Schiacciapizza – what on earth is that? That was the very response – albeit expressed in slightly fruitier language – from the chefs at Locanda Le Tre Rane, the first time they heard the word. "Schiacciapizza? eicchellè?"

For we had the idea of mixing two icons of our cuisine. One is schiacciata, Tuscan to the core, lathered with oil. Its smell is unmistakable, irresistible; it is fantastic by itself, but even better when partnered with any type of ...

What kind of wine has dominated in recent years? What type has been most fashionable?

There’s not an atom of doubt: it’s rosé. Rosé is everywhere. It fills the pages of trade magazines; it tints the portfolios of countless wineries; and famous consortia launch it as their latest thing. Whether still or sparkling, cherry red or pale Provençal, a symbol of urbanity or a simple aperitif, rosé is the wine that everybody’s talking about.

Continue reading

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. I’m sure that you all sang that word as you read it.

It’s the chorus of a song that appears, alongside so many other musical and visual wonders, in Robert Stevenson’s film Mary Poppins, starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.

Mary Poppins is set in Edwardian London, in the first decade of the twentieth century. One day, an umbrella glides in through the sky and holding onto the handle is Mary Poppins. Through her magic and ...

Coming away from the edge of the gorge and heading down to the bottom of the “Sassi” is an experience that marks one’s entire life. No other place in the world can grant the sensation of time beyond time, of place without place, that this cluster of houses evokes. At first sight, this ravine looks less like a town than a gigantic game of Jenga gone awry. Descending the Sassi – then climbing again, then coming down again – is to pass from the “national shame” of Matera as it ...

April is always a difficult month for winemakers. It’s a period when they walk on a knife-edge between the excitement of seeing the buds push through and the terror of frosty nights.

This was brought home to us around April 6 and 7. From the full glory of spring, when we were dining outdoors in 26°C/79°F, we plunged to freezing point and even further, snow falling and heating systems whirring back into life. It was a sharp and unpleasant jolt. The Chianti Classico and Montalcino areas ...