JO's Global Food Adventures

Day 6, November 9, 2012

2013-01-17T14:37:00.002-08:00

Bartolo Mascarello

This was our last day in Piemonte and lucky for us one of the best visits of the week was awaiting in the morning at Bartolo Mascarello with legend's daughter Maria Teresa. The entire range of wines was incredible here - probably my favorite tasting of the entire trip in terms of the quality of the juice. We tasted through the entire current release, including her Dolcetto, Barbera, Freisa and Barolo. The 2008 Barolo really knocked my socks off. Dave and I both bought bottles to bring home. I only bought one - huge mistake. I should have bought at least three of them plus a magnum. Maria Teresa was a terrific guide. Very passionate, very kind and incredibly knowledgeable about her craft. Returning to Bartolo Mascarelo on my next visit to Piemonte is a must. Spectacular wines and a fascinating facility with a long and important history right in the town of Barolo.

Our last lunch was at Locanda del Centro in the tiny town of Castiglione Falletto. This was hands down, my favorite lunch of the trip. The food was superb. We started with the antipasti plate, which was off the charts. The carne cruda was absolute heaven. I loved the nice homey decor in the upstairs part of the restaurant. Consistent with most places we dined in the area, the wine list was stellar and fairly priced. I definitely want to come back here for dinner. This was a top notch dining experience. Great service too.

The last visit of the trip was with Paolo Scavino. It was pretty tough to find the place using the GPS. We got a little lost and showed up a bit late. This was a very generous tasting as a huge amount of wines were poured including all of the current Baroli and the big gun riserva Annunziata. The wines showed well (if you like the style) - all polished and well made, showing the influence of oak. All very open and accessible right now. I'm just not a fan of modern Baroli so I was less than excited about what I was tasting. The facility at Scavino is large and they proudly show off their roto fermenters, which have been the source of much controversy in the region over the years. If you like wines made in the modern style, it is worth a visit.

That wrapped up a great week of wine visits in Piemonte. The views, wine and food were all spectacular. I plan to be back here again in the near future. Next time I won't make the mistake of not visiting Giacomo Conterno!

Day 5, November 8, 2012

2013-01-16T14:19:00.002-08:00

Domenico Clerico

Another day, another great Italian buffet breakfast at Corte Gondina. Soon thereafter we arrived at Domenico Clerico. His facility looks like a giant spaceship on top of a hill. The modern architecture sticks out like a sore thumb in the area with all the old, traditional looking structures. I have been buying and cellaring Clerico wines now for years - largely due to the high scores they receive from Antonio Galloni. I've had a few of the older Ginestra Barolo that have been delicious at Babbo and Capriccio on Bonaire. The facility is quite large and completely modern. No surprise there since it was just built. The tasting room has a beautiful view and our host was very kind and hospitable. I found the wines less than interesting though. Modern and lacking in soul. This hurt a bit since I have so much of the wines in my cellar. My favorite wine of the tasting wasn't even a Barolo. It was the current Barbera d'Alba. I strongly prefer the traditional wines - I'm sure that is pretty obvious.

After a good lunch at La Salita in Monforte we started our afternoon visit at G.D. Vajra. I loved this visit. We were hosted by the young and passionate Francesca Vajra - the daughter of the owner and founder of the winery. Francesca was a fantastic host. Her hospitality and passion for the wines was a stark contrast to what we experienced at Elvio Cogno just a few days early. Francesca poured us through the entire current offering of G.D. Vajra. The wines showed very, very well. I have always enjoyed Vajra wines and buy them when I see them. They can be hard to find - I usually buy them from Astor Wines in NYC. The tour of the wine making facility was interesting as it was easily the most packed of any wine making facility that we saw. There is literally no room to move around. The space constraints certainly aren't hurting the quality of the juice.

Dinner was at Castello Grinzane. This was the only restaurant of the trip that earned a Michelin star. The setting is inside a really old castle. The food and service was really good. I'd recommend this place for a nice meal.

