Mare Non Stop - Taverna del Capitano, Marina del Cantone (Na)

A stroll around the small bay with a short pause on the pier.
A bottle of water.
A granita.
Wading up to your knees in the cool clean bandiera blu waters of Marina del Cantone.
A few hours under a light beige umbrella reading, relaxing, taking in the sea.
All activities that I highly recommend  before sitting down to a lunch at a restaurant/hotel that the Caputo family has been operating for three generations.  Michelin star Taverna del Capitano, nestled comfortably  in the family's 4 star hotel. Mare, mare, mare has always been the star of the Caputo family's menu and today would be no different.  I was led to a table by owner /sommelier, Mariella Caputo  and was poured a glass of Cinquantenario Spumante Brut Metedo Calssico by Janare by Claudio De Mauro, the Maitre D' (and one who would prove to be great company for the entire afternoon).  A sip or two as I took in the sea breeze then it was off to the kitchen to talk to Chef Alfosno Caputo.

Chef Alfonso Caputo

The chef was in his kitchen with two young cooks and his mother Grazia, who he introduced as a grande cuoca. Grazia was baking sweet pizzas that would be served to the hotel guests the next morning.  There was an enticing aroma of freshly baked bread.  Caputo told me that the restaurant bakes their own bread daily.  He then took me over to one side of the kitchen and began opening a series of large steel drawers.  We also make our own pasta, he shared.  Well, that may not sound so unusual, many restaurants do.  But not like here in Caputo's kitchen.  This wasn't fresh egg pasta.  Instead, Caputo over the years has studied and perfected how to make his own dried pasta.  Not easy. No one else does it, he added.

We continued our pre-lunch chat until we finally arrived to the topic of what I would like to have that afternoon.  There were plenty of things I could have said.  I have been following the chef for about a year since we met in Vico Equense last summer.  I'd seen plenty of his dishes on Facebook, Twitter and various food blogs.  But I decided to let the chef decide.  To let Caputo steer the ship-pun intended.
And so we set sail..  Beginning with my official benvenuto.  My welcome as I sat down at the captain's table overlooking the beach.

Lightly fried eggplant stuffed with ricotta and fior di latte.

I was ready to choose the wine.  Mariella has built an intense wine list and cantina over the years, with wines from all over, but I decided to choose a wine from the Amalfi Coast.  Tramonti to be exact.  Per Eva 2011 from Tenuta San Francesco.

This selected blend of falanghina, pepella, and ginestra grapes were bound to go well with whatever the chef would be sending my way.

Dishes like these appetizers full of color, simple but complex at the same time.

Paparandolo.  Small shrimp found in only two places n the world.  Portofino, a small fishing village in Genoa, and in nearby Punta Campanella.  Served on a sizzling hot stone (from the beach below, of course) and lightly seasoned with salt and pepper.

Next up, a tasty seafood salad with octopus and a red fish gelatin.

Still on the appetizers-calamaro m'buttunat... which is squid stuffed with zucchini flowers ricotta, fior di latte and herbs with a lightly spicy redfish sauce.  I couldn't resist the temptation to take  small piece from one of the freshly baked rolls and use it to soak up the remaining sauce before my next dish was ready.

Every know and then I would find my way back in the kitchen to see Caputo at work.  This time he was finishing up what would be my next dish.  The first of my first courses.  Risotto alla pescatora...seafood risotto.  Caputo served me an assaggini (little taste) on an impressive copper colored mussel shell..  Each bite full of what I came for-mare.  Shrimp and octopus surrounded by creamy flavorful perfectly cooked rice.  To be enjoyed lentamente...slowly as you look out across the bay.

I was curious, however, if I'd get a chance to try Caputo's homemade dried pasta.  The next dish satisfied that curiosity as well as my palate.  Caputo's trafilia pasta lightly and expertly tossed with the family's olive oil and sea urchin eggs.  Eggplants are in season, so a few fried slices were placed lightly on top of the dish.  To the side, a tasty mayonnaise which really wasn't a mayonnaise at all.  No egg,  just a creamy combination of ricotta cheese and eggplant   And just to stick with the theme of the day, Caputo added a few raw sea urchins to complete the dish. 

