Craig Camp

My favorite for very fresh flowers: for 2 people 10 flowers - gently washed and bugs removed. 2 - very fresh eggs. (go out of your way to get really flavorful eggs - when I make this I take the time to go to the farm up the road and buy fresh eggs) salt unsalted butter Whisk the eggs until well mixed as if you were making an omelet. Add salt. Place flowers in the egg mixture and gently toss covering well with egg. Heat butter over medium high heat When hot pick out the flowers one by one and place in pan turning several times. After about one minute add remaining egg mixture and toss until just barely cooked. Serve immediately with a nicely chilled Prosecco. ©2003 Vino e Cibo

I can think of nothing to say except: right.

The bottle variation on this wine is incredible. I have never seen such a commercially successful wine with such a severe problem in this regard. Futonic's tasting note is the same that I see from everyone - various bottles change dramatically. This is a problem they should deal with.

This is a most Italian dish. You can buy them in almost every grocery store in season. Every region has its own recipe - none of which looks like yours by the way I guess I should have been more specific in that I was looking for more regiona Italian preparations. I will try out your recipe and freak out my Italian friends. Lord knows where I find the hot sauce.

I know as a lover of Loire gamay I often see you starting with one of those then going to a Riesling or Gruner - perhaps because they are all high acid the transition works.

This is a strange and ongoing problem. Some of the worst offenders I have seen are in Spanish "tapas' bars. I say worst because they should know better.

Futronic - we also hope you invite your friends to join in posting over here at eGullet.

Jim - I notice you never hesitate to have a red then go back to white instead of the standard white first red later formula. Other than using more glassware are there any guidelines you follow in this regard.

Zucchini flowers stuffed with foie gras I have a bunch in my garden now (I know we planted late). What are your favorite preparations.

I feel that an open bottle of Fino should be consumed within a week. If its a really good one it will never last that long. Never cellar Fino, buy a few bottles at a time and replenish your supply as needed from a merchant with a good turnover so you always have fresh wine.

They all have a code, but usually it is intentionally mysterious. I will try to get the folks from Hildago and Lustau to give us their code.

Obviously written by a wine expert. I'm planting my new vineyard in Kuwait. It was 48 (118) there yesterday according to the BBC.

It is a beautiful place. In a previous incarnation I was a wine importer and distributor based in Chicago. Today I am a writer living in Varese. I like this better.

1. From where did this bottle come? 2. I hope so. VGS is the reserve designation that Jean-Noel gives to Chateau Potelle's best chardonnays, cabernets and zinfandels. If you ask him to his face, he tells you that's what it means. The first such designation came from Deloach Vineyards. Their OFS was supposed to mean "Out-f*cking-Standing". I remember that now. I had the Potelle VGS some years ago. Indeed that was the reference and the wine was not bad - but VGS might be pushing it a bit far. The Deloach story is also true - but they will deny it like crazy because of potential problems with the BATF.

1. From where did this bottle come? 2. I hope so.

Mark - thanks for the stories from the front lines. Tommy - when they open the bottle they pour evenly, but when they return they pour more wine into the slow drinkers glasses and then short pour the fast drinker and empty the bottle. The starting point for ordering a second bottle is the first empty glass not later ones. Also if at this point you change wines it is new glasses all around. This means a lot of wine can be left sitting in glasses unconsumed. They don't care if you drink it - only if you buy it.

You must be referring to Trader Joe's. I had not tasted the Barbaresco but have had the $9.99 Barolo and the Amarone. As you so politely put it, neither tastes of the appellation and even at this price are bad values. The sad thing is that these wines do not have to be frauds. You can make cheap Barolo within the rules. These wines passed the tasting test just like Monfortino did.

And to think all this time i'd been dreaming of little Italian superheroes racing around in capes with grapes on them CC: what does 'decidedly different' mean? Surely it cannot only refer to these two wines? The example of Terrabianca and Montevertine are a great highlight of the confusion here. Terrabianca is modern while Montevertine is - well Montevertine, a vision of what is possible with the traditional grapes of Tuscany. lissome - You are right there are the superheros of your dreams runnning around in Tuscany. Only many of them don't call themselves super Tuscan, but Chianti Classico, the other Chiantis, Brunello, Vino Nobile and Scansano. At least you have the right attitude - an open mind and a love of great sangiovese like Pergole Torte.