Day 4, November 7, 2012

2013-01-14T13:37:00.004-08:00

Elio Grasso

I had a good feeling about our scheduled tastings at Elio Grasso and Aldo Conterno, both of which were late additions to my schedule. Fortunately my premonition was correct. This was one great day of wine visits.

We started on a crisp and clear Piemonte morning at Elio Grasso, just outside the small town of Monforte d'Alba. Wow, what an impressive property. Everything from start to finish was fantastic - our host, the wine making facility, the old house, the views of the valley and the young wines poured for us. The style is purity and balance. I immediately fell in love with these wines. This was definitely a memorable visit and I will buy, cellar and enjoy the wines of Elio Grasso for years to come.

The memory of my visit to Elio Grasso was further enhanced by the fact that my top wine of the entire trip was the 2008 Elio Grasso Gavarini Vigna Chiniera from our dinner at Bovio in La Morra. The wine was not available for sale at Elio Grasso as it was completely sold out. I bought 6 of these upon my return to the States and look forward to following its development.

Our afternoon appointment was with Aldo Conterno and this was another special, special visit. The facility looks something like a French chateau - it is huge and artfully designed. We started with the recent Dolcetto and Barbera and then we were treated to the full range of the 2008 Baroli and they were all very impressive. I find the style to be a good balance between ultra traditional and modern. The hospitality at Aldo Conterno was top-notch and the generosity was humbling. The wine making facility was absolutely spotless - the same was true for Elio Grasso.

Dinner on this night was at La Libera in Alba. It was easily the most disappointing meal of the entire trip - by a large margin. I picked this restaurant based upon strong feedback from the wine boards including favorable commentary from Antonio Galloni and several other recent visitors to the area. The service was terrible, the wine list lacking and the food was unimpressive. A highly disappointing way to end an otherwise excellent day in Piemonte. I even heard people at breakfast in our hotel talk about how this was a can't miss place. Boy were they all wrong.

Day 3, November 6, 2012

2012-12-26T17:30:00.001-08:00

Giuseppe Mascarello

Today was the day for the ultra traditional producers - Giuseppe Rinaldi and Giuseppe Mascarello. We started at Rinaldi near the town of Barolo. The location was a bit tough to find but eventually we got there. We were warmly greeted by the young and attractive Marta Rinaldi and given a quick tour of the very old cellar. Soon we moved on to tasting the wines which all showed very well.

Lunch was in the town of Barolo. Barolo is a fun little town to walk around in. It is a bit more touristy feeling than the other small towns in the Langhe. We picked a lunch spot that was near the center of town without a recommendation or reviewing feedback from other travelers - Locanda della Posta. This was the most uninteresting lunch of the entire trip. The food wasn't bad, it was just uninteresting. The wine service was bad though. The inside of the restaurant was on the warm side and so were the wines that were left sitting out (some of them under bright lights). I'm sure there were better choices in the town, we just picked a bad spot.

After lunch we ventured to the town of Dogliani to walk around a bit and check out the public market. It was pretty small and most of what was on sale was clothing. Dogliani is known for its Dolcetto - there was plenty of it for sale there as you would expect.

Our afternoon appointment with the legendary producer Giuseppe Mascarello. I was warned that this location would be very difficult to find and indeed it was. I asked for directions from several locals in the small town where the Cantina is located and eventually they got us on the right track. This was a really fun visit. In a room full of fruit flies we tasted through the complete set of current release wines. They were all excellent including the 2008 Monprivato. Our visit was led by Mauro Mascarello and his friendly wife. Mauro isn't a fluent English speaker and we don't know much Italian but we managed to communicate just fine. This visit was a definite highlight for me.

We purchased a few bottles of Freisa to bring back to the hotel to enjoy. The 2006 Freisa was superb - funky and earthy.

Dinner was in La Morra within walking distance of our hotel at Pizzeria Per Bacco, which was excellent.

Day 2 - November 5, 2012

2012-11-23T15:57:00.000-08:00

I woke up super early due to jet lag. I was down at breakfast as they were setting up a very impressive spread of food and caught my first view of just how beautiful this area is through the window of the hotel. Clear blue skies and the snow covered Alps framing a view of the green rolling hills covered in vines. Wow, what a sight!