Time for the second course. A beautiful combination of land and sea.  Sweet and savory.   Red fish with pancetta and sweet kiwi fruit. 

One of my rules when I go out is to always save room for dessert.  I went back in the kitchen to see what the chef had in mind.  Eggplant.  With chocolate.  I must admit that though I had never tried it before, I was a little curious, if not anxious, about how it would taste.  I learned that though tradition calls for the eggplant to be fried, Caputo wanted to make the dish light and delicate.  He decided to make candied eggplant and wrap it gently around ricotta before he drizzled dark chocolate on top.  Delicious.  I would definitely go for it again.

That as well as the small dish of pastries...

And just when I thought I was out of space- I have one more dessert I'd like you to try, Caputo said.
He sent me a dish of summer.  Summer childhood memories.  Cotton candy.  Fresh peaches.  A peach semifreddo popsicle.  Sweet, but non troppo.  I couldn't help but imagine carnival rides.  Ferris wheels and bumper cars.  

My day was over.  And as I (sadly) finished my caffe', I thought about a few more activities that I should add to my list of things to do in Marina del Cantone.  
After lunch, head back to the beach and finish another chapter or two of that summer book you've been reading.  
Reserve a room in the hotel and take a nice little nap.
Visit the cantina with Mariella.  
Head back to beach just in time for sunset and walk along the pier.
Head to the dining room for dinner and another round of creative surprises from Chef Caputo's kitchen.

Taverna del Capitano
Piazza delle Sirene 10/11
Localita' Marina del Cantone
80061 Massalubranese (Na)
081808 1020

Mare Non Stop - Le Axidie Resort, Vico Equense (Na)

After years of avoiding August Sundays on the beach (and not to mention the beach traffic), the heat over the last week or so gave me no choice.  I decided that this summer I would  take my blog on the beach.  I wanted the sea...a day of mare non stop.Una giornata di mare, as  Executive Chef Giacomo De Simone put it. A day on the beach at   Resort Le Axidie.
I'd been to this corner of Vico Equense before.  Back in October.  But this time I brought my swimsuit.  This time I played in the sand.  I waded in the waves.  I took a quick nap on a beach chair under a brighto range  umbrella. And when I got hungry enough I headed to Punta Scutolo, the resort's restaurant.  There I was greated by Maitre D' Gabriele Ferraro.  We looked over the wine list together, Ferraro knowing my love of Campania wines, especially ones from the territory suggested one that I hadn't heard before.  Siero Bianco 2011 by Abbazzia di Crapolla's blend of fiano and falanghina from the hills of Vico Equense.  He poured me a glass as the chef and his team continued my giornata di mare.

Appetizers included a colorful dish of red mullet, salmon roe, and fresh figs with a lobster bisque.. 

This was followed by pizzaiola 'raw', burrata, and shrimp. 

Next, lightly sauteed tuna with sesame seeds, lupin beans, olives, and marinated onions. 

Then to round out the dish, an appetizer served up 'just for me'...a lightly fried shrimp with a Provolone del Monaco cheese sauce.

A light plate of pasta was next on the list ; shrimp, a light lemon sauce and salmon roe. 

This was followed by a zuppa di pesce complete with clams, fish, and mussels and a light tomato sauce.  

Seems like a lot but any chef worth his salt knows to just give assaggini/small servings, so that their guests don't go away feeling stuffed. 
And so that there is room for dessert :-)
Desserts like the classic caprese, caprese al limone (lemon), ricotta with pear, zeppole di San Giuseppe, chocolate filled brioche, and chocolate ice cream with puffed rice.

What a giornata a mare.  
A giornata di mare non stop. I couldn't help but think that maybe the next time I'd have to stay more than a day.  I did not a tennis court (for my son), a spa for me.  
And there was the question of completing that sand castle I didn't finish...