I saw an ad for Tavernello today for Euro 5.40 -- for 5 liters. Yes quality is left to the producer. That is why for quality you have to seek out the best producers - not look for DOC or DOCG names. I live just outside of Varese.

Controls exists, every DOC and DOCG wines are subject to: - yields verification - chemical analysis - tasting - other documentary controls by the local trade commission (Camera di Commercio) or wine consortium Wineries, as all food producers, may be checked at any time by NAS, a special police branch for counterfeit products. Can anyone detail me what kind of specific rules are adopted in the USA? Loris - as I believe you live in Italy I am sure that you have had a chance to taste all the incredibly bad wines sold in Italian grocery stores under famous DOC and DOCG names and the lofty rules you mention. Obviously the rules can be 'adjusted' to meet the needs of the producers. The rules sound grand but in practice mean little.

Does that mean that my beloved Tegolaia and Terrabianca and Le Pergole Torte are fake wine? I thought that these and other 'super' blends were created because winemakers didn't want to be forced to add the white grapes (was it malavasia and verdicchio?) as winemakers must to their Chianti and Chianti Classico blends. I liked that idea, because sometimes I find Chiantis too acrid. It's been my sense cabernet's structure gave the sangiovese a bit more room to unfold, open and develop; that sangiovese in good SuperTuscans had more body and character. Have I merely been seduced by powdered tannins and deacidification? And yes I'm aware that the Pergole is 100% Sangio: I thought Super was what the Tuscan winemakers decided to call themselves after their refusal to have their blends mandated from above. Jean has hit the nail on the head for the majority of wines that wine writers like to call super Tuscan. Terrabianca and Monte Vertine are decidedly different wines. I love great Chianti Classico because it tastes like sangiovese. Chianti too acrid - maybe bad Chianti. The addition of white grapes (trebbiano and malvasia) was to add freshness and acidity. Cabernet can easily overwhelm the structured elegant flavors of sangiovese. It is like adding cabernet to pinot noir. It does not take long before it tastes more like cabernet than pinot. The so called super blends were created for many reasons. The long dead requirement to add white grapes was a minor player that was anyway widely ignored by producers for years. The names super Tuscan, like the words, are the creation of a wine writer. The only thing that matters is producer.

This is more in a business dinner type of environment. Where the host is out to pamper clients. The host does not want the guest to feel they are not 'worth' the money so the bottle gets ordered. Of course at a table of friends it is much easier to say no.

One more time... The term super Tuscan has no legal or controlled meaning of any kind. It is a fantasy name that producers can use as they see fit. 1. concentrating on quality instead of tradition. This is absurd. There are traditional wines of the highest quality and modern wines calling themselves super Tuscans which are crap. 2. The fullest bodied wine the producer offered. Also absurd. Maybe the most oaky but not the most full bodied. 3. Most Expensive - Maybe, but often because the term is an opportunity to rip off the consumer. 4. Super Tuscans break all the rules of winemaking in Tuscany. You have to be kidding me. They changed the rules years ago. There are many wines that would qualify for Chianti Classico that the producer chooses to make a 'super Tuscan' so they can charge more money. 5. They use non-traditional Italian varietals. Bull. Montevertine Le Pergole Torte, one of the leaders in the super Tuscan revolution is and always was 100% sangiovese. What rules could they possible break? The whole super Tuscan thing became pointless as soon as they made it legal to use French varietals in the various DOCs. The term no longer means anything as it is used on wines of all types produced in all styles. It is only a marketing tool. It may be worth noting that the words super and Tuscan are both English and not Italian. Everyone listen: There is NO definition of Super Tuscan. It is a fantasy name with no controls or legal status.

What can I say. I like Campari and that is what I buy. If you like Martini fine it is half the price. The thing is unless you live in Italy it is likely that Campari is your only choice.

For this dish I prefer the fresh ricotta. The store in our town carries a nice one from Puglia which I like very much. The fresh gives the dish a creamy texture, which is exactly what I am looking for. With ricotta salata you get a grainy texture - which while very tasty is a different sauce.