Garda Cooking Course with Local Chefs, Wineries and Tasting Tours

A brief Gardesan cooking course designed for tourists. It takes place every Wednesday in Lazise, until September. It is organized by the “I Ghiottoni” association and Slow Food conduct, in collaboration with the Gruppo Italiano Vini and the Riviera degli Olivi Tourist Office. The schedule involves participants arriving at 10:00 a.m. at the Lamberti wineries. After a guided tour through barrels and barriques, at 10:30 a.m., the two most renowned local chefs, and not only (Flavio Tagliaferro of “Gardesana” in Torri and Isidoro Consolini of “Caval” in Torri), will explain the best ways to prepare some recipes: trout in sauce, sardines in saor, potato gnocchi with tench ragù, salted beef, fogassin on the grill. At 12:30 p.m., there will be a tasting of the dishes and other lake specialties, paired with Lamberti and Santi wines, from the two Giv wineries in Verona province. Reservations can be made at Gabritour in Garda, phone 045-7255555 or 045-6270011 (fax 045-7255802). Participation fee: 70,000 lire. Website www.ighiottoni.it.

Enogastronomic tourism and international training

Enogastronomic tourism is a topical issue. It is also attracting an increasing number of people. After Trentino, Tuscany, and other regions, now the eastern Riviera of the lake is moving from theory to practice. The lessons are held in Italian, German, or English, in order to reach as many vacationers as possible. “Our relations with Trinity College – explains Peretti – bring students to Verona who are aged 40-50. They attend courses on Italian culture, and a section is dedicated to cooking. Seeing the foreigners’ interest in our dishes, we decided to start this initiative. We thank Gruppo Italiano Vini, L’Apt, and the Alba Translation School.”

Giuseppe Lorenzini, president of the Union of Hoteliers, emphasized the “possibility to spend a different and special day, in a magical place, discovering local products, flavors, and pairings.” During a training session specifically for journalists, Tagliaferro explained that perches, cavedani, trout, etc., are an important resource for the restaurant industry (procurement is ensured by about one hundred fishermen). He added that spicing, salting, drying, and marinating still influence the final taste of the ingredients. Peretti concluded by recalling that “I Ghiottoni” and Slow Food are available to organize gastronomic tours in the surrounding areas. The first opportunity involves a guided visit to an oil mill, with tasting and cooking class. A second package is the rice itinerary in Isola della Scala, including a visit to the Melotti rice mill and a tasting at a farm stay. The third offer is “Parmigiano and Mantuan cuisine”, including a stop at a Virgilian cheese dairy and a short course at the Opera Ghiotta.