Bologna, Italy 6/18.19/24

 Bologna, Italy 

Since Ravenna was the overnight stop for Venice, which we have been to multiple times, we chose to get off the ship at Bari, Italy and head to Bologna, Verona, and pick up the ship in Trieste, Italy.  So, a train ride to Bologna from Bari, about a 5-hour ride.  We were served a small snack but had to purchase our lunch from a bar car, and of course, we got some wine for the trip.  It was pretty relaxing and an enjoyable ride.  

A quick cab ride, and we were at our hotel.  Mickey had found a great food tour in Bologna for the following day, so we checked into our hotel, and then took a walk to find our meeting place the next morning (at 7 am).  The meeting place was the Majestic Hotel, so we went in to have a drink (or 2) in the bar before heading out to the restaurant that the hotel recommended.  Majestic is a 5-star hotel, and the bar prices reflected it!  Missing those African prices!!!  But it was gorgeous.

The next morning, we headed back to the meeting spot with our luggage.  The tour guide was kind enough to allow us to bring it along, as we had a train to Verona that afternoon.  They also dropped us at the train station, which was really quite nice of them. These covered walkways were terrific as they blocked the sun - it was unseasonably warm when we were there.

As we were waiting for the group to arrive, we got a cup of coffee and wandered to the town square for some pictures.  Bologna is a lovely city and would have liked to have spent more time in the city - but our tour took us outside the city into the countryside.  A few pictures from the little we saw in Bologna. The top collage is courtesy of Matti Chan from the ship.  He was on a city tour and shared these pictures.  The rest are mine.  

  

Mickey found this fabulous food tour that took us to the countryside.  It was rather pricey, and we took a leap of faith.  It was worth every penny and then some.  From accommodating our luggage to dropping us at the train station, the three stops we made were incredible and the food and wines superb.

We started at a parmigiana reggiano factory and got to see the entire process of making the cheese.  We had to get into our little blue outfits, cover our shoes and hair and off we went into the factory.  Their pup greeted us at the entrance.

The master cheese maker, the "casari", runs the show and there is only one at a factory.  He and his family live here, as this is a 24/7 job.  He is the only one that can "make" the cheese.  He oversees every aspect of the process, and quite a process it is.   There are 5 steps in the process. 

Step one: The milk collection, which is a mix of evening and morning milk. The evening milk is allowed to rest overnight, allowing the cream to rise to the top.  The cream is removed the next morning, and the partially skimmed milk is combined with the morning milk.

Step 2: Copper Cauldrons The combined milk is poured into large, bell-shaped copper cauldrons.  It is gently warmed, and natural whey starter and calf rennet are added to initiate the curdling process.

Step 3: Curds and Whey.  The milk will begin to coagulate and form curds.  These curds are then broken down into tiny granules using a traditional tool called a 'spino', the mixture is then heated until the curds settle at the bottom separating from the whey.  The master cheesemaker is the only one who can perform this step of the process.

Step 4: Forming the cheese: The settled curds are lifted with a muslin cloth and divided into two parts.  Each part is wrapped in the cloth and placed in a circular mold called 'fascera'. the weight of the curds compresses them, giving the cheese its characteristic wheel shape.

Step 5:  Salting and aging:  The freshly molded cheese wheels are then immersed in brine for salting.  Once salted, the wheels are transferred to aging rooms, known as 'cascine'. They rest on wooden shelves ad a regularly turned and cleaned.  They can be aged from 12 to 36 months.

Once aged, inspectors from the Parmigiano Reggiano consortium us a small hammer to tap the cheese and listen for defects.  Only those that pass are fire branded with the iconic Parmigiano Reggiano mark and are ready for market.

There is no waste in this process. The left-over whey is turned into ricotta cheese.

From there, we headed to a balsamic vinegar factory, which has been in operation since 1860 and has been passed down through the generations. 

This was a food tasting tour, and we started with our breakfast, which included a morning wine. And we got to taste the Parmigiano Reggiano that we just saw getting made - of course, the aged wheels.  The cheeses, pastries, and wines were wonderful.  Mic was in his element. 

We learned that the best products are in clear glass, when the glass is dark, it is not the highest quality and the dark glass hides that.  To be able to have Modena on the label, a part of the process must be done in Modena - and many times that is the bottling and labeling.   Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena DOP, is one of the finest artisanal products in the world. It is created through a precise decanting technique and years of refinement and aging.  It is prepared from cooked grape must (unfermented juice) and allowed to mature and ferment thru a slow natural acidification process.  I can only be sold when aged a minimum of 12 years and named 'extravecchio' after 25 years. Aceto Balsamico di Modena IGP is a blend of partially fermented, cooked, or concentrated grape must (a minimum of 20%) and is in the wooden barrels or casks for a minimum of 60 days.

We were then treated to a tour of the factory, followed up by a tast9ng of the different aged balsamic vinegars.  We purchased a few bottles, a 5-, 7-, and 25-year-old.  The 25-year-old is only to be used in drops - it will be really good on ice cream and some cheeses.

New productions are named after the children in the family and are started like bread - with a little bit from the older barrels.

A lot of history here, I can only hope that upcoming generations keep this wonderful business in the family. 

On to our last stop of the day, a prosciutto factory.  The factory we visited raises and slaughters their own pigs for their production of proscuitto. 

After the salting process, the pork legs are washed, seasoned by hand (often according to an old family recipe), and left to dry age at a controlled temperature for 14 to 36 months.

We were then treated to a lunch that was incredible.  We started with three types of prosciutto and breads, and of course, balsamic vinegar from Modena!  The wine kept flowing, and we enjoyed our feast, thinking that was our lunch!  But no, we then got served 3 different types of pasta, and the wine kept coming.  Our dinner table partners were a mother and son, who had just finished a cooking school in Italy - and it was the same one that Mickey had gone to 8 years ago, and they were from NYC- what a coincidence to have met them and we will look them up Wehn we are in New York.  This was truly a fantastic day.  Our tour guides were terrific, and they dropped us of at the train station for our journey to Verona, where we had a night tour scheduled, so a really full day for us.

On to Verona