McDuff's Food & Wine Trail: Centro Storico

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Buon Appetito, Piemonte

The latest edition of Bon Appetit (August 2010) includes a neat little feature on traveling to — and eating and drinking in — Piemonte. Included among its short list of eight highlights, I was very pleased to see two places that I visited on my most recent trip to the Langhe. The first of the two, staking down the second spot on the list, was Centro Storico, a place I'd like to see replicated, at least in spirit, in every town I have occasion to visit. It's that solid a recipe: great wine (and really great Champagne!), comforting food, no nonsense service and a friendly, makes-you-want-to-stay-there-all-day kind of vibe.

A big congrats to Alessio "Ciccio" Cighetti and his wife Stefania for the recognition in such a major mag. I barely recognized Alessio in the "sultry-style" photo in Bon App (besides which, it's not available in the online version), so I'll stick with my own shot, taken in situ back in May.

When you go... notice I say "when," not if, and use "you" in the universally inclusive sense, not in the one-or-two-folks-who-I-know-are going-to-go-anyway sense. When you go... it'll be fine if you mention the Bon Appetit spot to Alessio, but make sure to tell him you read about it here first! I really do love that place.

Anchoring the B.A. list in the #8 spot is a restaurant of another sort, one that I couldn't imagine succeeding, if duplicated exactly as is, in any city in the United States. And yet, set just off the corner of a beautiful old square in Pollenzo, on the grounds of Slow Food's University of Gastronomic Sciences, it seemed perfectly at home (aside, perhaps, from the gate at which guests have to be buzzed in to gain admittance).

That place is Ristorante Guido. It may be a Michelin one-star, with the white tablecloths, polished service and the ambition to prove it, but one dish in particular that I ate there was among the simplest expressions of the beauty of Piemontese cuisine that I encountered on the entire trip.

Photo courtesy of Viaggiatore Gourmet.

I wish I'd taken notes that night, or asked for a copy of the menu, so that I could tell you the "official" name of the dish; agnolotti al tovagliolo will have to suffice. Meat filled agnolotti. No sauce whatsoever. Nestled in a folded over napkin to absorb any excess moisture and keep the pasta firm. Revealed table-side. And relished for their unabashed, unadorned, purely simple delivery of the art of deliciousness.

To the first: go and go often. To the second: go, it's worth the splurge.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Vinoteca Centro Storico

There's something afoot in Serralunga. In this tranquil hilltop town of only 300 or so inhabitants, there's a sudden surge in renovations, perhaps the result of in influx of new money or maybe just of a revived thirst for renewal. Adjacent to the town's main square and its scenic overlook, major construction is underway at Azienda Agricola Vigna Rionda, where owners/winemakers Franco and Roberto Massolino are adding a floor and a rooftop terrace to create updated, separate accommodations for their winery's trade and public visitors. And not more than three or four hundred meters from there, a short walk down the winding cobbled streets through the town center to the base of Serralunga's old tower, there's something else afoot.

Just past the dog – he actually lives a couple of kilometers away, I'm told, but he's always there – and just through that door lies one of the most lively, inviting café/wine bar combos one could imagine, whether in Serralunga or elsewhere.

That place is Vinoteca Centro Storico. The name couldn't be much more straightforward: a wine bar in the center of the old historic town. Nor could the mission be much simpler.

Owners Alessio Cighetti and his wife/partner Stefania turn out what is an essential Piemontese experience, combining the simple pleasures of food and wine and making the pairing accessible to any and all who walk through their doors.

Stefania's food is the essence of simplicity. Think of it as home cooking — consistently good, hearty, classic Northern Italian home cooking — and you're on the right track.

Aside from a couple of hapless grissini, carne cruda pretty much had to be the first dish to meet my gullet on arrival in the Langhe on my recent trip, and Stefania and Alessio were only too happy to oblige. Ravioli in a sage-butter sauce — another Piedmont classic — rounded out my entry lunch.

Balancing the simple soulfulness emanating from Stefania's cucina, Alessio has put together a pretty damn satisfying wine list. The local offerings aren't anything to snub a nose at, with verticals of Monfortino and other top Baroli offered alongside more humble options in Langhe Nebbiolo, Langhe Bianco and, yes, even French wine. Actually, it's French wine, and a very particular sort of French wine, upon which Centro Storico has really built its equally particular reputation.

In this town of less than 300 residents, Alessio sells over 1500 bottles of Champagne a year. He's put together a list that rivals if not betters any I've seen here in the US, with big names such as Salon and Krug resting alongside gravitas-laden options from the likes of Philipponat (a vertical of Clos des Goisses, anyone?) and Diebolt-Vallois, all peppered with hipster-chic offerings from producers such as Cédric Bouchard, Ulysse Colin and Jérôme Prévost. And it's all priced more than fairly, about the same if not a tad less than what you'd pay at retail here in the States. Poured by the glass during my visit(s) was Champagne Doyard's "Cuvée Vendémiaire" Extra Brut, a sumptuously rich Blanc de Blancs from Vertus that displayed the breadth of aroma and body brought on by extended lees-aging. Lovely stuff and, ironically, more or less the first wine to whet my whistle in Nebbiolo-land.

There are a mere four or five tables on the ground floor and about the same upstairs, a few more outside when weather permits. Just enough space to accommodate the mix of wine loving locals, travelers and regional producers who frequent the place. Don't miss it if you're ever (or when you're next) in the area. I came pretty damn close to calling it home base during my stay... and I'm already missing that carne cruda and Champagne combo.