Take! Puglia 2014

At “Take! Puglia 2014” the Top Brand and emerging wineries worthy of merit, not only from Puglia, will be present for a synergy that involves Food and the Itria Valley, too.

The event is organized by the Vinoway Italy Association, under the patronage of the Municipality of Ceglie Messapica and the Puglia Region, and the cooperation of the Mediterranean Coocking School and the “Cataldo Agostinelli” Institute for Hospitality and Catering, and will be held in Ceglie (Brindisi, Puglia) from 10th to 12th May 2014.

It starts on Saturday, May 10th at 7:00 p.m. with a conference of presentation and a round table on “The enhancement of the Itria Valley wine”. In the days of the event, in addition to the tasting tables open to the public, a Contest of Food and Wine Pairing, the preparation of the OPENWINE PUGLIA Guide, wine tastings and tasting workshops will take place.

The choice of the location was not random, half way between Gargano and the extreme Capo di Leuca, well served by public transport. In effect, Ceglie becomes a destination easily accessible both by the producers and by industry operators and lovers, from Puglia, Italy and even foreign countries.

Ceglie Messapica is also known throughout the world thanks to its award–winning chefs, making it one of the most important centers of Food culture in Puglia, and if that were not enough, it has become the destination of quality tourism with the other municipalities that are part of the Itria Valley, a guardian territory of a rural landscape characterized by elements which are unique, like Trulli, farms, Lamie, the system of dry stone walls and the holm oak, Macedonian oak and olive trees.

Wine is another point of strength of this territory: white wine, made from vineyards planted with Verdeca, Minutolo, Bianco d’Alessano, Pampanuto, on hills and karst depressions where they enjoy good wind and temperature ranges, is known and drunk all over the world thanks to the Locorotondo and Martina Franca designations of origin and the largest Valle d’Itria typical geographical indication.

To participate in the “Take! Puglia 2014” will mean not only to discover the world of wine, but to have the chance to enjoy the offerings of a fairy–tale landscape that has managed to overcome the limit of the seasons and to diversify its tourist offer spreading it all year long.

“Take! Puglia 2014” will be inaugurated on May 10th, 2014, with a panel discussion on “The enhancement of Itria Valley wines” to animate the dialogue among the various companies operating in this area, but also by encouraging the presence of institutions that play an important role in this mission.

An event in the event could establish itself, that makes concrete the work of the Team Vinoway, daily engaged through the network Vinoway.com, with which it seeks to make a contribution in giving emphasis to the many Italian wine areas, sometimes little–known just because of the lack of team work.

Dialogue and Culture which, we emphasize, should not stop at just the wine world. Or rather, the world of wine has to be understood as a catalyst of attention, which attracts and brings development in many other activities. It must bind to Food, Culture, Events, Tourism...

This is the reason why the clou of “Take! Puglia” will be the contest based on the combination of Food and Wine: it will be held on the morning of Monday, May 12th, at the seat of the Mediterranean Coocking School, where Chef Nazario Biscotti, Giacinto Fanelli, Sebastiano Lombardi and Ippazio Turco (link to the article) will be measured in creating gourmet dishes using only local products of the Puglia territory, and Puglia wineries will offer their wines in combination; to a competent jury, the task of a rigorously blind tasting to express their opinion based on their own perceptions and feelings, to a new way of pairing Food and Wine.

“Take!” was created as a format–event designed to establish a close link between the world of Food and that of the Wine of a given territory that, starting from Puglia, is already in the process of traveling throughout the country, to enable a real contamination between the various Italian realities.

Among the tasting tables that will be set up in the halls of the castle of Ceglie and open to the public during the days of May 11th and 12th, 2014, there will be not only the Wine companies from Puglia, but also Gastronomic companies and Craft Breweries from Puglia, as well as wineries from Basilicata, Campania, Abruzzo, Lombardy, Sicily, Lazio and Friuli Venezia Giulia. Important will be the presence of producers who can present and make known their products personally, which is important to create moments of conviviality, exchange of views and sharing moments useful for the dissemination of the culture of the pleasure of eating and drinking well, to which even Kim Philips, international gastronome, and Pino de Luca, wine and food journalist and lover of the Beer world, will help conducting workshops on taste and moments of beer tasting.

Space, then, to two tastings of really important wines, which will be held on Sunday, May 11th.

At 4:00 p.m. Enzo Scivetti will accompany Antonio Bello of the Cosimo Taurino company conducting a historical vertical tasting. (buy tickets online)

For tasting, Notarpanaro of the vintages 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007, a wine made from grapes of 85% Negroamaro and 15% Malvasia Nera, that has made ​​the history of Puglia.

At 6:00 p.m.Riccardo Vendrame will lead a horizontal tasting of wines from the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, Friulano DOC, until a few years ago known as Tocai. (buy tickets online)

Companies: Borgo San Daniele, Lis Neris, Meroi Davino, Quinta della Luna, Specogna and Vie Romans

A full program for “Take! Puglia”, now in its second edition, enriched by the first OPENWINE PUGLIA Guide, a focus that will give value to all companies, and will be edited by the authors of Vinoway.com.

Below is the detailed program of the event, about which you can read more at: www.takepuglia.it

Saturday, May 10th, 2014

– Presentation of the “Take! Puglia 2014” event at 7:00 p.m.

– Round Table on “The enhancement of the Itria Valley wine” at 8:00 p.m.

To follow, tasting of local products.

Sunday, May 11th, 2014

– TASTING TABLE – open to professionals and to the public from 10:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. (buy tickets online)

– historical vertical TASTING of Notarpanaro Salento Rosso IGT of the Cosimo Taurino company, Vintages 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007. At 4:00 p.m. will be led by Enzo Scivetti (buy tickets online)

– guided TASTING of Friulano DOC of the Borgo San Daniele, Lis Neris, Meroi Davino, Quinta della Luna, Specogna e Vie Romans. At 6:00 p.m. will be led by Riccardo Vendrame (buy tickets online)

– MOMENTS of tasting of beer and workshops open to the public, free of charge, with Pino De Luca and Kim Phillips

Monday, May 12th, 2014

– TAKE! FOOD AND WINE CONTEST

With the participation of Chef Nazario Biscotti, Giacinto Fanelli, Sebastiano Lombardi and Ippazio Turco, the wineries and the jury composed of journalists and experts in food and wine. From 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

– TASTING TABLE – open to professionals and to the public from 3:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (buy tickets online)

– MOMENTS of tasting of beer and workshops open to the public, free of charge, with Pino De Luca and Kim Phillips – AWARD – Best Food and Wine Pairing at 7:00 p.m.