Parmigiano Reggiano, Aceto Tradizionale de Modena, e Vino

Got our wakeup call at 6:00am today as we were being picked up at our hotel at 7:00am for a food & wine tour. We were moving kind of slowly in the morning but we had enough time for the morning coffee to kick in before we got to the first stop, a Parmigiano Reggiano factory.

Our guide, Allessandro Martini, took us through the entire process of how Parmigiano Reggiano is made, complete with a demonstration at each stop at the processing plant. You would think that making cheese might be kind of boring, but Allessandro had such enthusiasm in his presentation that it was quite interesting. He was very simpatico and very Italian........with waving hands, pronounced facial expressions and exaggerated explanations. He made the tour very interesting.

At the end of the tour, we got to taste some Parmigiano and some freshly made Ricotta and washed it down with some Lambrusco, a slightly fizzy light red wine typical of the Modena region. We were off to an early start on the vino today.

Our next stop was to an estate that produced Aceto Tradizionale de Modena, what we all know as balsamic vinegar. What we found out is that what we think is balsamic vinegar from Modena is really commercially produced wine vinegar. The traditional method of producing this is complex process that takes a minimum of 12 years, At the end of the 12th year, the producer only can extract 1 liter from each barrel. This is a process that is handed down from generation to generation that, obviously is not done for money. The aroma in the room where the vinegar was aging was unbelievable. Afterwards, we tasted some of the various qualities of vinegar and also had a little serving of vanilla gelato with the balsamic vinegar drizzled over it. I know that sounds really weird, but the combination was actually quite tasty.

Our next stop was to a winery nearby, where we spent a very short time looking at the winery and a very long time having a "light lunch" as Allessandro called it. As you would suspect, in true Italian fashion, there was more food & wine served than we could've possibly eaten & drunk. However, we tried our best. Many huge platters of salami, mortadella, prosciutto, pancetta & other freshly made salumi were brought out. Many different types of cheeses like parmigiano, pecorino, blue cheese, & others were passed around. Quickly following was enough rigatoni with a tomato sauce made with onions, oregano, porcini & pancetta to choke a horse. All the while, we were served a spumante brut, a barbera, 2 different cabernets & a merlot. At the end, of course there was espresso or capuccino, but also some grappa was passed around. As much as we tried, we couldn't get Judy to try the grappa. Needless to say, as the lunch went on the group got more vocal & outgoing. At one point a group shoulder massage broke out between two of the drivers, Fabrizio & Gianni, and two Swedish women that were on the tour. I wonder if all that wine had anything to do with it?

By the time we got back to the hotel, we were both pretty tired............tired enough that even the Nap Nazi herself took a nap . We gathered up enough energy to have a quick dinner.......no, we weren't going to miss a meal. Tonight, I plan to get up at 3:00am to get an early birthday present.......a Giants win in Game 6 and a trip to the World Series. Wouldn't that be great?!