Le Axidie Resort
Marina di Equa, Vico Equense, 
80069 Vico Equense, (Na)
Tel: 081 8028562 

Aglianico del Vulture 2009 - Tenuta I Gelsi -A Summer Red for Summer's Other Side

When summer rolls around, we often enjoy that nice chilled glass of spumante or our favorite white wine as we relax by the pool on the beach or on the terrace with friends.  And why not?  What goes better with a seafood based summer menu than a glass of Falanghina, Greco or Fiano?
But summer has another side.  A side where we light up our barbecues, whip up our secret sauces, and grill our favorite cuts of meat our chicken.
My secret sauce is not so secret.  I don't like it too spicy, but I do like it a little tart and a little sweet (thanks to the addition of Ramata di Montoro onions).  A sauce that needs a red.   I tasted one  recently that I feel would go great by the grill:  Aglianico del Vulture Basilicata DOC 2009 by Tenuta I Gelsi.  
A deep cherry nose.  Deep, but not too mature.  Time has softened (somewhat) the tannins but there's just enough astringency to balance with my secret sauce.
And that's no secret...

Campania and Spain...Insieme Por Una Noche..

Insieme por una Noche...Together for one night.
It began as an idea in the back of Elisa Balzano's mind.  Balzano of Grand Hotel Angiolieri, a breathtaking 5 star restaurant in Vico Equense (Na), and lover of Spanish cuisine wanted to host a Spanish chef in the hotel.  One who could team up with Executive Chef Vincenzo Guarino of the hotel's Michelin star restaurant L'Accanto and combine his Spanish specialties with  Guarino's take on Campania cuisine.  A little research and she found Spanish Chef Carlos Peña of  Milagros Paella Gastrobar in Naples. 

Chefs Pena and Guarino

Insieme por una Noche was born...

An evening which promised to be hot, piccante, and caliente. An evening full of food  music, wine and sangria as these top chefs presented their menus to an eager crowd on a steamy Saturday night.  L'Accanto's stunning terrace with its remarkable view was the setting of this meeting between the two cultures. 

First off....

scallop pearl on a pumpkin/orange cream sauce
Chef Guarino 

octopus with sweet/sour pimenton spices topped with warm potato mousseChef Peña

all paired with a glass of sangria....

Next up

grilled baby vegetables with iberian prosciutto and romesco sauce...
Chef Peña.

paired with Aurrente 2007, Cantine Lungarotti...

Then it was time for

risotto with basil pesto, baby eggplant, mozzarella di bufala mousse and red shrimp
Chef Guarino

paired with Rosato Il Rogito Cantine del Notaio..

followed by 

suquet of monkfish with razor clams and mussels in a seafood broth with  saffron and dried fruit
Chef Peña.

Then it was time for dessert.  Two desserts that would help to put a  sweet ending to a sweltering serata...

watermelon and lemon sorbet on a cantaloupe melon gelee
Chef Guarino 

transparent banana spilt
Pastry Chef Christian Izzo
L'Accanto

Thanks, grazie, e gracias  Ristorante L'Accanto... for a noche indimenticabile!

Diary of a Sommelier Student - Snapshot of a Territory - La Falanghina dei Campi Flegrei