Breakfast at Corte Gondina was excellent and is just one of the many highlights of staying at this great property in La Morra.

Our first visit of the trip was at Vietti in Castiglione Falletto. We were warmly greeted there by Luciana Vietti, the mother of current winemaker and family owner Luca Currado. Luciana was a wonderful host and showed us some incredible history contained within the walls of the current structure where wine is made now. What a fascinating history this family has and it was great that they preserved the historical aspects of the building when they modernized it. After showing us the facility including where they make and age their wines, we moved to the modern and comfortable tasting room. I've been a fan of Vietti wines for years now and it was great to see a new set of great wines just entering the market. The 2008 Baroli are fresh, pure and powerful. The whole set of wines was great including the Barbera d'Alba, Dolcetto and Langhe Nebbiolo.

This was a dazzling way to start the trip. Such passion and generosity from Luciana. It was so much fun. One of the very best visits of the trip for sure.

Lunch was next door to Vietti at Le Torri in Castiglione Falletto. The lunch was good - pretty much in line with most other places we had lunch. Nice homemade pastas, killer views of the valley below and good service. Besides our group there was only one other person in the restaurant. It lacked energy to me as a result. The setting is spectacular though.

Our afternoon appointment was at Elvio Cogno. I was introduced to the wines while in Bonaire on a dive trip at the fantastic Italian restaurant 'Capriccio'. I have really enjoyed Elvio Cogno's Barbera and more recently some of the 2007 Barolo. I had high hopes for this visit.

I made a mistake on the time of our visit; we showed up an hour early. This caught the people there off guard. It was a genuine mistake - we apologized and offered to come back at the scheduled time (one hour later) but they asked for a few minutes, so we waited. The property itself is unbelievable. Spectacular views, infinity pool, outdoor kitchen and an old building that had been modernized.

The visit starts and is led by Nadia Cogno. It was clear from the start that this woman had no interest in spending time with us. She showed no passion or enthusiasm. Her answers to our questions were one sentence. Clearly, she wanted to be doing something else. She gave us a half-hearted tour of the wine making facilities, which were quite impressive. We were quickly moved to a tasting room and presented with a price list. This was the only place where we were giving a price list. I didn't mind paying for the tasting though as I know making wine is expensive. My issue was with her sour attitude.

The wines showed nice - we tried their Langhe bianco and the 2009 Barbaresco. I will have a hard time buying these wines again after this visit. I really like the style of the wines - so pure and elegant but Nadia's cold demeanor really turned me off. It was, by far, the worst visit of the trip.

Dinner was at Osteria Veglio - a neighborhood place down the hill from the center of La Morra. I loved this place. The cooking was rustic and local - exactly what I love. The service was genuine. The wine list very good. I spotted a 2010 Giacomo Conterno Cascina Francia Barbera that wasn't on the list on another table and we started with that. It was fantastic. My starter was an excellent ravioli that reminded me of the soup dumplings I had in Shanghai. They were killer. Our second wine was a brilliant 2006 Castello di Verduno Barbaresco from the Rabaja vineyard. Polished and fantastic. Eric and I had the lamb chops and they were just superb. We walked out very satisfied. It was probably the best dinner of the trip.

Impressions from my trip to Piemonte - November 2012

2012-11-22T07:12:00.003-08:00

Sunday - November 4th

Arrived on the overnight flight from EWR. Picked up the rental car at MXP airport and headed for La Morra. The drive was relatively easy until we got close to Alba, then the GPS started getting confused with all the changes to the roads in the area. Make sure you have an up to date GPS when traveling in Piemonte. We reached our hotel Corte Gondina and met Bruno. I had to laugh when I first met him because he probably thinks I am slightly mad. There was a lot of back and forth about appointments, dates, times, changes and questions. Lots of questions.

