I need to stay more current on this blog, or else I am going to forget everything that happens. The problem is that when I want to write, I am not near a computer and sometimes not near one of my journals. I bought a smaller pocket one, so that I can have more access to it, but still it isn’t easy (I don’t wanna miss out on the picturesque countryside that will come later).
I believe we left off last wednesday night and boy has a lot happened since then. Thursday night, I used my last coupon (for February) for a “free” dinner at Insalata Ricca. The meal was insignificant; the food is decent (beats a few of places in the US, but not much. Mom yours is much better; except for the quality of dried pasta is better (not your fault or anyones, you just can’t get the same quality in the states thanks to be Barilla’s empire). After that many people felt like going out to a club, I on the other hand was not feeling up for it (financially, imbibingly, or energetically). Instead I joined a few new friends and acquaintances to Il Palombi. Palombi is a wine and beer emporium; offering 700 different beers from 500 breweries and a vast array of wines from every region in Italia. My Rome Food and Wine book that Adam got me describes the place as,”…an atmospheric, cavernous old shop stuffed with other delights…[where] beer by the bottle and wine by the glass may be enjoyed at one of a handful of tables…[with] outstanding cheeses, good hams, and delicious snacks.” It was just that. We tried 4 different reds, Nero Buono 2006 (Lazio), Raverosse 2005 (Lazio, same winery as Nero, Cincinnato), Agricoltori del Geografico 2006 (A Chianti Classico), and Montefalo Rosso 2005 (Umbria). Each had a distinct taste; the Nero was a little bitter with long legs and a strong earthy nose. The Raverosse, which I picked out, was my favorite. It was smooth, with a fruity complexion that left very little aftertaste. After looking at the website, http://www.cantinacincinnato.it/vini/en-selezioni_6_st.html, I saw that it is a blend of 40% Nero Buono, 40% Montepulciano, and 20% Cesanese. The Chianti, a request by Jamie, my new friend from Trinity, was very dry and definitely let you know it was a chianti. It got smoother and better with each taste, but not my favorite. The last was the most fun, because we ordered a Affrettati Misti (Mixed Cold Cuts, i.e. Prosciutto, Salame…) and Fromaggi Miste to accompany it. The cheese board came with different types of bread including whole wheat ones. The combination of cheese, prosciutto, and bread paired with the Montefalo was perfect. Some of the cheese were creamy, while others were flakey and hard. The prosciutto offered a great smokey and salty combination, while the salame hit it out of the park with its taste. Overall a great night, full of good wine, good food, and good conversation, all for a reasonable price of 80 euro. It was also great to do this on Thursday because on Friday I headed up to wine country: Tuscany, and it let me draw comparisons.
During that week, some of the more adventurous girls had been trying to plan a trip to Siena. Even though I had been there twice before I decided to tag along to get out of Rome and see more of the country. Initially it was me and 9 girls, but I finally got 3 guys to come along. The other guys were planing on going to Amsterdam but instead of booking for February 12th - 14th they some how booked March 19th - 21st. Don’t ask me how they got it wrong by not only a month but the wrong date too, but just don’t book your tickets when you’re drunk, high whatever. But tangent aside, we were done with class at 4:00 (usually we don’t have class in the afternoons, but we had to make up for next weekend’s which we will miss because we go to Florence) and we needed to be at the bus station at 4:30 to buy our tickets for the 5 o’clock bus. As usual, someone was slow getting ready and we didn’t get to the subway until 4:25 where 5 stops lay in between us and the bus station. 4:45 we got to our stop, got off and raced up the stairs trying to find the bust terminal. 5 minutes later and across the street on the opposite of the subway track, we finally located it. Only to spend the next 3 or so minutes looking for the correct ticket stand to buy our 20 euro tickets to Siena. 4:55 we were on the bus in our seats departing Rome with Siena in mind. 3 hours later we were awoken by the megaphone-d voice of the bus driver naming off stops in Siena. Fortunately we weren’t past ours (or so we hoped at the time) and got off at the right stop in Piazza Gramsci right inside the city walls and 5 blocks from the Campo. The Cannon D’Oro, our hotel, was only a minute away from Gramsci and 2 blocks off the Campo. The hotel was nice, about what I would stay in if I was with my parents, and amazing for the price of 20.50 a person. I shared a room with Luke, another kid from Trinity, and the room was spacious with two beds. Outside our window as a small courtyard that was covered in snow. We had a half hour to settle in and rest up before we headed to our feast.
