Filthy Good Vino

Serendipity, well Twitter actually, delivered a new friend to my iPad. We share the common passions of Filthy Good Vino and Barolo. A tweet soon followed that included a link that took me to a Documentary on the Langhe.  The Langhe is a region of spectacular beauty in Piedmont, Northern Italy.  It is home to some of the great Artisans of the culinary world. Think unctuous cheeses, white truffles, in addition to being home to the Founder of Slow Food, Carlo Petrini. These are not producers of product by recipe on mass. They are custodians of land, animal and vine pursuing excellence in their chosen field.

The link took me to footage of one such custodian, Maria Teresa of Bartolo Mascarello, who shared her philosophy on the production of Barolo.  Made only from Nebbiolo grapes, Barolo at its best, is without question, one of the worlds most unique and greatest wines. Befitting wine of such calibre it is also one of the most challenging wines to produce. Bartolo Mascarello hold some of the most prized lands of the Langhe. Maria Teresa’s dedication, her sense of obligation, of duty to preserve the essence of these lands is clear.

Archival footage of her late father demonstrated wisdom that can only be earned by the passage of time and was marked by a head covered with silvery grey hair.  His clarity of thought and wry humour in pursuit of an authentic expression of his vines was unclouded by new winemaking technologies that have often confused the wines of others choosing to employ them in Barolo. It is interesting that so many of the great winemakers of the world reflect that it is just as critical to understand what not to do, as what to do, as you guide a grape from the vineyard to the bottle.

Although I have yet to taste the wines of Bartolo Mascarello, five peeps who live and breathe for the wines of Barolo, peeps, who combined have visited the Langhe on an enviable number of occasions, had only unanimous praise for the craft of Maria Teresa and the the exceptional expression of her wines. I can’t wait to try them!

If you enjoyed this snapshot of a Barolo custodian, check out the Langhe Doc for other stories of Langhe Artisans.

I can keep my Deep, Dark Secret No Longer. I’ve Witnessed and Particpated in the Murder of TOO much Filthy Good Vino!

THE INSANITY HAS GOT TO STOP!

Yep, I regularly open more than one bottle of sensational wine at a time.  Let’s face it who’s happy with less than 3 glasses of different Filth AKA Wine in front of them.  End result left overs!  By the next day, when my mouth’s as dry as a Cocky’s Cage and I’m looking for something to pour on my Weaties, the vino that was an absolute PLEASURE FESTA the night before is just a shadow of its former self.  No longer the vibrant, beautiful, creature that had passed my lips only hours earlier, but, sad, tired, withered up and DEAD! Murdered by evil oxygen.

After a few too many bottles of Filthy Good Vino going to waste, I had a revelation. I was responsible for the MURDER of the ones I loved.  Some of you might say I’m a bit soft and just need to add a spoonful of concrete to the mix, keep on training … pass me that waiter’s friend please… harden up and finish the bottle(s) on the night.

In my defence I offer the following:

1. Those of you that have shared a glass, plate and table with me will know, I’m half Chinese, scored the Asian vino-genes, and, with them a genetic inability to quickly process the bi-products of metabolising alcohol.  Just watch as I go bright red at the sound of a cork popping!
2. Some times, on school nights, the Mrs and I just feel like a glass each and not a whole bottle.

I have a solution! It’s not some crazy wine preserving system with a vacuum or pressurised Argon to “remove” or “replace” the air in the bottle. Best thing is, it’s free and you’ve probably got all the kit you need floating around your home.  Check out the video above. After you’ve watched it, if you feel like donating to “Kaani 2012” to help me drink more Filthy Good Vino and stop the insanity, get in touch or drop around with a tube of Filth.

I’ve been meaning to share this for some time.  A recent post by La Donna Del Vino inspired me to take action. Check out La Donna Del Vino’s Blog Post “In the Face of a Deluge of Red Wine” for some other solutions to this horrific crime!

It’s that time of year again, autumn is well and truly upon us, and it’s time to harvest the Basil crop and make a years supply of Pesto!

Check out the video, and, the pics and recipe below it for more detail. Forgive the excess back lighting, still working on that side of video production!

Recipe:

2 Cups tightly packed basil. I’ve got a massive crop of Chervil, so I’ll test it out as a substitute and see how it comes up.  Stay tuned to find out how it goes!

2 Cloves of Garlic

1 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

30g of Pinenuts. Ask for the Organic ones at Naturally on High they’re expensive at $60 a kilo, but the quality is outstanding. If you have any left over you can Smash out a Pumpkin Risotto and wack ’em on the top.

60g of cheese 2/3 Grana Padana and 1/3 Pecorino. Get it from the Mediterranean Wholesalers on Sydney Road, Brunswick, if you’re in Melbourne.

Pick, Wash and Spin Dry your Basil.

Work out how much you’ve got and then for every 2 cups dry toast 30g of Pinenuts in a pan. Be mega careful to keep the nuts moving and to not let the pan get too hot. These babies will burn if you turn you’re head for 2 seconds. Set aside to cool.

Peel 2 cloves of Garlic for each 2 cups of basil.

Throw the Basil, Pinenuts and Garlic into a food processor (.. if you want to be a martyr you can use a mortar and pestle).  Add 1 cup of Olive Oil for each 2 cups of Basil and blitz.

Pour blitzed ingredients into a bowl, add 60g of grated cheese 2/3 Grana Padana and 1/3 Pecorino and mix well.

TOP TIP:  If you have excess, portion it out into ziplock bags and freeze so that you have a stash for the rest of the year.