During the worst of the pandemic, we regularly shared meals with a handful of friends. Judith and Nat have a town house close nearby and as soon as the weather warmed up, they invited us to have lunch in their backyard. We sat at separate tables in the garden and were very careful not to touch anything that was touched by someone else. We ate in the backyard a number of times and it was a perfect respite. Last week as part of a late birthday celebration for me, they invited us again. This time we all sat at the same table and Judith made some of my favorite foods
We started with Prosecco Superiore DOCG 2018 Valdobbiadine Brut Natural Silvano Follador Made from 100% Glera. The soil is marl and clay. Organic and biodynamic farming methods but do not have certification. Dosage 0. Residual sugar 0.0% The wine is refined in cement vats for 6 months The wine has hints of apple, pear, white peach and apricot. I was very impressed by this Prosecco.
We started with homemade tapenade, both green and black from Provence. Then we had:
Crunchy fried zucchini flowers stuffed with mozzarella and anchovies–one of my favorites
A salad made with corn and shards of fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Vacqueyras Blanc Le Jardin de Noemie Vallis Petra Made from Viognier 40% Roussanne, 15% Marsanne, 15% Bouboulenc 30% The vineyard consists of two hectares and the vines are 30 years old. Organically farmed. The grapes are destemmed and pressed and fermentation takes place at a low temperature. The wine is vinified in 225 liter barrels for 9 months. The wine has hints of almonds, white flowers, pear, apricot, spice and a note of vanilla. This wine was brought back from Provence and it was a first for me.
Fresh grilled tuna ready to be served
The bread- Nat always surprises us with wonderful bread
On the plate
Marie’s Blueberry Tart–another one of my favorites.
Blueberry Tart with vanilla ice cream
Charles Scicolone on Wine 