In order to experience and appreciate the characteristics of our folklore, we recommend you go on a guided eno-gastronomic tour. By following a special itinerary, you will get the chance to make interesting stops for wine and food tasting and receive explanations. Alternatively, you can choose to drive or cycle to local, wine-producing and farming co-operatives.
The Riviera del Conero lies between the hills and the sea and the positive effects of its mild climate influence the quality of local products: rock-fish, bluefish, biological cultivations and the unique, world-famous processing methods of our cereals, cheeses and cold meats. This micro-climate, with its sea breezes and limestone soil, guarantees the ideal conditions for the unique taste of Montepulciano grapes used in our Rosso Conero wine.
These vines, which spread out over the crags and rolling hills, make this wine excellent for sampling in the several wineries of the area. The Mediterranean scents of lavender, gorse, pine, calamint and wild fennel are characteristic of the road to “Rosso Conero land”. This road is a loop starting from and returning to Ancona after touching the splendid, natural Parco del Conero, the hills of the hinterland up to Camerano, Il Poggio, Massignano, proceeding towards Monte Zoia, Montacuto, Monte Cavallo, Varano and finally Gli Angeli.
Rosso Conero wine is made up of 85% Montepulciano grape and 15% Sangiovese. It is of an intense, ruby-red with a spicy, balsamic bouquet. It is dry, with a harmonious and persistent, slightly bitter red-berry taste and has a minimum alcohol content of 11.5. It is excellent with local cold-meats and salami, pasta dishes with meat sauce, game, stews and pecorino di fossa (a hard cheese made with ewe’s milk). When mellow, it is also ideal with stockfish all’anconetana, a local speciality. In September, the “Festa dell’Uva” (a festival) in Camerano is held in honour of this particular wine.
The Marches region also produces Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi, a wine which is famous not only in Italy but also throughout the world. It is produced in the Castelli di Jesi (a hilly area of Ancona) which includes the Valleys of the Misa and Nevola. It is made with Verdicchio grape. It is yellow with a fruity, floral bouquet and a hint of bitter almond. It has a dry, intense taste. Alcohol content starts from 11.5. This white wine is mainly suitable for fish dishes but generally speaking, it can also be drunk with all Mediterannean dishes.
In Roman times, the Piceno countryside and the hills around Jesi were planted with vineyards. There is the “Festa dell’Uva” (festival) in honour of Verdicchio in October in Cupramontana, in July in Montecarotto and in Autumn in Staffolo.
Here below are the names of farming co-operatives which produce Rosso Conero and Verdicchio, where it is possible to sample typical products such as honey, extra-virgin olive oil, lonzino di fichi , ciauscolo, etc.
- Azienda Agricola Marchetti - Ancona
- Azienda Agricola Lanari – Ancona
- Azienda Vinicola Moroder – Ancona
- Azienda Agricola Malacari – Offagna
- Azienda vinicola Umani Ronchi – Osimo
- Antica Casa vinicola Garofoli – Castelfidardo
- Azienda Vinicola Strologo – Camerano
- Azienda Vinicola VINIMAR – Camerano
- Terre Cortesi Moncaro – Camerano and Montecarotto
- Fattoria Le Terrazze – Numana
- Azienda Agricola Nembrini Gonzaga – Numana
- Azienda Agricola Conte Leopardi Ditajuti – Numana
- Azienda Vinicola Fazi Battaglia – Castelplanio
TYPICAL PRODUCTS:
- Lonza di fichi –A sweet salami-shaped roll made with dried figs, walnuts and crushed almonds mixed with must and mistral (an aniseed liqueur of the Marches). The mixture is wrapped in fig leaves, prepared at the end of the summer and kept in cool cellars.
- Extra-virgin olive oil. - The oil produced in this region has always been appreciated for its high quality and low acidity. It is excellent on bruschetta (toasted bread). In the Middle Ages, ships from the Marches had to pay a toll of 25 pounds of oil before being allowed to dock in Ferrara. In the 14th century, 2,500 jars of oil from the Marches were sold every year in Venice and Florence.
- Ciauscolo – This is a typical salami of the hinterland of the Marches (Visso and Monti Sibillini). Bacon, rib-side and pork shoulder are finely minced and flavoured with salt, pepper, garlic and vino cotto (special type of “cooked” grape-juice), then made into salamis. These are smoked for some days with juniper berries and left to season for 2-3 months. The characteristic of ciauscolo is that it remains soft and can be spread on home-made bread.
- Honey – It is of top quality thanks to the practice of extensive agriculture still found in the hills of the Marches focusing on the cultivation of excellent, nectariferous plants such as sainfoin and alfalfa. The honey is sweet, not too aromatic and clear. It can be used on all occasions as part of a healthy diet. There are various types of honey: polyfloral or monofloral, with different tastes (acacia, sunflower, aloe, honeydew, etc.)
- Cheeses– Thanks to cattle and sheep farms, many types of famous cheese with name of origin are produced such as “Caciotta di Urbino”, which is also used in the production of “Fossa” cheese (buried in the pits of Talamello at the end of August and unearthed on the day of Santa Caterina, at the end of November), “Pecorino dei Monte Sibillini”, “Cacio”, “Ricotta”, “Quark” and many other quality cheeses.
- Truffle – This is found in the woods of the Marches. Both the black type and the white type are extremely high quality, with an intense aroma. Small truffles are used in making sauces, butter, oil, jars of chopped truffles in parsley and garlic oil, mixed creams, olives and truffled cheese fondues. Over the course of history, truffle was eaten by emperors, popes and princes. Grated or cut into slithers with a special cutter, truffles enhances the flavour of even the simplest dish. White truffle, Bianchetto, Summer Truffle and the prized Black Truffle can be found in Valmetauro, Acqualagna and Norcia.
