Over the last spring and summer I had planned to travel to Piemonte in April and May but thanks to the volcano eruption in Iceland last April that prevented 10 out of a group of 14 from reaching Piemonte, I actually had to travel there again last June and immediately following off to amazing Friuli Venezia Giulia with another group.

Each trip was absolutely perfect and accompanied by my terrific travel companions, I was grateful for the opportunity to visit top estates such as  Angelo Gaja, Bartolo Mascarello, Bruno Giacosa, Aldo Conterno, Paolo Scavino, Giacomo Conterno, La Spinetta, Luciano Sandrone and Oddero in Piemonte; Radikon, Gravner, Jermann, and Fantinel in Friuli and finally Movia in Slovenia. In the coming weeks I will share stories and photos from these trips that I hope will be of interest but for now, I must continue with our Amazing Women of Piemonte series.

Our next featured woman winemaker is Maria Teresa Mascarello, who since her father’s demise has had to fill some pretty  big shoes in becoming the winemaker at Bartolo Mascarello.

But regardless of her shoe size, Maria Teresa is becoming a giant in her own right!

For most of us, our life’s journey is seldom straight but full of unexpected twists and turns that hopefully will lead to the fulfillment of our destiny. Such is the road that Maria Teresa Mascarello has followed throughout her life and if the saying “all the roads lead to Rome” is true, for Maria Teresa  all the roads have led her to her beloved Barolo!

As a little girl, her grandfather would take her on his motorino* through their vineyards, while passionately speaking of the land and its magical, perfect harmony with the environment.

Her home was often a meeting point for many legendary winemakers as well as passionate consumers who would flock to see Bartolo Mascarello hoping to purchase their “yearly allotment” of the prized Barolo wine.

But Maria Teresa’s studies at the University of Torino were in linguistics and indeed, much to her mother’s consternation, until her twenties she never even tasted a drop of wine! However wine was very much in her sub-conscious and drawing on her family’s wine making traditions, by presenting her thesis on “Wine and Oenology in French Dictionaries”, her faith was sealed.

Maria Teresa’s winemaking responsibilities began in 1998 and nurtured by her legendary father Bartolo, she committed herself to protecting the land, safeguarding the values and the legacy transmitted to her by her family.

Under Bartolo’s tutelage hers was an “on the job training”, assimilating the precious and practical knowledge that her father imparted about the land, the vineyards and the wine.

Such teachings-the practice of honoring the natural process of fermentation which she equates to “a resting period” for the wine that should not be in any way disturbed or the affinamento* of the wine in large, Slavonian oak barrels as continuing to make her Barolos not as a single vineyard cru but as an assemblage from seven acres of estate vineyards, were instrumental in forging her own commitment to traditional wine-making practices. Similarly, her decision not to purchase other parcels of land, in order to maintain the same levels of production and the estate within dimensioni umane*, thus ensuring strict quality control.

Following her father’s illness and subsequent inability to take on an active role in the vineyards and wine-making, Maria Teresa’s ascendancy to the role of wine-maker was rather smooth. By then it was quite normal to have women at the helm of top estates and she did not feel any resistance on Bartolo’s part to let go of the reins. While he dedicated himself to drawing the now famous labels through which he often conveyed his personal and political views, he became Maria Teresa’s de-facto consigliere*, always ready to impart whatever advice his daughter asked for but without interfering with the process.

Photo Courtesy of Tom Viscelli

Let’s fast forward now to 2005, the first vintage that Maria Teresa produced tutta da sola* and for which to no one’s surprise her Barolo received great reviews.  Lucky for me Maria Teresa presented me with a signed bottle of her 2005 Barolo which I had immortalized in this great photo!

But we are not likely to see Maria Teresa globe-trotting, promoting her wines. Not surprisingly like her father, she also shies away from most marketing efforts, not taking part in road shows, portfolio tastings etc., preferring to be part of smaller scale events where artisanal producers such as Bartolo Mascarello and their wines rather than the event, are the focus of everyone’s attention.

So what does the future hold for Maria Teresa? Chances are her life will not change at all from how she has lived it thus far by still communicating through phone or fax and no internet access!  In fact she confessed to me that she has not traveled farther than about two hours from her beloved Barolo, be it by road, train or plane. Hence my pledge to her, that if she will ever want to visit the US or any other country where English is widely spoken, I will be at her full disposal not only as a good friend which I am, but also as her official translator.

Allora*, who is ready to issue Maria Teresa an invitation to visit the US? I am certainly ready to assume my role-what about you Maria Teresa?

Finally, don’t forget to check out this week’s recipe, this time by Amazing Woman Chef Elisa Burlotto of  Real Castello, for the classic Piemontese dessert, Bunet or Bonet (in Piemontese Dialect) .

*Italian Words of the Week

Eccomi finalmente*-Here I am, finally
motorino*-moped
affinamento*-aging
dimensioni umane*-human dimensions
consigliere*-advisor
tutta da sola*-all by herself
Allora*-Well, then

Salve

Auguri* Judith, it is safe to assume that you and your traveling companion will have a fabulous time! Apart from Shop Wine and Dine’s prize, Divinale was a resounding success! What else could a wine lover, be it a woman or a man, want? It had it all, great winemakers who personally and proudly presented their wines such as Alessia Antinori and Cristina Mariani-May, seminars, tastings and of course great food. Divinale is sure to become a yearly event so mark your calendars for March 2011!