Lunch was at the local Osteria More e Macine. A very cool and boisterous place with the menu written on a chalkboard. The wine list was deep and reasonably priced backed up by a large walk-in wine cellar. Food was very good all around. The white truffles here looked fantastic and the pricing was reasonable. I wish we had come back for dinner here. The vibe was really fun.

Our first wine visit was in Barbaresco at Produttori di Barbaresco. The distance from La Morra to Barbaresco isn't much but with all the twisting roads it takes about 25 minutes or so. Barbaresco is a tiny little hill town. The main strip holds a few places to taste wine and two Michelin starred restaurants. The tasting room at Produttori di Barbaresco is open to the public and doesn't cost anything. We tasted through a range of wines that included a 2007 Riserva. The most impressive wine of the tasting was the 2005 Barbaresco, it was the most expressive of that group. The Riserva was a close second as it showed the most polish and potential of the bunch. Pricing to buy the wines was much lower than in the US - this would be theme throughout the trip.

Dinner was at Bovio in La Morra. This is an impressive restaurant that is not to be missed. The service, decor and wine list were my favorites of the trip. The food was good but short of excellent for the most part. My brasato al Barolo was slightly disappointing. The wine list was a thing of beauty though with excellent stemware and polished wine service. We had our wine of the trip here 2008 Elio Grasso Barolo Vigna Chiniera. What an extraordinary wine! From the moment the cork was pulled this wine was explosive. The waiter put the wine into a fancy decanter but that wasn't really necessary. This is a wine of considerable elegance and I'm going to be buying several of these.

Another Brooks Brothers non-iron shirt fabric failure

2012-10-11T18:29:00.001-07:00

The non-iron shirts sold by Brooks Brothers have terrible longevity. Here is another fabric failure in the elbow. Only a few left now.

The worst pizza I ever had

2012-08-27T17:14:00.002-07:00

Trader Joe's Organic Woodfired Sicilian Style Pizza is easily the worst pizza I've ever had. Frankly, I am surprised as I'm a huge Trader Joe's fan and regular shopper. Cardboard crust coupled with flavorless cheese and sauce. A complete abomination.

Barrafina - Tapas Restaurant in London

2012-05-27T14:39:00.001-07:00

My favorite meal of the trip thus far has been at Barrafina. This is a highly regarded Spanish tapas restaurant located in the SoHo neighborhood of London.

Seating is around an open kitchen with a few additional tables outside. You queue up along the back wall of the restaurant while waiting your turn at the counter. Looking at all the great dishes coming out of the kitchen was making me extra hungry and impatient. One of the servers was taking great care of all the people in the queue - taking drink orders or food orders. I started with a bottle of Spanish white while I waited. The queue stretched out to the front door so I was happy that I arrived early on a spectacular Saturday night.

After about 35 minutes, my seat opened up on the corner of the bar. Soon after sitting I put in several orders. Everything was very good and there were even a few 'wow' dishes that stood out above the rest. My favorite plates were the: octopus with capers, ham croquetas, fresh clams in garlic, and oil and chickpeas with spinach and bacon.

Service was attentive throughout the meal and the limitation of my stomach capacity was the only thing keeping me from ordering more. Dining here reminded me of my fantastic trip to Spain.

Barrafina lives up to its billing as the top tapas bar in London. It was even better than I expected.

Napa on 26, Bangkok

2012-01-14T06:39:00.000-08:00

For Western style fine dining in Bangkok, Napa on 26 is a great choice. I celebrated my big birthday here and was quite happy with the experience. First, the decor of the restaurant is pure class and comfortable. The tables are nicely spread out so you can enjoy a bit of privacy and peace during your meal. The chairs are some of the most comfortable that I have experienced in a restaurant. The table for two was nice and large. Second, the service was polished and prompt - almost up to the standards of a fine restaurant in New York City. Finally, the food was excellent for the most part - highlights were the duck confit (special of the night), braised short ribs and Caesar salad "Napa" style. I didn't care for the carpaccio though. Beautiful presentation and wonderful flavors. My only compliant was that things were slow coming out of the kitchen. In a very classy move, the chef came to our table to apologize as he was short staffed due to the recent holiday.

