Earlier this week, GELINAZ!, a collective of chefs from around the world announced that a new gig was taking place. In these difficult times, when planning anything beyond tomorrow has become close to impossible, GELINAZ! is back with the second stay in tour but this time the aim is to give a voice to chefs around the world that have been hit hard by the pandemic. Now, more details have emerged of the restaurants and chefs that will take part in this edition that will take place on 3 December and will follow with a second performance some time in the new year. Over 130 chefs from around the world (and the number is constantly on the increase) will be taking part in this performance. In every city taking part, there will be one host who will take the role of curator and organiser of the event. They will invite fellow chefs to work on the matrix recipes that they will receive from the ‘silent voices’. These silent voices are chefs who have lost their restaurants because of … [Read more...]
Archives for November 2020
Retrovino temporarily becomes Retrocaffè in Rome
ROME: Alessandro Miocchi and Giuseppe Lo Iudice of Retrobottega in Rome are not new to innovations. When they opened their restaurant in Rome, it was innovative not just for the food but also the way they approached the restaurant business. No reservations and two large communal tables were all part of the offering. And they have been slowly expanding their offering in the Pantheon neighbourhood opening Retrovino and Retropasta before COVID-19. Now, to combat the closure of restaurants in the evenings, Alessandro Miocchi and Giuseppe Lo Iudice are turning their wine shop Retrovino into Retrocaffè. The idea is to open a cafeteria that serves coffee from 8am to 6pm in the evening serving 100 per cent arabica coffee from different parts of the world. They will be serving the coffee either in the form of an espresso to various types of filtered coffees. "And because we love traditions, we will also serve moka coffee," they announced. Retrocaffè is open seven days a week and … [Read more...]
The Gelinaz! Strikes Back: Giving a voice to ‘Silent Voices’
Last year’s GELINAZ Stay at Home tour could not have been more pre emptive. What started off as a political message ended up being the prelude to a world that is today defined as pre-COVID and post-COVID when in the most global manner, most of us have been forced to stay at home. The GELINAZ! is striking back with a second The Grand GELINAZ! Shuffle Stay in Tour - Silent Voices. This time, it is being played in two parts. It is also giving a voice to chefs that have lost their voices during the pandemic either because they have had to close their restaurants, or because they are in lockdown or because they found themselves in between projects. “Silent Voices because we really need to support these talents,” says Andrea Petrini, the man who continues to run the GELINAZ! collective of chefs from around the world who are ready to take risks and send powerful messages to the world. This time, Silent Voices on Tour will come in two phases and with two different chapters. The first … [Read more...]
The Douro Boys in the time of the pandemic
When the Douro Boys group was created, the aim behind the idea was not to work together commercially but rather to put the Douro on the wine map. That required a lot of travel both from Portugal and the Douro valley where the wineries are but also into the region. Today, 17 years later and as the group approaches its 20 years since its existence with a pandemic in between, the five wineries which have put the Douro on the wine spotlight are reflecting as to what the future holds. The Douro Boys was set up by the owners of five wineries, Quinta do Vallado, Quinta do Crasto, Quinta Vale D. Maria, Quinta do Vale Meão and the port wine house Niepoort to raise awareness for the Douro region worldwide. Over the past weeks, I sat down (albeit via Zoom) to speak with a representative of each of the wineries to discuss the impact that the Douro Boys have had on Portuguese wine in particular but more importantly what changes they are considering particularly given the COVID-19 pandemic … [Read more...]
Two natural winemaker associations in Italy join forces
Two natural winemaker associations VinNatur and Vi.Te - Vignaioli have joined forces in a year that is proving to be one of the most uncertain years in our living history. A rapprochement of two of the most important natural winemakers in Italy took place in August 2020. The presidents of the two associations Angiolino Maule and Gabriele Da Prato met to lay the foundations for a shared path. "It was a meeting that had been in the pipeline and wanted for a very long time and has finally materialised," they said. Among others, they discussed what are natural wines, when can a winemaker be truly an artisan when very often it is a trend or commercial project? The need to clarify the movement and to join forces in order to succeed was evident to the two associations. Collaboration is the best way forward to give greater authority to the natural wine sector and to its message, and for this reason we have already started to consider the criteria needed for a winery to be … [Read more...]