Food, Wine and Travel Blog

10 Iconic Italian Cocktails by Ivano Martignetti Mastroianni’s class, Sean Connery’s style, Humphrey Bogart’s charm- these icons always seemed to look their best at the bar counter, where an elegant barman served impeccable cocktails in Martini glasses or pure crystal tumblers. A world away from the tacky bartenders and plastic glasses we sometimes have to […]

Love Italian Cooking? Want to dedicate yourself to making Italian recipes from scratch, and need a list of the essential kitchen “musts” for gadgets and ingredients? Here is our essential list, and readers: please send in your tips and advice so we can make the list even more complete! Essential Ingredients & Gadgets for Italian […]

30 of 300: A short glossary of Italian pasta by Martina Hemm Though pasta has only been present in European kitchens for the past 200 years, Italy has long nourished an ancient noodle culture. Arab merchants were the first to carry itria, the predecessor of modern Italian pasta, from the faraway Asian continent to the […]

A quick guide to the Val d’ Orcia for food and wine lovers: The Val d ‘ Orcia is quintessential Tuscany and utterly romantic.  Expect dreamy hills studded with cypress trees and ancient farmhouses; a smattering of gorgeous art cities and medieval towns in easy reach (Siena, Pienza, San Quirico D’ Orcia, Montepulciano, Montalcino); world-class […]

It’s January, it’s cold and miserable and you don’t feel like cooking tonight… PIZZA night! A pizza always hits the spot, but what to drink with it? Turn a simple Pizza night into a food and wine adventure with these fun pizza/wine pairing suggestions: Margherita Pizza Wine Pairing: Robust red from Puglia like Neprica (Tormaresca) […]

By Simona Piccinelli, Italian wine specialist The 18th edition of the Merano International Wine Festival & Culinaria last month, crowned Merano as “the Italian capital of gastronomic excellence“. The Kurhaus – where the wine tastings took place –  opened its doors to wine lovers, gourmet and trade on Saturday November 7th, for 3 days. In […]

Are you thinking of popping the question and can’t think of where to do it or how to make it special? Do you want to organize the time of her life and cherish the memories of your proposal day forever? Are you looking for a unique, incomparable, ultra-romantic, and creative wedding proposal idea? Well, you […]

Grande asta di beneficenza per L’Abruzzo // Wine Auction Benefit in Rome for the Victims of the Abruzzo Earthquake “99 Magnum per le 99 Cannelle” Cari golosi, Vi ricordiamo che mercoledì 3 giugno alle ore 18:00 alla Città del gusto di Roma Gambero Rosso organizzerà una grande asta di beneficenza il cui ricavato sarà interamente […]

While our blog is normally dedicated to the finer things in life- food, wine and travel- this post is an urgent appeal to our friends, colleagues and clients to make a donation to the victims of Italy´s recent earthquake, one of the worst in Italian history. Apart from the tragic deaths, over 50, 000 Italians […]

Winter Wine Tours Any time of the year is a good time to visit the wine country when it comes to drinking nice wines! But winter can be the most challenging season to visit as vineyards are dormant and bare (not lush and verdant, as in other times of the year), and many of Europe´s […]

Italy is a fascinating country for its traditions, folklore, and celebrations, and Simona Piccinelli (our Italian Wine Tours Specialist) describes how Italians bring in the new year- If you are spending New Year’s eve at home with your family and friends, you could say arrivederci to the old year and welcome new year as we […]

Places to go and visit in Sicily Sicily is a fascinating place to visit and merits MANY visits as there is so much to see and do. For a small taste of ideas for touring in Sicily– ski volcanic Mount Etna; see a lava “show” on Stromboli in the Aeolian islands; wine tasting; go snorkeling […]