A memorable meal, part 2
The previous day two of us enjoyed an informal celebration for carnivores in Panzano with Dario Cecchini, the famous butcher of Panzano. Today we would travel as a group of four to a winery 25 miles to the south for a luncheon at Castello di Ama that featured their own wines.
When we planned the trip, we thought that it was odd that Google Maps said that the trip would take an hour. Hmmmm.
As we drove south the two-lane roads twisted and turned and we gained altitude over the valleys to the east and west. We were a little concerned as the typical Tuscan forests gave way to scrub oak. The soil became more and more rocky and there were so few people, so few buildings. As the roads grew more narrow and more twisted, we wondered, “Are we really headed toward to wine making estate where we have reservations for lunch?”
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Castello di Ama (Photo source)
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Finally, at the highest point of our drive the valley opened up around us and we saw vineyards in all four directions. Rocks littered the ground and the soil was mostly clay and dry looking even though it had been raining for a month. All the vineyards were in slope; sometimes the slope was so severe you wondered if the rows between the vines had to be cultivated by hand.
The Ama estate had appeared before us. And our 25-mile drive had, in fact, taken a full hour.
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Castello di Ama restaurant (Photo source)
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A server met us at the door. We announced that we had reservations and he nodded affirmatively as we pronounced our family name. There were many small dining rooms the largest of which could seat 12 people. Our party of four chose a table in a room with one other table of similar size.
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| Tortino di Cavolo Nero, carrots |
An Ama rosè (based on the estate’s sangiovese) was poured to welcome us and we received menus to ponder. There were the typical offerings but there was also a tasting menu of five courses with three different wines chosen to accompany the courses. We chose the tasting menu; our designated driver who was also a vegetarian was offered whatever he wanted but with reduced quantities of wine.
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| Pappa al pomodoro |
The first course was a sformatino (a flan) of chopped carrots topped with chopped cavolo nero (an Italian cousin of kale) and finished with a sauce of mild pecorino cheese that was flavored (and colored) with saffron. It was perfect with the rosè.
The second course was pappa al pomoro, a tomato and bread soup seasoned with black pepper. The soup was thick, fresh, and delicious.
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| Pici al ragù |
The third course was pici noodles (irregularly shaped, thick spaghetti-like noodles made by rubbing pasta dough between one’s hands and fingers) with a hearty, meaty ragù. An Ama Chianti Classico had been poured for the second and third courses.
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| Cinghiale and purè |
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| Mimosa di Ama |
We finished with a mimosa tart, a multi-layered cake-and-custard concoction.
Two of our group were vegetarians and the staff graciously adapted the menu to meet their dietary restrictions at no additional cost and with some surprising adaptations of their menu.
The tasting menu was a fixed price.
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"Confession of Zero" by Hiroshi Sugimoto (Photo source)
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Two hour later after the meal had finished we were guided to the enoteca (wine shop) where we purchased a fine bottle for our designated driver so he could enjoy some of the wine after we’d returned home. Then we took a tour of some of the art installations on the grounds of the place.
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| "On the vineyards, points of view" by Daniel Buren |
On a future trip we’d be curious how this particular winery ended up in this place. But for now we have to say that we were impressed with the place, impressed with the wine, impressed with the service, impressed with the artwork, impressed with everything.
For more information on Castello di Ama check these web sites:
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