As I mentioned on our last posting, on and off over the next few weeks, we will be telling you bits from the lives of some of the Amazing Women of Piemonte. Lucky for me Bruna Grimaldi was in New York City a couple of weeks ago and I took the opportunity to meet her at her hotel for a chat over coffee. What struck me immediately was her warmth and the passion she conveyed for her work as well as her total dedication to her craft, something that certainly is the case with all great winemakers particularly those who have “grown up” in the vineyards. Such was indeed the case with Bruna Grimaldi whose fondest memories of her life in the luscious vineyards of Serralunga d’Alba are of her maternal grandmother, Nonna* Angela with whom Bruna spent most of  her summers as a child. As she tells it, tending to the vines is hard work but when the summer midday sun was scorching the earth and her grandfather after lunch retreated for the obligatory pennichella*, Bruna and Nonna Angela would go to the vineyards, tending to the grapes, pruning where needed or even applying sulphur, by all accounts a back-breaking job. Inspired by her nonna, a true and original donna del vino*, Bruna eventually became one herself.

Of the three sisters in her family Bruna was the only one who pursued studies in enology, studies that led her to her husband, also an enologist. In 1999 she eventually inherited the estate and aided by her husband, her father, and during harvest mamma e figli*,  Nonna Angela’s Serralunga d’Alba Badarina vineyards were replanted to facilitate the work and are now where Bruna’s top wine, Barolo D.O.C.G. Badarina Vigna Regnola is cultivated. She also inherited her father’s estate in Grinzane Cavour where from newly planted vines, in 2011 she will be releasing for the first time another Barolo. From her recently purchased Roddi vineyards, look out for another new release, the 2011 Barolo Bricco Ambrogio; yielded from existing 15 year old vines, it is destined to become another classic.

As her outstanding wines have garnered accolades from both press  and consumers alike, Bruna’s future dream is to build a baita * immersed in the hills of one of her vineyards. A simple refuge, just one big room with unimpeded views of the magnificent vineyards, where her visitors can in total harmony with the environment, savor and appreciate the fruits of her hard labor. Given her proven success as a winemaker and a businesswoman, I have no doubt that this dream will become a reality.

But in spite of Bruna’s great achievements or perhaps because of them, she has only one regret, it being that Nonna Angela did not live long enough to rejoice in her successes as a winemaker and most of all to see how her Badarina vineyards have become the jewel in Bruna Grimaldi’s well deserved crown! As a practical note, Bruna Grimaldi has maintained the cost of all her wines at 2002 levels making them a superb value not to be overlooked!

Finally our promise to share some of the recipes created by our Amazing Women Chefs of Piemonte. As a first step toward providing a “complete” Piemontese meal, one of the most traditional antipasto langarolo* is Carne Cruda all’Albese as served by Clelia Costa of Tra Arte e Querce.

Our featured primo piatto* is the quintessential Piemonte classic, Tagliolini con Sugo alle Tre Carni, a home recipe that has become a trademark for Claudia Francalanci of La Contea.

I wonder what great Piemonte wines you would pair with these two fabulous recipes…. share your picks with us and at our prossima puntata* we will share the chef’s own preferred pairing!

Arrivederci alla prossima*!

Anna Maria

*Italian Words of the Week

Salve-greetings
Auguri-best wishes or congratulations
Nonna-grandmother
Pennichella-nap
Donna del vino-winemaking woman
Mamma e figli-mother and children
Baita-refuge
Antipasto langarolo-appetizer from the Langhe (the Langhe is the main wine-producing wine are of Piemonte)
Primo piatto-needs no translation!
Prossima puntata-next episode
Arrivederci alla prossima-till the next time

Certainly our tours featuring some of the top wine makers in Italy, indeed the world, have given us plenty of material to draw upon, but something has held me back until now.

I didn’t want this to be just another blog, but as in our tours, I wanted to be able to offer a glimpse into Shop Wine and Dine’s unique perspective on what a wine tour to Italy should offer, along of course with some useful information and interesting anecdotes that visits to these winemakers “immancabilmente”* provide.

And so I decided that “Divinale-Women of Wine Week” to be held at City Winery from March 8-13, in honor of Women’s History Month, was going to be our debut into the world of blogs!

Apart from being present at the Grand Tasting on Saturday March 13 from 1-5PM, Shop Wine and Dine will be raffling off a three night package for two featuring the 5* Relais Monforte, dinner for two with wines at a Michelin 1* restaurant and a visit at a top winery in the Langhe! So if you have been dreaming of a wine tour to Piemonte, this may be the time to make your dreams come true!

But how else could we have honored Women’s History Month? Well, in true Shop Wine and Dine’s fashion we created an exceptional tour-Amazing Women of Piemonte, an Italy wine tour like no other that will feature only women winemakers and chefs, some of the best of the region, also encompassing the International Alba Truffle Fair!

In the coming weeks we will be featuring stories about these “Amazing Women of Piemonte” sharing some insights about their lives, dreams and visions for the future. We will also share some special recipes that our women chefs have generously shared with us so please look for our next posting for further details.

Lastly, Shop Wine and Dine’s mission is also about sharing insight and knowledge about Italy and Italians. As an Italian-born living in this country for many years but still thankfully deeply steeped in the Italian culture, when I speak or write I have a habit, albeit annoying even to me at times, of switching back and forth between the two languages. This happens mostly because in Italian there are certain words that defy translation as they convey a very specific thought or sentiment. I have therefore thought that rather than fighting this impulse, when this happens, I would simply use the Italian words and share them with you as my “Italian Words of the Day” with the albeit poor English translation below.

*Allora, I apologize if this initial posting is a bit longer than most might like but I certainly hope you will enjoy hearing from us with the next posting featuring one of the “Amazing Women of Piemonte”

*Un caro saluto,
Anna Maria

*Italian Words of the Day:
Immancabilmente: without fail
Allora: well then….
Un caro saluto: fond greetings (this is one of those poor English translations!)