Abruzzo has always been inclined towards agriculture. Crops are varied given the diverse landscape composed of plains, a long coastline, and foothills that increase in size to become the highest mountains of the Apennines. This varied territory also contributes to the diverse crops in relation to the altitude and climate. The largest and highest quality crops have always been oil and wine. Today, the method for cultivating olives and grapes has changed from the past. Even in Abruzzo, industrialization has taken over from traditional methods of cultivation, however the quality of oil and various wines have remained unchanged. A little more than a century ago, in the Fucino plains, there was central Italy's largest lake, drained by Principi Torlonia. Today, a large selection of vegetables are grown, many of which are exported to countries in Northern Europe. Although in recent years, methods of cultivation and commercialisation have undergone profound transformations, agriculture has continued to represent an important sector for Abruzzo and has made it one of the major producers of the central Italian region. Other than wines and olive oil, other typical products of the region include vegetables, truffles and saffron.

Beginning with pasta: a must in the Mediterranean diet, manufactured in different shapes and sizes (spaghetti, rigatoni, shells, tagliolini alla chitarra, lasagne, sagnette etc. etc.). The Abruzzese pasta is made from wheat harvested in an unspoilt soil with no chemical treatments. Drawn through bronze machinery, slowly dried in open air and at low temperature, the Abruzzese pasta gives a stroke of energy together with a delight to taste. From a deeply rooted agro-pastoral culture one should expect a wide range of cheese, hence: Pecorino, Caprino, Scamorza, Giuncate, Fiordilatte, Caciocavalli and Caciotte. Work methods change from one producer to another and obviously the specific taste helps to distinguish one from another. Pecorino the most popular is prepared with whole sheep milk; seasoning can take from a few months up to 2 or 3 years: but a real gourmand can taste a fresh pecorino after only a week.

From oil to wine: Hilly land, a good temperature range, sun exposure, a perfect climate suitable for grape growing, a wealth of crops and, last but not least, the advanced technology of the young producers carry out a large amount of fresh and fragrant wines: Number one is Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, an autochthonous vine that must be distinguished from the homonymous Montepulciano from Tuscany, a red wine with a strong but youngish character. Then there is Cerasuolo, a cherry coloured wine derived from Montepulciano grapes, a light wine suitable for light dishes such as those prepared with Adriatic fish. Trebbiano d'Abruzzo is the white wine, and the large choice of Controguerra wine completes the family of the D.O.C. of the Abruzzi.

Sausages:But, in Italy, one usually does not drink wine unaccompanied by food or snacks. A good companion to wine, indeed many good companions, are sausages. And Abruzzi offers a large choice. Lets start with "porchetta", an entire pork roasted with spices and aromatic herbs covered in crisp "pigskin". Followed by other specialities such as hot and spicy liver sausages, ventricina, lonza, and the small mortadelle from Campotosto, a real delicacy notwithstanding the nickname given due to its anatomical shape. Another well known sausage comes from Crognaleto a village in the Teramo Province: A ventricina made from a mixture of pork sweetbreads, garlic, orange peel, hot and sweet pepper, rosemary, and wood essences, food meant for the poor but much appreciated by the King of Naples.

From savoury to sweets- Honey and cakes. Honey of Abruzzo. Its unpolluted environment represents a paradise for millions of bees that offer the raw material for a virgin honey with a wide variety of flavours: Eucalyptus, acacia, citrus, chestnut, sunflowers, "millefiori" (a thousand flowers amongst which, of course, there is the honeysuckle). Cakes of Abruzzo. A fancy cake is "Parrozzo d'Abruzzo", the name derives from "Pane Rozzo" , a coarse grain bread, again a staple food of the poor, which with the passing of time has become an exquisite delicacy which inspired the Abruzzi's bard, the famous poet Gabriele d'Annunzio. Another specialty sweet is "Pan Ducale" made with marzipan and candied fruit. Appreciated since the Middle Ages as are the "confetti" of Sulmona, originally these sugar coated almond party favours were used in wedding and christening ceremonies are now a fantastic gift in assortment made also from honey, chocolate, candy, in all the colours of the rainbow.

Saffron: Saffron has been used in food for 3,500 years. After centuries, excellent saffron from the Navelli plains located in the province of l'Aquila, is today considered to be the best in the world even though its cultivation is limited to 8 hectares, producing approximately 80 kilos per year. In the past it was used as an analgesic, sedative, and antispasmodic medicament. Now. all over the world, it gives a unique taste and a golden yellow colour to well known "risotto" not to mention a number of other sophisticated culinary preparations with some aphrodisiacal side effects as a metropolitan legend tells.

WINE

DOLCI AVEJA