The wine list is very good for Thailand although the pricing is absolutely astronomical compared to the US or Europe. I attribute this to the massive tax levied against wine imports into Thailand. I was stunned to see how expensive wine was on the shelf at Foodland market. However, if you are a baller you can choose such trophies as Mouton, Lafite, DRC and Screaming Eagle off the list at Napa on 26. Corkage is a very reasonable 500 THB so you are much better off bringing your own bottle than buying off the list. Wine service was excellent with beautiful stems and prompt service. Highly recommended.

Mont Nom Sod, Bangkok

2012-01-12T04:44:00.000-08:00

On my most recent trip to Bangkok in January 2012, Mont Nom Sod was once again one of the absolute culinary highlights. First, we visited the original location on Dinso Road after dinner. This is a beautiful shop (clean and sleek) and a great place for people watching. Both times I have been here I have been the only farang. We devoured three pieces of thick white toast smothered with condensed milk and washed it down with a fresh milk on ice. So simple yet so utterly delicious and it makes for great food porn in the photos.

I just had to get my fix again before leaving for Los Angeles so I dipped into MBK on its second floor for another trip to culinary heaven. Two pieces of toast drizzled with condensed milk and a glass of fresh milk on ice. While the MBK branch is much smaller and plain looking compared to the mother-ship, the food is just as delicious! We need this here in the USA but it will never happen so I'll just have to keep coming back to Bangkok to get my Mont Nom Sod fix.

Another Brooks Brothers non-iron shirt blows out

2011-12-04T10:00:00.000-08:00

Only have a few left now. Amazing how they all fail in the same place.

Wine visits in Montalcino and Chianti Classico

2011-11-02T06:54:00.000-07:00

The two best visits in Montalcino and Chianti Classico were head and shoulders above the rest: Uccelliera and Sestadisopra. Other excellent visits were Valdicava, Siro Pacenti, Felsina and Fontodi. My least favorite visit was Ciacci Piccolomini. It wasn't terrible, it just had a commercial feel compared to the others, which were small and intimate visits. Ciacci even has a US style wine and gift shop.

Cinque Terre, Italia

2011-10-24T02:21:00.000-07:00

Enjoying a lazy day in the Cinque Terre today. The last day before the long journey back to New York. Did some hiking yesterday from Vernazza to Riomagiore. The regular trail from Corniglia to Manarola was closed with a detour up into the hills above. The first 30 minutes were very steep and difficult. What used to be a fairly easy 45 minute hike is now a 2 hour grueling march due to a land slide. The views were great and it felt good after we got back to Vernazza and enjoyed a cold beer.

Great dinner last night in Monterosso at Ristorante Miky. Spaghetti al vongole and salt baked sea bass.

Taking it easy this afternoon and then a boat ride after lunch.

Day trip to Florence

2011-10-21T13:38:00.000-07:00

We took a nice day trip to Florence today. Took the bus from Siena, an easy 1 hour and 20 minutes for 7 Euro. Walked around a bit and visited the Accademia and Uffizi. Seeing the David again was awesome. I last saw him when I was in junior high school with my Spanish class from Sepulveda. What an incredible piece of art. The Uffizi was less impressive - just not my type of museum.

Florence is a beautiful city. Lots of tourists and too many cars and motorbikes zipping down the narrow lanes though. I find myself really loving the small towns in Italia and caring less so about the bigger cities.

Off to Cinque Terre tomorrow.

Last day in Montalcino

2011-10-20T09:29:00.000-07:00

3 great tastings today - started with Siro Pacenti at 0930. Very impressive facility and top notch wines. Rosso and Brunello are both aged in French barrique. The wines are structured and built to age. From there we went to the best tasting of the whole trip - Uccellieria. More than two hours of tastings that included multiple barrel samples, current releases and library wines. Incredible generosity, talent and passion. Andres and his wife met with us but they don't speak much English. The wines were unbelievable and give all of us wine lovers good things to look forward to. The final visit was Ciacci. Very professional tasting, beautiful facility and good wines.

