Sicily’s Superstar Winery

                                A winery,  a gourmet restaurant, a boutique hotel...an experience!

Never mind that the winery’s owner is a mega-Euro millionaire industrialist from Milan---he’s of Sicilian heritage, and he’s making some of the best wine on the Mediterranean’s largest island.  In the mid-1990’s, entrepreneur Vito Catania decided to return to his Sicilian roots and follow his passion to make wine.   This wild and crazy visionary purchased 200 acres of prime vineyards and began his innovative work to focus on the area’s little know, indigenous grape varietals…and the rest is history.  Gulfi wines are now some of the most-sought after wines in all of Italy.

Never mind that Gulfi winery has won about every European award, or that Robert Parker has scored them 95.  Last year Gulfi won the “Best Italian Wine Estate of the Year.”  Any connoisseur of Italian wine is now on notice that the new kid on the block, Gulfi, is a force to be reckoned with.  Indeed, Vito Catania is on the move with the same fervor that made him one of Milan’s top businessmen.

Never mind that Signor Catania just recently finished a multi-million-Euro winery.  He also built a drop-dead gorgeous visitor’s center, along with a boutique hotel and a gourmet restaurant.  Not at all uncommon in the Napa Valley, this is the first of its genre in Sicily.  Wine-Knows Travel has taken over the entire hotel for next fall’s tour, and we’ve scheduled a cooking class with the restaurant’s highly acclaimed chef. 

Never mind that Gulfi produces stunning wines.  Surrounded by hundreds of olive trees, the winery also makes beautiful olive oil.  There is also a magnificent garden on site from where most everything served in the dining room originates.  This is definitely a farm-to-table kind of experience.

Never mind that Gulfi is a gourmand and oenophile’s dream-come-true.  Check out the above view from the hotel’s private quarters.  Gulfi offers a little piece of paradiso for those who simply want to relax and take in the essence of Sicily.  

Viva Sicilia!

A Fantastico Coffee Bar in Venice

Francesco and Issaco serve up the best service in Venice. 

There’s only one negative about staying at the 5 star Hotel Danieli in Venice---their breakfast is $70 US per person.  During the week of Carnivale I was on a mission to find the best place for morning coffee.  What I found was much more than that.

I was attending Carnivale with two dear American friends.  They insisted on taking me to a place they had discovered their first morning in Venice, Café Brasilia.  I recognized it immediately from two years ago when my husband and I had rented an apartment nearby.  Just a minute’s walk from La Fenice opera house, this charming spot offers the best bang for the Euro in Venice for breakfast, as well as light lunches and snacks throughout the day, and drinks in the evening.

The café is so named because they are one of the few places in the city offering Brazilian roasted coffee.  (Brazil is the world’s largest producer of coffee accounting for about one-third of our total production.)  But, everything else, is strictly Venetian, from the special pastries made only during Carnivale, to the glorious array of sandwiches (my fave was the panini with mozzarella, prosciutto & arugula).  There are also wonderful fruit salads and a great assortment of fresh fruit smoothies.

There is seating inside for about a dozen, however, handsome outside tables accommodate another dozen.  There’s a bar with space for another 10 or 12---as with all cafes in Italy, sit at a table and the price is more.  Cappucinos at Café Brasilia’s bar are an astounding value at $2 US--- cafes without half the atmosphere and service are double to triple that in the city.

Café Brasilia is one of those super simpatico places that all of us yearn to find in Europe.  It’s been owned by the same family for years and you’ll feel like your part of it by the end of your first cappuccino.  Ask for Francesco, Pio, or Issaco and take a copy of the BLOG with you.

Directions:  stand facing La Fenice, then take the street to your right (Verona) 100 yards.  Café Brasilia will be on your left.   Address:  San Marco 3658, Calle dei Assassini.

Web:  http://www.facebook.com/brasiliawinecaffe

Venice’s Best Happy Hour

I’ve been to Venice probably 20 times but I’m always looking for new experiences.  I think this trip I found nirvana for cocktails and nibbles.   I found the place through a Venetian friend’s recommendation…. thankfully, it hasn’t made its way into any guidebooks. 

What’s so special about Taverna Campiello Remer?  Everything.   The location is on a tiny piazza facing the Grand Canal with not one tourist in site.  While only a 5 minute walk from the Rialto Bridge, it might as well be on another continent.  Walking through the front door, you’ll immediate know you’ve found something special…a candlelit architectural Renaissance gem with arches, bricked walls and huge wooden-beamed ceilings.

My Venetian friend recommended Remer for their magnifico buffet of appetizers.  Very unusual for Venice, this huge spread offered a variety of bruschettas, pasta, cheese, roasted vegetables and a delizioso seafood risotto.  Buy a reasonably-priced glass of wine or aperitif ($4-7US) drink and this buffet is yours for another $7.  My two friends and I had planned to go out to dinner, but couldn’t manage another bite after the fabulous spread of goodies.

Most places for happy hour in Venice are stand-up only spots.  Remer had seating for at least 50, with even a few tables outside overlooking the Grand Canal.  The Venetian man sitting next to us told us that the establishment also offers a great dinner and lunch, however, he pointed out that the meals are on the pricey side.

Remer serves its happy hour buffet extravaganza from 5:30-7:30 every evening but Wednesday and Sunday when they are closed.  Turn in the alley way just beside the famous restaurant  Fiaschetteria Toscana (Salizada S.Giovanni Grisostomo, Cannaregio 5719).  Follow the tiny passage all the way back to the Grand Canal. 

http://it-it.facebook.com/pages/Taverna-del-Campiello-Remer/72357091028

The Best Sunday Night Dinner in Paris

Aligot, one of the restaurant's signature dishes.

I frequently am asked recommendations on where to eat in Paris.  The first question I ask is “What’s your budget?”  The second is “What night?”  If you’re dining in Paris on Sunday evening (when the vast majority are closed) and don’t want to drop a bazillion Euros----but still want to eat well---there’s one place that stands an Eiffel tower above the rest:  Ambassade de Auvergne.

The little jewel specializes in cuisine from France’s mountainous central area, the Auvergne region.  Its prixe fixe menu (28 Euro or <$35, including tip and tax) represents one of the best deals in Paris for quality cooking.  Don’t leave Paris without trying the “Ambassador’s” aligot, a mouthwatering potato dish infused with the region’s famous Cantal cheese---it’s totally sinful, but a sin you’ll never forget (and it is served with the prixe-fixe dinner). 

The other piece de resistance is their chocolate mousse which I learned about by accident.  One of my friends ordered it and insisted that I take a bite---I declined but my dear friend was unrelenting…and the rest is history.  After too-many-to-count pedestrian chocolate mousses in my life, I can say that this version is in a league of its own---absolutely superb!  The good news is that it, too, is served on the bargain prixe fixe dinner.

Ambaassade de Auvergne is located near Georges Pompidou Center on a small street away from the maddening crowds.  If you’re coming by Metro, it’s almost across the street from the Rambuteau stop.  If dining on Sunday, don’t even think about showing up without a reservation.  I prefer the rustic downstairs dining room decorated with a wooden-beamed ceiling and copper pots, however, the upstairs is attractive as well.  I suggest not choosing a wine from the Auvergne area…I’ve tried several and none were noteworthy.  But, not to worry as there is a good selection of moderate cost wines from several other areas in France.

www.ambassade-auvergne.com