Cured Meat Stage: day 2

<--jules is ready for the pig farm mud.

another day on the bus, visiting pig farms and production companies. this one had a little bonus to look forward to at the end of the day: a visit to the Ceci wine producer - that must imply some tastings right? our first stop was to antica corte pallavicina in polesino parmense. in the middle of nowhere, it was a gorgeous old house with roaming peacocks, newly sprouted vegetable gardens, a dining room attached to the house with modern floor to ceiling windows, an old stove in the middle of the room garnished with jars of pickles, vases of flowers, and wines, a spectacular old fire place, and a door looking into a immaculate kitchen, and an open courtyard with pots of crocosus promising signs of spring. we picked up our tour guide and jumped back on the bus to visit their pig farm down the road. these pigs were once extinct, and "resurrected" through some cross breeding. this was a small scale culatello-making farm where in the summer the pigs rummage throughthe fields - like everyone wants to picture a happy pig. it wasn't the season for that yet, so they were in the barn, but had more space than the last farm we went to. the culatello is made from the same rear end leg like the prosciutto di parma, but it is a smaller piece of it and it is wrapped in the bladder of the pig to cure. it can only be made in 8 villages in a restricted area because no others have the right knowledge or the terroir. the meats hang in an old barn with the windows wide open when the weather is right - the fog and humidity in perfect balance. this air drying process also creates a mold on

(happy pig!)

the outer surface. we went back to the old house which we all fell in love with even more as we stepped in. the fire place was lit, there were

faded frescos on the walls in every room with ancient picture stories and latin sayings. downstairs in the cellar, the culatellis hung in rows in the cellar in its natural environment - no technologic temperature controls. it was dark and low and would definitely make for a fun game of hide and seek! we emerged into a room that had huge cylinders of parmesan also aging in the cellar-isque conditions. minutes later, we were tasting 3 different types of salami (solgino, cresponetto, mariola - the youngest one was so tender) coppa, pancetta (mmmm) and the famous culatello. the waiter was adorable and served us fortana wine, which, amongst the 8 bottles available to buy, i snagged one for 6 euro. a couple of us asked for information about the restaurant (opened since sept) and the rooms available so our parents - and us - could stay there when they visit (opened 1 year). i asked if i could have my wedding there and massimo said sure, but i have to rent the whole lot, pigs and all. i said sure, of course, i just have to find the boyfriend first.

then it was back on the bus to Bre del Gallo in fontanelle, just south of where we were. this was small, family run farm where they receive the ham legs and cure them. it was completely different from what we have seen. the meats were hanging from small racks in the little

bedrooms upstairs - it smelt like a grandparents house - but it was interesting because he showed us how to test if the hams were good or not. you first have to knock it with a hammer to listen tothe sound (listen for the presence of air which is not good) and then use a horse bone to test the smell (the horse bone absorbs the smell the best). the culatello is best between 15-18 months of curing, whereas 12 months is too young and after 2 years the quality will decline. one of the small culatelli costs around 200 euro!! it is amazing to think how generous they are to offer us sliced heapings of samples. and although i didn't understand a word, except for nord, the grandfather was adorable.

off again on the bus, this time to torrile where we were going to the wine producer Ceci. immediately through the doors we were in the production facility, seeing bottles being cleaned, filled, corked, labeled, boxed. they just have one line of production so they make one type at a time - this time they were making otello - an award winning red lambrusco (according to Duemilavini 2009 associazione italiana sommelier (5 grapes, never before)

gambero ross - slow food editore (2 glasses), luca maroni (91) and i vini d'italia 2009 l'espresso(3 bottles)) poor alberto had to translate from italian, this man with his purple new balance and matching purple v-neck cashmere sweater talking away forever and alberto having to sum it up. he might as well just said "nod your head so he thinks i remember what he just said." off we were to taste some and we were all happy. tasted a Otello Dry - a white sparkling wine made from a mixture of lambrusco and pinot noir which was similar to a champagne and despite the grapes was still a yellowy-white color because the skins were removed quickly after the pressing. it is from the Emilia-Romagna hills and is the only sparkling wine bottle with a square bottom. then we had the prized Nero di lambrusco - bright red/purple, fruity and bubbly.

back on the bus again, to colorno, giddy, happy, and tired.