Conti started the day at 2:10 to Jungels in pink, so the GC teams may not give them a lot of rope. With a bit more than seventy kilometers to go, two more riders have joined the break. 



 Those gaps means that Conti was in virtual pink. But then Quikcstep came to the front of the peloton and it looked like they would work to pull the break back. Attacks from the front of the break and it would split up. Conti was in that group along with Visconti, Sanchez, Gorka and Muhlberger, and was in and out of virtual pink. Twenty five kilometers to go and the gap to the lead group was almost three minutes. The chase group behind remained close though.



 Attacks up front and behind an attack by Landa. So many attacks from the front. Six kilometers to go and there were still four at the front. 



 Behind, Landa was caught by the peloton. One kilometer to go and the gap to that chasing peloton was only thirty seconds. Conti down. And Izaguirre would hold on. 
Wine: Guttarolo 2013 Primitivo Lamie della Vigna from Biondivino
From the importer: From a 1.5 hectare vineyard (biodynamic, not-certified), high in the Gioia del Colle plateau where constant sea winds and cool nights lift the aromatics. The vines here are 25+ years old, planted on a base of limestone and clay.
Grapes are hand-harvested in late September/early October and fermented using natural yeasts in stainless steel fermentation tanks. The grapes are then macerated for 16 days and aged in stainless steel tanks for 20 months, followed by an additional six months in bottle before release. The wine is then bottled without clarification, filtration or the addition of sulphur dioxide.



Food: Scamorza Cheese.com tells me that;  Scamorza is a cow’s milk cheese. A semi-soft white cheese with a texture comparable to that of a firm, dry Mozzarella, Scamorza is made throughout Apulia and in some parts of Campania and Molise. The cheese is made from pasteurised cow’s milk or from a mixture of cow and sheep milk. At the end of the cheese making process, which is akin to Mozzarella, the cheeses are hanged together in strings to ripen for about two weeks. The process of ripening the cheese has given Scamorza its name, which in southern Italy means ‘beheaded’. After two weeks of ripening, the cheese is sold as it is or smoked.

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Friday, May 12, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 7

Castrovillari – Alberobello, 220 km

 Where are we?
Castrovillari is on the slopes of the Pollino. It is divided into two parts: the old town with its elegant monuments called Civita is situated at the end of a rocky spur, while the new part with its modern districts is located in a vast basin at the foot of Monte Pollino.
From the Giro site:
FOOD Maccarruni ccu firr alla paisana: fresh pastawith tomato sauce, olives, pecorino cheese and capocollo, Castruviddara kid goat: spicy kid goat with tomatoes, potatoes, Pan-fried chicory, Pitta ccu ‘i nuci: sweet pizza with  nuts, Vecchiarelle: donut cakes

 WINE The original vine variety is the Magliocco. Then we suggest the following wines: White and Red Verbicaro, White Savuto Terra di Ginestra, Superior Red Savuto, Portapiana, Timpamara.

 Recognised in 1996 as a World Heritage Site by Unesco, Alberobello is universally renowned for its trulli: buildings that are unique in the world and represent an extraordinary example of how apparently simple structures turn out to be the most ingenious. Over time this town in the heart of the valley of Itria has experienced an extraordinary transformation from farming centre to world tourist attraction.
FOOD Taralli, extra-virgin olive oil, orecchiette, almond sweets, mozzarella and dairy.
WINE Aleatico, Primitivo, Aglianico (red), Trebbiano and Bombino (white).

The stage:
Another day, another sprint stage as they head north. The word of the day is probably: transitional as in, time to head north.



The break of the day: Dmitriy Kozontchuk, Giuseppe Fonzi.



Fourteen kilometers to go and it was gruppo compatto.Yikes. That was a near accident with a marshal in the road. As they get closer, it looks like they are setting up for the expected sprint finish. Solo attack by Koren, but he would be caught quickly.  A sprint indeed and a fun one to watch. By inches, Caleb Ewan!
Wine: Guttarolo Anfora Primitivo dell Colle 2014

 From an importer: Cantine Cristiano Guttarolo is located outside the charming town of Gioia del Colle (Jewel of the Colle) in the former stables of an old farmhouse (masseria) constructed entirely of local stone. Situated on the Murge plateau in Puglia, about 400 meters above sea level, the winery was founded in 2004, and is certified organic by Ecocert. Natural principles are followed throughout the entire winemaking process, including the use of vegetable fertilizers in the vineyards. Primary fermentation occurs spontaneously through the use of indigenous yeasts. The wines are macerated on the skins from 14-18 days and, with the exception of the amphora wine, malolactic fermentation for the wines occurs spontaneously in the spring. Malolactic begins for the Amphora wine while the wine is still in contact with the skins. These are wines that stand in stark contrast to the ripe and often clunky examples of Primitivo di Manduria bottled on the plains to the north. These are elegant examples of Primitivo that are authentic representations each specific vintage.
Food: Taralli! An official Giro food even.
What are they? Fancy, bagel or doughnut shaped crackers. A warning: this is one of those, open the package at your own risk as you may eat them all.
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Thursday, May 11, 2017

