“If there is one estate that embodies the potential of Carmignano, Piaggia just might be it.” – Antonio Galloni
“The Carmignano Riserva is simply the best of the appellation.” – The Wine Advocate
Piaggia is located right in the heart of Carmignano. The total
vineyard extension is approximately 15 hectares, divided between the
area of S. Cristina a Mezzana and the municipality of Poggio a Caiano,
both areas with a great potential for top quality wines. Mauro Vannucci
started this activity in 1990 because of his great passion for great red
wines, with the aim to produce wines up to the standard of Carmignano
appellation. In its 30 years of existence, Piaggia has managed to
solidly establish its place among the great wineries of the classic
Tuscan DOC of Carmignano, being called by Gambero Rosso “one of the best
wineries in the region of Carmignano, rather, in Tuscany.”
Vineyard Management: Piaggia is a practicing organic winery.
Integrated insect and disease control is followed. Organic fertilizers,
copper and sulphur-based products are mainly used, but the vineyards see
no insecticides or herbicides. The soil between the rows of vines is
tilled. Low doses of SO2 in the wines for preservation.
Carmignano is a historic, premium wine region in Tuscany, Italy, located northwest of Florence, renowned for producing
Carmignano DOCG wines
that blend Sangiovese with Cabernet Sauvignon/Franc. Established in
1716, it is one of the oldest protected wine areas, noted for its
unique, early adoption of international grape varieties and
high-quality, age-worthy red wines.
Originally part of the Chianti region, it became a separate DOC in 1975
and achieved DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita)
status in 1990. The wine must contain at least 50% Sangiovese, 10–20% Cabernet
Sauvignon and/or Cabernet Franc, up to 20% Canaiolo Nero, and smaller
percentages of white grapes (Trebbiano, Malvasia). This tradition of
blending dates back to the Medici era, predating the "Super Tuscan"
trend. Chef Roberto Donna moved at about the same time (in the early 1980s)
to the USA as Annette and I did, he from Northern Italy, we from the
Frankfurt region in Germany.
Picture: Christian Schiller and Chef Roberto Donna in 2014. See: Winemaker Sabrino
Loffredo’s Pietracupa Wines and Chef Roberto Donna’s Food at a Winemaker
Dinner at Alba Osteria in Washington DC, Italy/USA
Rather
quickly Roberto became one of the leading chefs of the Washington DC
area, owning restaurants like Galileo and I Matti and several others,
with about 500 employees.
But in 2004 Roberto's fortunes turned sour. Galileo's parent company
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Roberto had to struggle with
financial and legal issues since then. Fortunately he did not go under.
He is still cooking at the highest level.
His latest adventure is
Roberto's Ristorante Italiano on Church Street in Vienna/ Virginia,
owned by Roberto's wife, Nancy Sabbagh, who also runs the service.
Yesterday
evening it was as it has always been at Roberto's restaurants: relaxed,
exquisite food, top Italian wines and excellent service, like in a
trattoria in Turino in the Piemonte area where Roberto spent the first
20 years of his life.
Chef Roberto Donna
(from wikipedia)
Roberto Donna is an Italian chef and restaurateur in Washington D.C.
Donna
was born in Turin, Italy, where he enrolled in culinary school at the
age of 13. He came to the United States at the age of 19, working in an
Italian restaurant on K Street in Washington, D.C.
In 1984, Donna opened Galileo in Dupont Circle, which was an immediate
success. The restaurant only seated 50, and in the early days, even
Vice-President George H.W. Bush could not secure a last-minute
reservation. Donna and his partner Savino Recine opened more casual
trattorias, Primi Piatti, and then I Matti, serving pizza and pasta.
By
the end of the 1990s, Donna's empire grew to 12 restaurants, including
Il Radicchio, Pesce, and Barolo. In 1999, he expanded Galileo into a
neighboring space and opened a restaurant-within-a-restaurant, Il
Laboratorio del Galileo, serving multi-course meals in a small (25-30
seats) dining room, with a glass-walled "showcase" kitchen.
Donna published a cookbook, Cooking in Piedmont, in 1996.
Donna
won the 1996 James Beard Foundation Award for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic.
The next year, Galileo was named one of the "10 Best Italian Restaurants
in America" by Wine Spectator. The Restaurant Association of
Metropolitan Washington recognized Donna as the "Chef of the Year" in
1990, and the "Restaurateur of the Year" in 1995. Donna was invited to
Rome in 1996 to receive the Insegna del Ristorante Italiano, awarded by
the Italian Government in recognition of serving the best authentic
Italian food outside Italy.
In 2004, Donna's company declared
bankruptcy and his restaurants began to close; Galileo closed in 2006,
and he had no restaurants to his name when Bebo Trattoria closed in
2009. Donna was prosecuted for failing to pay taxes at Bebo, and in
2010, Donna pled guilty to felony embezzlement, receiving a five-year
suspended sentence on condition of probation, good behavior, and
restitution. Donna and his business partners still faced several civil
lawsuits when he returned to the kitchen with the opening of Galileo III
in October 2010. The restaurant closed abruptly after less than one
year.
The Wines
Dinner
Silvia and Roberto
First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth
Bye-bye
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