I apologize for the title of this post... I had no other option than to make a cheesy pun (ha).
Emilia-Romagna is one of the regions in the northern part of Italy. The capitol of this region is Bologna- where Jackie and I visited this weekend, along with Modena. We returned last night and even though I'm still very tired, I feel like I'm getting sicker, and I have homework yet to do...I wanted to write about my adventures while they're fresh in my mind!
Saturday morning I woke up early to finish getting all my things together. We had a quick breakfast with Francesca before (literally) sprinting to catch our train that was scheduled to depart at 8 am! We made it with 1 minute to spare!
Once we arrived at the Bologna Central Station, 10 minutes later than anticipated, we did some more sprinting to make our next train to Modena. We had to ask several security guards and other travelers which direction to go to find the train- I have no idea how we would have found it otherwise. Thankfully we did get on the correct train before it left the station, and we arrived in Modena at 9:30- where we purchased bus tickets to take us to Acetaia Di Giorgio: the location of our balsamic vinegar tour!
The tour was excellent! We were originally somewhat surprised to find ourselves in a private house, but this made it even more special as the owners tried and succeeded in preserving the historic origins of the small company. During the tour, we learned the difference between DOP and industrialized balsamic vinegar. Most all the balsamic vinegar we have at home has been industrialized and made with wine vinegar as well as added sugars to speed up the process. Authentic, or traditional balsamic vinegar is only made with grape musk, no sugars are added, and instead of aging for 3 months (like industrialized), the vinegar is aged anywhere from 12 years to over 25. DOP stands for "Denominazione Origine Protetta", or Protected Designation of Origin. This is basically a stamp from the government certifying authenticity. Producers have their own personalized labels that are stuck on to the bottle for identification purposes, but aside from this all DOP balsamic vinegar bottles look identical as the producers are not allowed to bottle the vinegar themselves. The government also keeps a track of how much vinegar each producer makes each year. For example, Acetaia Di Giorgio is only allowed to produce 3000 bottles of vinegar per year. Additionally the government regulates the quality of the vinegar. Before bottling takes place, professional balsamic vinegar tasters come to Acetaia Di Giorgio to taste and evaluate each vinegar. If any vinegar does not score highly, it is put back in the barrel to age longer.
At Acetaia Di Giorgio, they use oak, cherry, and juniper wood barrels. After aging in these barrels, the cherry wood will give the vinegar a sweet taste, the oak a toasty or "warm" taste, and the juniper an almost spicy taste. Many bottles are labeled "mixed wood", which simply means the vinegar came from several different barrels and hence has a blend of tastes/flavors. Because no wine vinegar or other sugars are added to the vinegar, it is highly concentrated. You would only need a few drops to season any type of food and it's delicious to try a spoonful of it on it's own! Additionally, you don't need to cook food with the vinegar as it doesn't need to be reduced (or cooked down) like industrialized vinegar does. You would simply sprinkle a few drops on, right before serving.
Sorry if this is too much information; I just found it really interesting! :) I really debated buying some of the vinegar, but as the cheapest bottle was 48 euros, I got a recipe book instead. Plus, if I change my mind before I leave Italy- I can order the balsamic vinegar online and have it shipped to Florence for 5 euros (much better than the 27 euro fee to ship to the US).
Since our tour ended around 11:30, Jackie and I had a little time to explore the small town of Modena before our train was scheduled to arrive. I really enjoyed walking around the town and through the main (and basically only) piazza. We were going to stop for lunch, but figured we would find somewhere on the way to the train station. Ha. Since the town is so small, all the main stores and restaurants are right in the piazza and don't extend out more than a couple streets away. So we ended up eating in the train station, which wasn't too bad, but I definitely would have preferred a meal in Modena's adorable piazza.
We had to wait about 5 minutes past the scheduled time for our train to actually appear, and then we left for bologna around 2:10 and arrived arrived around 3. Our hostel was described as being "near" the train station, which I might not have agreed with after walking 20 or so minutes with my not-even-that-heavy backpack. But we made it and then awarded ourselves about 30 minutes to rest up in our room before leaving to explore Bologna.
Bologna is an adorable town (although thankfully larger than Modena). It's known as "la grassa" or the fat one- mainly because of all the great food in the city. Bologna is famous for the invention and perfection of tortellini pasta, as well as mortadella sausage, and ragu sauce (or what we would call bolognese).
Basically 3 minutes after we left the hostel we stumbled upon some street performers that had attracted a huge crowd. After listening for only a little while, I could see why-- they were excellent musicians and even better performers. You could tell they were having so much fun playing, and the expressions on their faces were almost better than the music! I almost considering buying one of the CDs for 5 euros, but 1) I couldn't get through the crowd and 2) the memory of seeing them live will be better anyway. :)
We stopped at many different stores and cafes just to peak in and see what was available. It was really nice just to be able to "roam" without feeling rushed or having any real deadline other than our stomachs. We saw SO many places offering apertivo, which is common in Italy- apparently even more so in bologna. With apertivo, you pay for a pre-dinner drink and then you are also allowed to eat any and all appetizers set out in a buffet style.