SOME RECIPES:
OLIVES “ALL’ASCOLANA”
Fry the finely chopped vegetables in some oil in a saucepan. Add the meat and when the juices have evaporated, sprinkle with some wine. Once the wine has evaporated, add salt, pepper, butter and parsley. Cover and leave to simmer gently for half an hour. Blend in the mixer and put the mixture into a bowl. Stir in the eggs, cheese, nutmeg and lemon peel. Salt and pepper to taste. The mixture should be quite thick and perfectly blended. In the meantime, open the olives and remove the stone. Stuff the olives with the mixture and close. Roll the olives first in the flour, then in the beaten egg and finally in the grated breadcrumbs so that they are thoroughly covered. Fry the olive in hot oil and when they are crispy and brown, drain on kitchen paper. Serve hot.
BRODETTO ALL’ANCONETANA (FISH CHOWDER)
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Carefully clean all the fish (the more the variety, the better the taste), wash and leave to drain. Put the oil and finely chopped onion into a saucepan on a low flame and cook till brown. Add a finely chopped mixture of parsley and garlic, the scorpion fish and then the tomatoes which have been skinned and chopped. Add salt and pepper and continue to simmer. When the scorpion fish is cooked, remove all shell and mash the fish into a pulp. Put the pulp back into the pan and gradually add first the squid and calamari, then the mantis-shrimps and king prawns and then the remaining fish. Leave the codling and sole till last. When the chowder begins to boil, add the vinegar and leave to simmer without a lid for 15 minutes; the sauce should be quite thick. Pour the chowder onto the slices of bread in a bowl and serve. The sauce should be less thick only if used for pasta; in this case, vinegar should not be added.
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VINCISGRASSI
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Fry the chopped lard in 50 g of butter. Add the chopped meat, chicken breast, stomachs and hearts, stirring constantly and sprinkling with the dry, white wine. When it has evaporated, add salt and continue simmering gently, adding a drop of water, if necessary. At the end, add the chopped chicken livers and stir-fry. Remove pan from heat. While the meat sauce is cooking, prepare the pasta with flour, eggs, a pinch of salt and a spoonful of oil. Knead the mixture which should remain quite hard; roll out into a thin sheet. Cut the pasta sheet into rectangular pieces and parboil in salted water. Drain and plunge into cold water. Again drain and lay the rectangles on a clean cloth to dry. Butter a baking tray. Place a layer of pasta sheets topped with meat sauce and the two types of grated cheese. Continue with these layers until the tray is filled. Cover the top layer with meat sauce and a generous grating of clean truffle. Place the baking tray in a moderately hot oven (180°) for about 20 minutes until brown.
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RABBIT "IN PORCHETTA"
Clean the rabbit and wash thoroughly (put the liver aside). Dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Carefully clean the wild fennel (only the green part is used, not the flower or seeds), then put into a pan with 2 or 3 garlic cloves, cover with water and cook. When it is ready, drain the fennel and squeeze out excess water (keep the water used in the pan but remove the garlic). Put the fennel into another pan with oil and chopped ham, bacon and salami and fry. Stuff the rabbit with this mixture together with the liver which has been cut into small pieces. Sew the rabbit with kitchen string and place in a pre-heated oven (170°). When the rabbit is brown, add the water used for cooking the fennel a little at a time until the rabbit is thoroughly cooked. Alternatively, this can be done in a pan with a lid on the hob. Serve the rabbit in pieces together with the stuffing which has been cut into slices.
PIZZA DI FORMAGGIO (CHEESE BREAD)
Dissolve the yeast in a little, lukewarm water and knead together with 100g of flour. Pat into a soft ball, cut a cross in the top and leave to rise in a bowl. In the meantime, knead the remaining flour with a pinch of salt and a spoonful of oil, gradually adding half a glass of warm water. Grate 50g of parmesan cheese, 25g of gruyere and 25g of provolone; cut the remaining cheese into small cubes. Beat the eggs and add all the cheese you have prepared. Mix all this with the dough and add the ball made with the yeast. Knead thoroughly. Oil a high-side, narrow bread tin and fill with the mixture. Cover with a cloth and leave to rise. Place in a hot oven (220°) for approximately 30 minutes. Serve hot.
STOCKFISH
Beat the stockfish and soak in plenty of cold water for one week, regularly changing the water. Drain, dry and cut crossways into 10 cm pieces after removing all bones. Finely chop the carrot, parsley (add a stick of celery if desired), rosemary leaves and a clove of garlic. Skin the tomatoes and cut into strips. Using a pan with a wire tray (that stops food from touching the bottom of the pan), put a layer of stockfish inside with the skin facing up, sprinkle with oil and the chopped herbs and vegetables. Salt and pepper and place the strips of tomato on the surface with a few knobs of butter. Add another layer of fish, with the skin facing down, sprinkle with oil and herbs and proceed in this way until all the ingredients are used. Cover the top layer with large slices of potato. Pour on the white wine and cold milk. Bring to a boil on a high flame for 30-45 minutes, then cover and gently simmer for about 3 hours without stirring. When the fish is ready, remove from heat and remove the lid. Cover with some absorbent kitchen paper and replace the lid. Leave to stand for 15 minutes. Serve the potatoes first, topped with the fish and some sauce.
