Sagre #5 - Expo Milano

Final post of Sagre month! Though this week what we’re looking at isn’t so much a food festival as a food exhibition. Since May 1^st, and until the end of October, Milan is being taken over by Expo Milano, the Universal Exhibition, and the theme is FOOD.

Well, technically the theme is “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life”, but that takes longer to type. The exhibition will provide a platform for the exchange of ideas and solutions on the theme of food, and the opportunity to discover how the participating cultures grow and prepare food. It will examine both the traditional cultural values of food and how new technologies are and can be used in food production. Fascinating stuff!

The Universal Exhibition has long been famous for its ground-breaking exhibits. The first was held at Crystal Palace in London in 1851 and has been going ever since. Without it, Brussels might not have the Atomium or Paris the Eiffel Tower! The Exhibition is a stage to show off technological successes and gain insight into great inventions and discoveries across the world. This year over 120 countries are participating and the Expo is expected to welcome over 20 million visitors through its gates.

The site for the Exhibition is vast, and covers over 1.1km². There are four main themed areas: Pavillion Zero (which traces humankind’s historical relationship with food), the Future Food District (which explains how technology will change food storage, distribution, purchase, and consumption), the Biodiversity Park (full of ecosystems all over the world) and Arts & Foods (which explores the ever-changing relationship between art and food).

Many of the participating countries have their own pavilions where there are videos, installations, photo exhibitions, cooking demonstrations and tastings. (The UK pavilion is built to look like a gianthive and centres on bees and their importance in producing food.) The Italian pavilion lies right at the heart of the exhibition and promises to present all sides of Italian food culture – the places of production, culture, regions, landscape, and Italian hospitality. Definitely not one to miss.

So there you have it folks, it started here and it has made its way all around the world and stopped off in Italy. Much like me in reverse! Anyway, if you find yourself in Italy before the end of October, head to Milan and grab yourself a ticket for the Expo to learn all you ever needed to know about FOOD. 

Sagre #4 - Cantine Aperte

This week we’ve got the very finest of festivals for you, celebrating one of Italy’s very finest products: WINE. We thought we’d post this one a bit in advance of the sagra itself, just in case anyone felt the overwhelming urge to hop on a plane and find their way to Italia for Cantine Aperte on May 30^th-31^st.

Cantine Aperte means “open cellars” and this Italian festival of wine really does do what it says on the metaphorical tin. All across the country, some of Italy’s finest wineries open their cellars to the public. It is organised by the Movimento Turismo del Vino or “Wine Tourism Movement” (yes, it is a real thing…) and has been happening every year since 1993.

What happens during Cantine Aperte will vary from region to region, but almost always involves a tour of the vineyards and wineries, a peek at the cellars, with an explanation of how everything works, and the opportunity to taste and buy some of the finest wines in the world. Some places also offer special admissions where you can eat as well and even enjoy al fresco entertainment. It has become a key time for local communities, who organise a variety of cultural, artistic, and folklore-based events along the wine festivities.

One of the joys of Cantine Aperte is that it is just as popular with locals as it is with tourists. According to the Movimento Turismo del Vino’s website, “Cantine Aperte” has evolved over the years to be far more than just a wine festival, it has become a philosophy, denoting a way of travelling and discovering more of Italy and its wine territories. Year on year it attracts more tourists and wine-lovers from all over the globe. Unlike Vinitaly in Verona, this is not an event aimed at sommeliers and wine professionals, but at wine enthusiasts – a chance for winemakers to share their lives’ work with others.

 

Cantine Aperte is generally free and there is no need to reserve so if any of you decide to call in sick on Friday 29^th and get yourself over Tuscany, we won’t judge… 

Sagre #3- Marta Lattarino Festival

Another week, another delicious food festival to celebrate in good ol’ Italia. This week we’re giving you a glimpse into the Sagra del Lattarino – which isn’t a million miles away from Camogli’s fish festival.

