Curious Appetite

Tuscany

A Florentine week of eats: countryside, street food and aperitivo

/ Florence, Italy, Travel Tips, Tuscany / 0 comment

In the last week in Florence, I have been overwhelmed by flavor. Overwhelmed by the beauty of my surroundings. I have decided, being in Seattle for the last several months was nothing but good. Now, I can appreciate my surroundings (and tastes) with a clean slate or yet- a fresh palate. It is good to take breaks from monotony. Think of places which have summer year round due to being near the equator, do you think people there appreciate the beach and sun as say those living in Germany?

Without further rambling, here are some new food findings I have discovered in Florence thus far: Continue Reading →

Tuscan Baked Goods and Bakeries in Florence

/ Bakeries, coffee talk, Desserts, Florence, Italian Food and Wine Travel, Italy, Tuscany / 5 Comments

Looking for the most buttery bakeries in Florence?

Buttery may not be the accurate term since many Tuscan baked goods are made with either no butter (i.e. pane toscano, cantuccini biscotti, etc) with olive oil, shortening or plain old fashioned lard (strutto) or a combo of one of these with butter, but for all intents and purposes, these are the bakeries where you can get the holy trinity of fat carbs and sugar. Italians and Tuscans especially take great pride in baked goods, especially breads which have hundreds of years attached in every crumble and every morsel of that “buttery” simple carbohydrate bite.

It is possible to find yourself in a conundrum of where to find the best baked goods in Florence as albeit the tiny size, the city is brimming with bakery shops at every corner and in between. Save yourself the hassle with this little guide. Continue Reading →

Montepulciano d’Abruzzo vs Vino Nobile/Rosso di Montepulciano

/ Food & Wine, Italian Food and Wine Travel, Italy, Tuscany / 3 Comments
Sangiovese grapes IN Montepulciano, Tuscany. NOT Montepulciano grapes in Abruzzo. Photo from Georgette Jupe when we went on a Montepulciano field trip 

I have noticed that a lot of people who travel to Tuscany note that they really like Montepulciano and want to do Montepulciano Wine Tours. Which surprises me because that is a pretty specific wine area and yet when I mention Brunello, they don’t seem to know what that is. Which makes me have a sneaking suspicion that people are thinking of the red wine that is one of the most common table red wines served in Italian restaurants across America: Montepulciano D’Abruzzo. While I hope they are talking about Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, this post is a general explanation of the 2 wines since even when I have been with clients in the Montepulciano wine country, I get this question: Is this wine made with Montepulciano grapes?

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