After 3 years ish of Vineyard Hopping, I wanted to try something new...a little different. A way to combine my love of photography and wine live, under one roof.  A way to share my experiences in the vineyards with fellow wine enthusiasts.  A snapshot of a territory, so to speak...
A month or so ago, after a relaxing afternoon on the beach with a few wine producers  the idea came to me. Why not a wine tasting/photo exhibit/intimate get together with amici who wanted to dig deeper into the territory.  The territory of Campi Flegei.
Four wineries...four producers, who have played a crucial part in my growth as a blogger and eventually a sommelier, were more than happy to participate in this adventure...La Sibilla, Grotta del Sole, Cantine Astroni, and Azienda Agricola Agnanum.  As the date of the tasting approached, our initial intent to share four wines grew, as well as our enthusiasm.  On my part, I decided to visit all four wineries again to take new photos of a diverse territory that never ceases to amaze me.  Four wineries within   15/20 minutes of each other.  Various training systems, altitudes, soil, and philosophies.  Four wineries who were willing once again, to answer my questions, satisfy my curiosities, and when necessary, allow me time alone in their vineyards/wineries to hang out, feel at home.
Allora, 24 July, a sold out tasting, the first tasting held at La Sibilla's  newly renovated sala di deguastazione.  A room full of amici helped to melt away my nerves as I introduced myself, the wineries, and the wines. In reality, I didn't need to say much because by my side were  my 4 amici/winemakers;.Vincenzo di Meo (La Sibilla), Francesco Martusciello, Jr (Grotta Del Sole), Gerardo Vernazzaro (Gerry) (Cantine Astroni)  and Raffaele Moccia (Agnanum). Four friends who I couldn't help but share a memory or two of how we met, what we have shared together over the years, etc, etc, etc...

Francesco Martusciello Jr and Gerardo Vernazzaro

Time to pour the wines..beginning with Colle Imperatrice 2012, Cantine Astroni.  Gerry spoke about this annata calda while I took a few notes, observed that at that particular moment shared a particular salinity, an interesting minerality. I  thought back to my various visits.
Raffaele then presented his Falanghina dei Campi Flegrei 2011.  A golden yellow color thanks to his later harvest (October).  His territory, his moonlike soil, his snapshot handed us all a wine that at that particular moment, in my opinion was smooth, pleasant with a nice long finish.
Francesco presented his Coste di Cuma 2011 from the vineyards that sit next to the family home in Monteruscello.  This riserva spent 6 months in a wooden barrique, just enough time to give the Martusciello family what they were looking for at that moment, for that vintage year.  We discussed how it was not easy to play with legno with whites that are so delicate, so southern.  My snapshot at that moment shared a little bit of floral aromas which paired nicely with the salinity that hit my palate.

Vincenzo Di Meo

Vincenzo, host of the evening, was then ready to present his Cruna Delago 2011.  His family's wine, his family's cru with from the family's vineyard Cruna del Lago which surrounds the family's winery.  A wine which, at that moment. expressed the minerality of a a wine whose roots derive from a vineyard which faces Lago Fusaro...which enjoys the salty sea breezes of La Sibilla's slice of Campi Flegrei.
Then...then it was time for, as Vincenzo put it, the degustazione clandestina...wines that were added to the wine list as our enthusiasm and party mood grew over the course of the previous weeks...the dopo festival...the after party.
Beginning with a world premiere of Agnanum's Falanghina 2012, straight from the stainless steel vat.  Moccia explained that this wine wasn't ready, hadn't been filtered, hadn't rested in the bottle. In fact it wouldn't be available to the public until October ish... This snapshot proved promising...we will wait (im)patiently. :-) Trying this wine I couldn't help but think back to November when I visited Moccia in his winery as he decanted this wine.
Then an exclusive opportunity to try Martusciello's Coste Di Cuma 2007.  I couldn't help but get emotional when Francesco shared that he brought 3 bottles of the winery's remaining 18 bottles just for this snapshot.  A snaphot that showed us all that this wine, despite its age, still had an interesting acidity.  A sure sign of potential for ageing in the future.  And a myth buster for those who still believe that Falanghina should be drunk young, within a year of the harvest. And, for the record, it evolved nicely  in the glass as the evening went on, as the temperature in the glass elevated.
Gerry was next...next to present yet a different interpretation of Falanghina.  Strione 2009.  A wine that he's been working on for the past few years at Astroni (the first back in 2006).  A Falanghina that macerated with the grape skins.  One that glowed in the glass.  Elegant on the palate.
Vincenzo then shared his Domus Guilii 2009, a Falanghina which macerated for 5 months with the grape skins, aged on the lees.  A bellisimo goldon yellow which shared spicy aromas...