Wine & Food of the Giro 2017 Stage 6: Back to the Mainland

Reggio Calabria – Terme Luigiane, 207 km

 Where are we?  Back to the mainland.
Reggio Calabria, the town of the Fata Morgana, has a very modern appearance, with an ordered city layout, buildings of limited height and wide straight streets laid out on a grid. All this is due to the reconstruction after the disastrous earthquake that raised the town to the ground in 1908. It is famous for its seafront promenade called “Italo Falcomatà”, in summer full of beach clubs and bars. Running parallel to the promenade, to the north, runs the elegant Corso Garibaldi, with early 20th century art nouveau buildings, a pedestrian area with big stores, famous brand boutiques and squares with monuments, in particular the elegantly beautiful Piazza Italia, a true agora.
From the Giro site: FOOD Pork “frittole”, ficatu alla riggitana (liver with onion and fries, deglazed with vinegar).
WINE IGT Arghillà, Palizzi and Pellaro (red), Scilla (white); DOC Bivongi (white and red), Greco di Bianco (white).

TERME LUIGIANE Acquappesa is one of the most characteristic villages of the Riviera dei Cedri, very much a tourist resort, with its beaches and natural caves. The conformation of the land, made up of sea, hills, peaks and torrents, creates breathtaking views for walkers, painters and sport lovers. Known as the town of “the hundred fountains” and famous for its special stone hairpin bends that lead up from the old town to Intavolata and Marina. One of the symbols of Acquappesa is the Rock of the Regina, one of the four “places of interest” of the Riviera dei Cedri.

FOOD Maccaruni di ziti, pasta with prickly pears, Foglie, patane e pipi (a kind of ratatouille), anchovy timbale, crushed olives wild fennel; turdilli and crucette (Christmas sweets) and cannelieri (Easter sweets).

WINE Pollino (red, rosé and cherry-red), Gaglioppo and Greco Nero.

The stage:  The break of the day:


Along they went. Thirty five kilometers to go and the gap was still over four minutes. Ten kilometers along, it was under four. Would the break stay away? The peloton seemed to have come alive behind. Twenty kilometers and it was under three minutes.And it would be close. But at the end of the day, Dillier, from the break:


Stage:

1Silvan Dillier (Swi) BMC Racing Team4:58:01 
2Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek-Segafredo  
3Lukas Pöstlberger (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe0:00:12 
4Simone Andreetta (Ita) Bardiani CSF0:00:26 
5Michael Woods (Can) Cannondale-Drapac0:00:39 
6Adam Yates (GBr) Orica-Scott  
7Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Team Sunweb  
8Bob Jungels (Lux) Quick-Step Floors  
9Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo  
10Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky  

GC:

1Bob Jungels (Lux) Quick-Step Floors28:20:47 
2Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky0:00:06 
3Adam Yates (GBr) Orica-Scott0:00:10 
4Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Bahrain-Merida  
5Domenico Pozzovivo (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale  
6Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team  
7Tom Dumoulin (Ned) Team Sunweb  
8Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek-Segafredo  
9Tejay Van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing Team  
10Andrey Amador (CRc) Movistar Team

 

Wine: Casa Comerci Calabria Bianco 'Rèfulu  from Biondivino.

From the importer: This family estate is located in the tip of the toe of Calabria in Italy’s deep south. Domenico Silipo and his sons carry on the work of Rosina Comerci, matriarch of the family in the first half of the 1900s.  The family works exclusively with the native Calabrian varieties Magliocco Canino and Greco Bianco, which they farm organically on their 15 hectares (with another dozen hectares devoted to olive trees).Francesco De Franco from A’ Vita, Calabria’s most important natural wine producer, is an active part of the project. All wines ferment with indigenous yeasts, and all fermentation and aging is in stainless steel. Total annual production is 45,000 bottles.

Tasting notes: Another unusual grape, Greco Bianco. Tropical and easy drinking. 

Food: Tutto Calabria crushed hot chili peppers
A little about Calbrian peppers from Specialtyproduce.com: Calabrian chile peppers are round, with a bulbous shape, approximately the size of a large cherry. They mature to a bright, glossy red and have a short, squat stem.  They are considered a medium spicy chile pepper, ranging from 25,000 to 40,000 Scoville units.
The small pepper is often referred to as the Hot Calabrian chile pepper, small red cherry, and “Devil’s Kiss,” or as the pepper is known in Italy: Peperone Piccante Calabrese, which translates to ‘spicy pepper of Calabria’.




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