Lake Garda Culinary Fest Promotes Local Fish, Wines and Gastronomy
The food and wine event will run until June 30th and was announced in January during the event dedicated to coregone and lake fish, sardines, perch, and Brescia cheeses with “Garda Brescia DOP” extra virgin olive oil.
The presentation took place at Locanda Santa Giulia in the presence of Giampaolo Mantelli, Provincial Councillor for Agriculture, and Giancarlo Allegri, mayor of Padenghe.
Promotional activities and participants
The promotion is managed by Accademia Brescia a Tavola and the Club Pesce di Lago. Ten restaurants fully joined the initiative: Al Portico di Desenzano, Al Porto di Moniga, Aurora di Soiano, Da Oscar Barcuzzi di Lonato, Esenta di Lonato, Il grillo parlante di Soiano, Il melograno di Salò, Locanda Santa Giulia di Padenghe, and Splendi Sole e Tenesi di Manerba.
Also participating were 14 wineries: Avanzi, Berardi, Franzosi, Valtenesi e Lugana, Redaelli, Pasini Produttori, Monte Cicogna, Cà Granda-Leali, Monterotondo-Cavalli, Marangona, Zuliani, Spia d’Italia, La Torre, and Masserino.
Future prospects and fish varieties
This marks the second stage of the gastronomic program that is expected to engage the Lake Garda culinary season of 2000.
It is expected, because after the third event already scheduled with the Coregone Festival in September, it may be possible to promote evenings with tastings of extra virgin olive oil from the Brescia shore of Lake Garda.
This idea arose during the presentation evening, during which the Provincial Councillor expressed his willingness to support it.
Nevertheless, sardine and perch remain the “principals” of this gastronomic stage, two highly prized species, especially as they are currently offering their best delicacies of quality and meat, along with abundant fishing.
Once again, lake fish was paired with rosé wine, although, in our view, with those exceptional fried perch fillets with zucchini flowers and sweet-spicy vegetable mustard, it should absolutely be served and paired with a white wine, perhaps Lugana DOC.
Appreciation for Lake Garda cuisine
Everyone agrees on the need to offer more culinary initiatives along the Brescia shores of Lake Garda (with uniform pricing among all restaurants), capable of showcasing and appreciating not only the various fish species present in Lake Garda but also the skillful art that our chefs can present, without fearing other more renowned national or television chefs.
In the future, we might see, strictly following the natural fishing phase, events dedicated to eels, marinated carp, bleak (whose meat is truly exceptional), pikeperch, and lake trout, as well as carp, tench, etc.
These events, which would spark renewed public interest in Lake Garda cuisine, should be paired with wines — white, red, rosé, and young wines — best suited to each dish.
The evening at Santa Giulia demonstrated once again that each dish must be paired with the appropriate wine, served in a suitable glass.
Conclusion and enhancement of culinary art
The art of cooking is neither invented nor improvised, so the increasing number of venues along our Lake Garda shores that are making culinary art their identity, history, is very welcome; Santa Giulia is one of these.