Off to Siena tomorrow.

Orvieto

2011-10-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

Chianti Classico

2011-10-18T14:32:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful area. Lots of small winding roads and spectacular views. Back to tasting in Montalcino tomorrow.

Tuscany the beautiful

2011-10-18T10:53:00.000-07:00

Breathtaking views today in Chianti Classico. Two great tastings at Felsina and Fontodi. Excellent wines and nice people. More truffles for lunch.

Orvieto

2011-10-17T23:11:00.000-07:00

Really nice small town. Hotel Duomo was excellent. Lots of interesting restaurants and good local wines. I wish I had another day here.

Montalcino Day 1

2011-10-17T14:38:00.000-07:00

Great morning tasting at Valdicava with Vincenzo. Tasted the young 2010 and 2009 Brunellos. The afternoon tasting at Sesta di Sopra was even better. Great wines and the people there was so warm and welcoming. We tasted in the living room. Small town that is quiet at night. Good dinner with some hearty Tuscan cuisine. Off to Chianti Classico in the morning.

Roma Sparita, Rome

2011-10-17T14:31:00.000-07:00

Incredible Cacio e Pepe. The best I've had to date. Light and very peppery as opposed to Da Felice, which was heavy and soupy. Served in a cheese bowl?? Are you kidding. A simple dish that delivers incredible flavor. Everyone in the restaurant had this on their table. Other dishes here were very good too including the pizza. Nice wine list and the reds are actually served at cellar temperature (rare in Italy). The setting is in a quiet Piazza in the colorful Trastevere neighborhood. Thanks for the tip Tony Bourdain!

On to Orvieto

2011-10-16T14:30:00.000-07:00

Had a good full day in Roma yesterday. Lots of walking and a couple good meals. Roma Sparita was awesome. Cacio e pepe was better than Da Felice. Da Felice is really soupy, which is good but on the heavy side. Sparita is lighter with lots of cracked pepper and the clincher is the cheese bowl that it is served in. Incredible dish. Thanks to Tony Bourdain for the find. Nice spot in a quiet piazza in Trastevre. Good pizza too.

Picked up the car this morning and drove to Orvieto. Good drive and the countryside is beautiful in Umbria. Nice town too. Took some good pictures. Off to Montalcino and tasting at Valdicava in the morning.

First day in Rome

2011-10-14T22:35:00.000-07:00

Had a good first day in Rome that consisted of two naps and lots of walking. Once Dave got in we had a killer lunch near the Piazza Novona. A little pizza place that was in the Rick Steves guide - pizza was OTC and spaghetti carbonara also very good. Had a glass of wine afterwards at Cul de Sac - kick ass wine bar also near the Piazza Novona. Walked around after lunch and passed by most of the big Rome sights. Tons of and tons of tourists in Rome. It seems that there always is but I thought this was the 'shoulder season'. Dinner last night at Da Felice. Totally different vibe the second time around. Very friendly and English was widely spoken. Food was very good.

Up rather early today. Planning on visiting the catacombs and then Vatican in the afternoon.

Landing feet first in Rome

2011-10-14T01:24:00.000-07:00

Easy flight from Newark to Rome last night and into this morning. No ground delays despite fog and light rain. We quickly climbed through the fog and clouds and were soaring through blue skies within a minute of liftoff. My seatmate was a hip older gentleman that was going on two separate cruises leaving from Rome. More than 30 days in total.

Dinner was some of the worst airline food I've ever eaten. Got some sleep (thanks to the Ambian) and enjoyed a great view of the sun rising over the northern coast of France. On the approach Rome we had a nice flyby from a Alitalia 767 or 777. He was below us but pretty close. Nothing dangerous or close enough to trigger TCAS.

Customs in Europe always makes me laugh and this morning was no exception. The agent looked at my passport for all of about 0.5 seconds and didn't bother to stamp it. From the aiport I took the train into the city and then a quick walk to my hotel. Our room isn't ready yet so I'm here waiting for Dave O. Perfect weather this morning.