Side Note: It snowed in Rome on the friday we left. It was the first significant accumulation (snow sticking to the ground) in Rome in 25 years. I snapped a few pictures but was unfortunately in class during the heaviest downfall. I wish I could have gone to the pantheon and seen it come down through the oculus.
At 9 o’clock or 21:00 (I’m trying to get accustomed to just seeing 21:00 and thinking that the time is actually 21:00, rather than translating it back to 9:00 pm), we left the hotel and headed to La Taverna di San Giuseppe. The restaurant was on a deserted street where tourists do not venture. If you were looking at the Campo and it’s clock tower, it was up the road to the right past the the square. The restaurant was a hidden gem. We walked in, all 11 of us, to a quiet and intimate restaurant where italians only (well dressed) italians were dining. I would compare it to a special event restaurant, one where you’d go for a birthday, anniversary, whatever… The kitchen was to the front left, and sitting on the pass was a 2 1/2 pound bistecca florentina that was calling my name. Once we were settled at our table, the magic began. We ordered 3 bottles of the house wine,Rosso Del Borgo, Pagni Castelnuovo Berardenga, Siena Italia, which was served in brunello style glasses (meaning way more fun for me to swirl my wine in). The first sip said it all; I wrote in my notebook, “I love Tuscany!” It was far superior to its neighboring region’s wines. It had a great flavor and was much smoother than Lazio wines. It also paired perfectly with my meal. As an aperitivo, we were given about 2 ounces of carrot soup. It was creamy and flavorful, pale orange in color and set the bar high for the rest of the dishes. The menu was impeccable; there were too many choices to choose from, and if euro’s grew on trees I probably would have ordered 5 primi’s and 5 secundi’s. I finally settled on Pici Casalinghi al Cinghiale e Porcini: Pici pasta (a fresh homemade pasta local to tuscany) with Wild Boar and Porcini Mushroom Ragu. It was delicious! I have never really been a mushroom guy (mainly cuz i hadn’t tried to many), but have known that I like their flavor. This time, my plate was empty when he came to pick it up (there was no more to lick). The boar was meaty and slightly gamey but not in an overpowering way. It was darker in color than bologense due to the amount of red wine used in the sauce. It couldn’t have been a better dish and my only complaint is that I wanted more (like a ton of it). Per Secundo prendo La Grigliata Mista di Carne: The Mixed Grill which had a chicken thigh, 2 pork ribs, a veal cutlet, and a pork sausage. All the meat was local and incredibly tasty. It was doused in olive oil and sprinkled with rosemary. The veal cut like butter, the chicken was crusty and caramelized, the pork ribs were fatty and gritty, and the sausage was blistered from the grill. For dessert, we all initially refused, but it took little convincing for us to order a plethora of desserts. Our waiter, Genti, claimed that the Tiramisu was number 1 in the world. I chose to assess his claim and ordered one. As you can see in the picture, I couldn’t keep my spoon off it, before I took a picture. His claim was justified, and for a man that doesn’t normally like tiramisu, I would eat this daily. It was layered many times and the top was garnished with caramelized brown sugar and dark coco powder. The second best dessert was the Tortino Ciccolate translated directly to “little chocolate cake” but it was more of a chocolate souffle. I am a chocolate souffle aficionado and this was up to par but was definitely not a birdie. After dinner, I asked if I could go down into the wine cellar that was next to our table. The room was built into the rock and looked very very old. The waiter turned tour guide, told us that this room housed their bottles between 1960 and 1985. The room itself was first discovered 12 years ago and required a full excavation. It dates back to 200 B.C. where it was an Etruscan home. Later in the 12th century it became a church and a cross was carved into the stone above the fireplace/ new altar which is still visible today. It was a great end to our meal and the amount of top-class wines that they had in there was astonishing Biondi-Santi ‘85 ex cetera ex cetera. Returning to the campo, we went to a bar and finished the night with a little bit of dancing, drinking, and singing to american oldies: Build Me Up Buttercup, Rich Girl, and dozens of others. To be continued…
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