Jackie and I stopped inside one particular bar and bought some chocolate with extremely interesting flavors. I got one that was white chocolate with champagne and blackcurrant and another that was 70% cocoa dark chocolate with oranges and almonds. I believe Jackie got one bar of milk chocolate with pear, almonds, and honey. The bar also had a wide variety of wines that they were serving by the glass to the many customers crowded in the small room. I asked about the cost of trying a glass and was told it depended on the wine. Then before I could say anything else, the bartender was handing me a glass of a signature sparkling white wine from bologna- pignoletto. It was very good, although I think I may have preferred the non-frizzante (or non-sparkling) version. When I finished my glass I asked how much I owed, but the bartender shook his head and assured me it was just a taste and he hoped I enjoyed it. So, I basically got 2 bars of chocolate and a glass of wine for 3 euros. Score. :)
That night for dinner (after roaming around the town and the historic medieval outdoor market), we went to a quaint little osteria (typically a simple and inexpensive Italian restaurant) near the university district of the city. Jackie and I shared a half-liter of another bolognese traditional wine- a red, Sangiovese. We both ordered tortellini, however I got it with a cream sauce and Jackie tried the ragu sauce. Before we went back to the hostel, we got a quick cup of gelato. Everything was delicious and I thought "La Grassa" certainly lived up to it's name that night!
The next morning, we had a quick breakfast at the hostel (good, but nothing extraordinary) and then checked out to go see more of the city around 10 am. First thing- we climbed the tallest medieval tower in the world: Torre Asinelli (97 m). This tower, plus the smaller leaning tower beside it called Torre Garisenda; however everyone just refers to them both as "I Due Torri" (the 2 towers). The climb up was exerting for sure, but the view once we finally reached the top was well worth it. I'm not sure what type of stairs I was expecting, but these reminded me of a scene from National Treasure where the wooden steps keep falling and breaking apart... Maybe not the best thing to be thinking of as you climb up 498 wooden steps. :O
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After our climb, we started aimlessly roaming the town again- sort of searching out a place for lunch. Maybe 2 hours later we went back to our hostel to use wifi to search for a good sandwhich shop as we were unable to find any. I think the biggest problem was that most stores were closed since it was Sunday. Which is nice, but not when you're a tourist trying to find food. We did finally find a small shop where I was able to get a panino and taste the famous mortadella meat. Then we found probably the best gelato I've had in Italy so far at a gelateria called Sorbetto. They have many classical flavors, as well as some original flavors of their own. My favorite was Michelangelo which was a blend of chocolate, almond cream, almonds, and hazelnuts.
We said goodbye to Bologna at 4:50 pm, as we boarded our train back to home sweet Florence. I had an excellent weekend, but as my cough has gotten worse and I currently have very little voice, I am definitely happy to be back "home."
For dinner Sunday night, Jackie and I walked down the street about 4 minutes and got kebabs (not on sticks). Then we returned to the apartment and had small slices of the chocolate cake that Sofia made earlier that day. I also had some tea with honey and lemon which my throat was very happy about.
So, now I do need to finish up some homework before my Pilates class!
Buona giornata! (Have a nice day!)
Emilia-Romagna is one of the regions in the northern part of Italy. The capitol of this region is Bologna- where Jackie and I visited this weekend, along with Modena. We returned last night and even though I'm still very tired, I feel like I'm getting sicker, and I have homework yet to do...I wanted to write about my adventures while they're fresh in my mind!
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| Some of the delicious foods that are produced in the Emilia-Romagna Region. |
Saturday morning I woke up early to finish getting all my things together. We had a quick breakfast with Francesca before (literally) sprinting to catch our train that was scheduled to depart at 8 am! We made it with 1 minute to spare!
Once we arrived at the Bologna Central Station, 10 minutes later than anticipated, we did some more sprinting to make our next train to Modena. We had to ask several security guards and other travelers which direction to go to find the train- I have no idea how we would have found it otherwise. Thankfully we did get on the correct train before it left the station, and we arrived in Modena at 9:30- where we purchased bus tickets to take us to Acetaia Di Giorgio: the location of our balsamic vinegar tour!
