In 2011 my Mother celebrated her 85th birthday with my wife and me in Italy. The actual day of her 85th birthday was celebrated at our dear friends Manuela Piancastelli’s and Peppe Mancini’s B&B/Cantina located in Castel Campagnano, Caserta. They prepared a special dinner for us. Here are my notes from that spectacular celebratory evening –
“In special recognition of my Mother’s ottantacinque birthday, Manuela and Peppe prepared a dinner that featured local foods and their wines. We started the feast with an antipasti of buffalo meat marinated in a vinegrette dressing, ricotta topped with Manuela’s onion infused marmalade, mozzarella de bufala (what else would you expect?) and bread. Our primo piatto consisted of ground broccoli type vegetable served in a ball like manner over an onion-based sauce that had the texture of apple sauce. There was a battle between the bitter and sweet sensations. Our secondo piatto was pasta with fresh olive oil and zucchini. Before the terzo piatto, Manuela presented this year’s olive oil – made a week before our visit – from Terre del Principe olives. We dipped bread in the fresh olive oil. Our terzo piatto featured pork topped by a hazelnut sauce and escarole which had been cooked in olive oil that had first been infused with juice from anchovies. Lastly for dolce we had a bread-based cake (like bread pudding) infused with wild cherry sauce topped by white cream. We completed the feast with a shot of Grappa di Pallagrello Nero.
For each of the courses Manuela and Peppe paired their wines. For the terzo piatto, they shared a bottle of Centomoggia 2003, their first vintage. The bottle is no longer available commercially. There is a limited number of Centomoggia 2003 in Terre del Principe’s cantina. This special wine had a pleasant bouquet of fruits and flowers and had a strong trace of licorice (my favorite taste in a wine). Since Terre del Principe is less than ten years old, it will be interesting to see how the wine evolve over the ensuing years.” BG Notes from October 23, 2011.
The Centomoggio 2003 we had that evening was one of the finest wines that I had ever had. We recently drank a Centomoggio. It was as enjoyable as it was in October of 2011; perhaps there was less of a licorice taste, but otherwise a great wine that as we drank it memories came rushing to the forefront:
Of my mother and the celebration of her 85th birthday, the food, wine, and ambience of Southern Italy. She has since passed on, leaving over 30 grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Of the kindness Manuela and Peppe displayed toward my Mother.
Of Peppe “rediscovering” the pallagrello and casavecchia grapes that had become lost varietals after the demise of the House of Bourbon circa 1860 and how Peppe and Manuela started their winery in 2003 with Centomoggio as its first label; and
Of Peppe and Manuela selling their winery to Teresa Mincione, who coincidentally is both an attorney (like Peppe) and a journalist (like Manuela), thus maintaining Terre del Principe’s legacy, but at the same time producing wine in her own style. Go to www.southernitalywine.com for more information of the “Passing of the Baton”
A wine that emits such memories is a treasure.
Angela and Manuela in 2011 visiting Terre de Principe vineyard.