Lattarino – or “atherina boyeri” if you insist on calling them by their biological name – are tiny silver fish which live in a number of the lakes in central Italy. The festival celebrating them takes place in Marta, a little town on the shores of Lake Bolsena, in Latium, northwest of Rome. Marta has had a thriving fish industry for centuries, as well as producing olive oil and a wine called Cannaiola, which means “warbler”. Sweet. This very specific sagra came into being in the 1980s, when a group of locals decided it would be appropriate to have a festival marking their appreciation for their environment and the gastronomic delights offered by the lake.

As with Camogli’s festival, the Sagra del Lattarino is a great occasion for (mostly local) people to come together and celebrate food. Again there is an enormous pan involved, though not as big as Camogli’s – sorry Marta! The little silver fish are coated in flour then fried and handed out among all those present. The festival costs about 10 euros to attend and as well as the fish there are fried “pizzetta” or mini pizzas, lemon bread, cheese, pastries and wine. You can’t say the Italians don’t know how to live, eh? 

Sagre #2 - Camogli Fish Festival

Carrying on with Sagre month this week and we have the Camogli Fish Festival, or the Sagra del Pesce, also known as the “Fish Festival of Saint Fortunato” (patron saint of fishermen! Who knew?)

The festival started in 1952, born out of a WW2 tradition of local fishermen’s wives offering fish to the Holy Virgin as thanks for keeping them safe from the war. It takes place in Camogli, a small port town near Portofino in Liguria, which is a coastal (duh) region in North West Italy. Camogli is known as one of Liguria’s “best-kept secrets”, with its colourful houses and beautiful beaches. It has managed to stay reasonably free of mass tourism thanks to its lack of large carpark. How about that?! It is nicknamed the “City of a Thousand White Sailing Ships” due to its prestige as a large seaport in the Middle Ages which accommodated hundreds of Tall Ships in its heyday, and is a 20-minute train-ride away from Liguria’s capital of Genoa.

The festival consists, essentially, of locals, visitors, and tourists being graced with free helpings of fried fish. Over 30, 000 servings, or around 3 tonnes, of blue fish are fried up by the fishermen themselved, in the world’s largest frying pan, which measures 5 metres across and has a 7-metre-long handle.

The night before, there is a huge firework display, and Camogli’s two neighbourhoods (Porto and Pinetto) compete to see which can build a bigger bonfire. These bonfires – which are often up to 2 stories high - are then lit by a “fire-wire” which stretches down from the church’s highest steeple! (Don’t worry though, the fire brigade is always at hand, just in case!) 

Sagre #1 - Risotto Festival

Exciting news Oregano fans! This week marks the start of Sagre month! Sagre are Italian food festivals and there are several particularly delicious ones which are happening throughout May. To kick us off this week, we are starting with the Sagra del Risotto. (And I'm sure you can guess what this one celebrates!)

Food festivals in Italy normally coincide with the harvest time of a particular ingredient, though sometimes they are odes to whole dishes, as is the case with the Risotto festival.Held in Sessame in Piedmont on the first Sunday of May every year, this fabulous food festival has been going on since the 13th century! This year it is being held on the 3rd of May, and you can expect market stalls, music and - you guessed it - lots of lovely risotto!

Risotto is one of Northern Italy's finest dishes and is normally eaten on its own as a primo (the course between an appetiser and a main course). For those of you who don't know, risotto is a rice dish which is cooked in a broth until it reaches a creamy texture. Rice first came to Italy with the Arabs in the Middle Ages. Turns out, the humid Meditteranean climate is perfect for cooking short-grain rice, which is exactly what we use nowadays in risotto. Risotto was officially created in Milan. During the 200-odd year reign of the Spanish in Milan, rice dishes became something of a staple (which explains the similarities of risotto and paella).Slow-cooking too was a common cooking technique and so slow cooking+ rice+ regional spices led to Risotto Alla Milanese.

And there you have it! All you could ever want to know about risotto. Bet you understand now why it has a whole festival dedicated to it! Fancy some risotto yourself? Why not pop into see us at Oregano and try our Risotto ai Porcini or Risotto ai Frutti di Mare?