The tour was excellent! We were originally somewhat surprised to find ourselves in a private house, but this made it even more special as the owners tried and succeeded in preserving the historic origins of the small company. During the tour, we learned the difference between DOP and industrialized balsamic vinegar. Most all the balsamic vinegar we have at home has been industrialized and made with wine vinegar as well as added sugars to speed up the process. Authentic, or traditional balsamic vinegar is only made with grape musk, no sugars are added, and instead of aging for 3 months (like industrialized), the vinegar is aged anywhere from 12 years to over 25. DOP stands for "Denominazione Origine Protetta", or Protected Designation of Origin. This is basically a stamp from the government certifying authenticity. Producers have their own personalized labels that are stuck on to the bottle for identification purposes, but aside from this all DOP balsamic vinegar bottles look identical as the producers are not allowed to bottle the vinegar themselves. The government also keeps a track of how much vinegar each producer makes each year. For example, Acetaia Di Giorgio is only allowed to produce 3000 bottles of vinegar per year. Additionally the government regulates the quality of the vinegar. Before bottling takes place, professional balsamic vinegar tasters come to Acetaia Di Giorgio to taste and evaluate each vinegar. If any vinegar does not score highly, it is put back in the barrel to age longer. At Acetaia Di Giorgio, they use oak, cherry, and juniper wood barrels. After aging in these barrels, the cherry wood will give the vinegar a sweet taste, the oak a toasty or "warm" taste, and the juniper an almost spicy taste. Many bottles are labeled "mixed wood", which simply means the vinegar came from several different barrels and hence has a blend of tastes/flavors. Because no wine vinegar or other sugars are added to the vinegar, it is highly concentrated. You would only need a few drops to season any type of food and it's delicious to try a spoonful of it on it's own! Additionally, you don't need to cook food with the vinegar as it doesn't need to be reduced (or cooked down) like industrialized vinegar does. You would simply sprinkle a few drops on, right before serving. Sorry if this is too much information; I just found it really interesting! :) I really debated buying some of the vinegar, but as the cheapest bottle was 48 euros, I got a recipe book instead. Plus, if I change my mind before I leave Italy- I can order the balsamic vinegar online and have it shipped to Florence for 5 euros (much better than the 27 euro fee to ship to the US).
We had to wait about 5 minutes past the scheduled time for our train to actually appear, and then we left for bologna around 2:10 and arrived arrived around 3. Our hostel was described as being "near" the train station, which I might not have agreed with after walking 20 or so minutes with my not-even-that-heavy backpack. But we made it and then awarded ourselves about 30 minutes to rest up in our room before leaving to explore Bologna.
Bologna is an adorable town (although thankfully larger than Modena). It's known as "la grassa" or the fat one- mainly because of all the great food in the city. Bologna is famous for the invention and perfection of tortellini pasta, as well as mortadella sausage, and ragu sauce (or what we would call bolognese).
Basically 3 minutes after we left the hostel we stumbled upon some street performers that had attracted a huge crowd. After listening for only a little while, I could see why-- they were excellent musicians and even better performers. You could tell they were having so much fun playing, and the expressions on their faces were almost better than the music! I almost considering buying one of the CDs for 5 euros, but 1) I couldn't get through the crowd and 2) the memory of seeing them live will be better anyway. :)
We stopped at many different stores and cafes just to peak in and see what was available. It was really nice just to be able to "roam" without feeling rushed or having any real deadline other than our stomachs. We saw SO many places offering apertivo, which is common in Italy- apparently even more so in bologna. With apertivo, you pay for a pre-dinner drink and then you are also allowed to eat any and all appetizers set out in a buffet style.
That night for dinner (after roaming around the town and the historic medieval outdoor market), we went to a quaint little osteria (typically a simple and inexpensive Italian restaurant) near the university district of the city. Jackie and I shared a half-liter of another bolognese traditional wine- a red, Sangiovese. We both ordered tortellini, however I got it with a cream sauce and Jackie tried the ragu sauce. Before we went back to the hostel, we got a quick cup of gelato. Everything was delicious and I thought "La Grassa" certainly lived up to it's name that night! The next morning, we had a quick breakfast at the hostel (good, but nothing extraordinary) and then checked out to go see more of the city around 10 am. First thing- we climbed the tallest medieval tower in the world: Torre Asinelli (97 m). This tower, plus the smaller leaning tower beside it called Torre Garisenda; however everyone just refers to them both as "I Due Torri" (the 2 towers). The climb up was exerting for sure, but the view once we finally reached the top was well worth it. I'm not sure what type of stairs I was expecting, but these reminded me of a scene from National Treasure where the wooden steps keep falling and breaking apart... Maybe not the best thing to be thinking of as you climb up 498 wooden steps. :O
After our climb, we started aimlessly roaming the town again- sort of searching out a place for lunch. Maybe 2 hours later we went back to our hostel to use wifi to search for a good sandwhich shop as we were unable to find any. I think the biggest problem was that most stores were closed since it was Sunday. Which is nice, but not when you're a tourist trying to find food. We did finally find a small shop where I was able to get a panino and taste the famous mortadella meat. Then we found probably the best gelato I've had in Italy so far at a gelateria called Sorbetto. They have many classical flavors, as well as some original flavors of their own. My favorite was Michelangelo which was a blend of chocolate, almond cream, almonds, and hazelnuts.
We said goodbye to Bologna at 4:50 pm, as we boarded our train back to home sweet Florence. I had an excellent weekend, but as my cough has gotten worse and I currently have very little voice, I am definitely happy to be back "home."
For dinner Sunday night, Jackie and I walked down the street about 4 minutes and got kebabs (not on sticks). Then we returned to the apartment and had small slices of the chocolate cake that Sofia made earlier that day. I also had some tea with honey and lemon which my throat was very happy about.So, now I do need to finish up some homework before my Pilates class!
Buona giornata! (Have a nice day!)
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