Raffaele Moccia and Francesco Martusciello, Jr

One more wine.  Moccia with his Falanghina dei Campi Flegrei 2003.  Another treat, since this wine is unavailable in his winery.  The perfect wine to wind up the degstazione.  A Falanghina, despite it's age, still had an aroma esaggerata...mature, but not too much.  Sapid on the palate.  Are we sure that it was 10 years old?  I smiled inside, thinking back to Moccia's challenges in the vineyard.
I thought about all four wineries.  Four different wineries, who for this evening, shared with me a snapshot of a territory that I have called home for 20 years.  Each  with a desire to share their territory in a casual environment, light and easy, to chat over a buffet in the garden where my photos were displayed.  A glass or two of spumante (Falanghina, of course). A moment or two to appreciate and begin to understand the territory.

A snapshot of a territory...

Quarto- One of Napoli's Outspots

I've always been a girl from the suburbs.  And though I  live near Napoli,  one of southern Italy's bustling metropolises, I'm glad that there are some excellent options in the burbs.  In other words, when I want to go out I don't have to go in, so to speak.
One of those options is Quarto, 11 km ish northwest of Naples.  Uno due tre...quarto. :-)
Home to the montagna spaccata.  Home to my son's favorite video game store.  And home to one, two, three...four outspots that are definitely in.

Uno:   SUD Ristorante
Quarto's pride and joy.  Awarded a Michelin star in 2011 and run by Chef Marianna Vitale  and Pino Esposito  who is in charge of the dining room and cantina .  This outspot is tucked away off of one of Quarto's busiest streets.  But once you sit down at one of the tables in this sleek/modern black and white restaurant, you forget about the traffic for awhile and relax with a glass of wine (or champagne :-) ) while tasting one of Vitale's specialties.

Due:  Toto' Sapori Pizzeria
There's pizza...and then there's pizza.  After years of hard work, Salvatore Santucci's family operated pizzeria has become one the not to miss outspots in the Naples area.   If you like your pizza crust soft and airy topped with high quality toppings, then this is a stop for you.  Though a popular spot for take away, there are several tables on the patio in front of the pizzeria where you can sit down and enjoy the classic pasta fritta or other appetizers while waiting for a piping hot pizza.

Tre:  Grotte del Sole
Two of the areas most popular wineries have their cantinas here.  Grotte del Sole is one of them.  This winery, run by the Martusciello family makes not only Campi Flegei favorites such as Falanghina and Piedirosso, it also makes one of the most interesting spumante metedo classicos I have ever tasted.  Asprinio di Aversa.

Quattro:  Quartum Store
Quartum Cantine Di Criscio had a cool idea to open  up one of the most interesting little secrets in the area.  An outspot that has definitely become in.  Attached to the winery, they have a small shop where you can not only purchase their wines, but some of the regions top products such as tomato sauces, olive oils and preserves.  It has also become one of the places to hold wine tastings with popular Campania chefs and pizza makers sharing their expertise and dishes as well.

So, what are you waiting for?  Let's go out...

Snapshot of a Territory -La Falanghina dei Campi Flegrei

It seemed only natural.  After three years of wine tasting and Vineyard Hopping, why shouldn't I begin a new series of wine tastings focusing on the wineries and vineyards that I have visited over the years...

And so, here it is.  In the heart of the summer, in the center of Campi Flegrei.   A wine tasting for wine lovers. Four wineries from the Campi Flegrei area will share their interpretations of the territory in a glass of Falanghina dei Campi Flegrei.
A new series of snapshots featuring the wineries of the evening.will also be on display as part of my first photography exhibit.

The Wineries/The Wines
La Sibilla : Cruna del Lago 2011
Cantina Grotte del Sole : Coste di Cuma 2011
Az. Agricola Agnanum : Falanghina dei Campi Flegrei 2011 
Cantine Astroni: Colle Imperatrice Campi Flegrei DOC 2012 

The first snapshot will be on Wednesday 24 July at  8 pm at Cantina La Sibilla in Bacoli (Na).

Cost of participation is 15 Euro. Seats are limited. Reservations necessary and can be made via email andiamotrips@gmail.com.

A small buffet will follow as long as a few surprises...