Those who know me know that when I have to leave the lake to go into town I feel an incredible discomfort. The traffic, the confusion, the noise of the horns, the unbreathable air... and yet Milan has something special in its ability to be the frequent home of fascinating events. Two special events took place this weekend: Horticola 2018 and the Best Wine Star 2018. For me, a wine and orchid enthusiast, what more could you want?
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Horticola 2018
"Orticola is a historical association founded in 1854. In 1865, when the deed of foundation was signed in Milan, it became the Società Orticola di Lombardia, on the model of the Société d'Horticulture de France, with the vocation of handing down the culture of plants, the art of the garden and the vegetable garden, and for the preservation of the spontaneous plant landscape. The aim of the Mostra Orticola, which was reborn for Milan in 1996, is to raise funds for the city's green spaces.
In short, there should be an 'Orticola' in every city: I believe that all Orticola-goers were happy to pay the €11 entrance fee in the knowledge that this is being used for the landscaping and design of public green areas in their city!
The Orticola exhibition has always been held in the Indro Montanelli Gardens, a location I had never visited and found a real relief from the 'greyness' of the Milanese streets and buildings.
I found these roses to be a wonderful colour... I had never seen roses with such a beautiful colour! I have recently tried my hand at rose cultivation with a beautiful burgundy-coloured David Austin that Paolo Pozzo of Vivai Pozzo near Santhià gave me. I hope to succeed in making it bloom: between frosts, storms and caterpillars the buds have been struggling for over a month to show me their splendour!
I think these are dwarf Japanese maples or something very similar... I think they would look very good in my garden by the lake, as long as they don't grow too big because if they blur my vision then I have to turn them into bonsai trees!
Speaking of bonsai trees, how beautiful they are! I am literally in love with them... although for now I am content with having turned my house into a kind of Thai paradise... but you can always do better!
Well, Tillandsia is a kind of plant that I didn't know about until recently... Or rather I had seen the most common hybrids hundreds of times with orchids, but I didn't think there could be such beautiful ones in terms of vegetation! And so many Kokedama! I grow a Promenea like that and I must say that it is exploding with sprouts and buds!
Overall I must say that I found good exhibitors. The stand of the famous Giancarlo Pozzi of the Orchideria di Morosolo I found underwhelming, to say the least, compared to the expectations I had placed on it. Nothing to buy: little choice of plants, the 'usual' orchids and not even very beautiful plants. I don't publish the photo because it's really not worth it. I hope to see their stand or visit their Orchid Shop again and get a glint in my eye... but from what I saw at Orticola, it was just disappointment!
More interesting is the stand of the SugheretoApart from the 'usual orchids', I saw some rafts here that to say they were delicious would be an understatement. It's a pity that I'm absolutely hopeless with rafts... I could iron even the raft most attached to the waist! Also beautiful were the two orchids they had on display from their private collection!
Finally, the stand of Giulio Celandroni and Elisa Aprili... which was definitely the best stand there was as far as orchids were concerned. Of course there was something overused here too, but the plants made a great impression. I still regret not having taken a maxillaria that smelled of coconut ... but how could you leave this Brassia Ethernal Wind staring at you in the foreground? Wonderful flowers, pity that it doesn't smell like my Brassia Toscana and that it was devastated on the return journey. After all, Giulio told me: 'You're lucky this year, look how sunny it is... last year it rained! I got to the lake and even caught hail... what a lucky girl! Anyway, the beautiful Phalaenopsis that Fabrizio gave me for my birthday has arrived home intact (at least she has) and maybe it's already throwing a stem at me!
I have to say that at Orticola I found an inflation of Anco's Vanda's all over the place... too bad! I still remember the 2 Vanda Anco that I got at the Flover in Bussolengo (the second one was a free gift to replace the first one, which, however, ended up like the first one in even less time!)... they may only cost 40/45 € in the gardens, but they are really money wasted! All those of my grower friends also ended up the same way... so it was certainly not due to my house (also because then the one of Michele Cesi that I had for years was fine!). That's why I really don't want to see them from Italian growers!
And after the short trip to Orticola...
I flew to the first edition of Best Wine Stars!
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Best Wine Stars 2018
How nice when in the same day I can splash from one side to the other and combine my two passions! A very nice location for the Best Wine Stars, the only flaw being the difficulty of parking for people like me who are allergic to public transport! Honestly, I always prefer events that are located in accessible areas with convenient parking spaces nearby that don't ask you a kidney to leave your car there for half a day... but whatever, this area of Milan is beautiful anyway!
But let's talk a bit about wine!!! So let me premise that I was really happy to participate in Best Wine Stars because I discovered some goodies that I really fell in love with! The wine I liked best of all is Abruzzese from the Castel Simoni winery: Lupa Bianca, Riesling Renano. Before this event I had never tasted it! I will not give an opinion on the tasting because I tasted it under less than ideal conditions... but it really is a great wine with a mineral nose, rich in notes of hydrocarbons and aromatic herbs, and a savoury, balanced taste. I admit that I have never considered Abruzzo a land of Riesling: I have always seen it as an Adriatic region of central-southern Italy. Wrongly, I often forget that there are oenologically two regions of Abruzzo: on the one hand the Abruzzo that faces the sea, on the other the mountainous Abruzzo. The products of these two regions cannot but be profoundly different! In short, I hope to taste it even more calmly at home to be able to make a more thorough evaluation!
The second wine I liked best is from theApulian oenologist Giovanni Aiello: a full bubble that I reserve the right to evaluate in the 2019 edition of my Sparkling Wine Guide 500 Bubbles in 500 (which you can buy HERE). An amazing guy with a lot of passion who makes every part of his wine by hand, including the labels! He paints his bottles by hand using a special colour-dyed mould. The result? Every bottle is different and certainly stands out on the shelf of a wine shop! The wines have great drinkability... the bubble is just the bottle to open with friends that flies away in an instant! However, I also enjoyed the rosé very much... here too I reserve the right to do a more in-depth tasting at my leisure and in the right environment! 😍
Another wine I really liked is Najma, the Prosecco Millesimato from Vigna Belvedere named after a boat, which in turn is named after a beautiful Algerian girl. A beautiful story for a prosecco with great balance, crisp and at the same time soft, with characteristic hints of apple, hazelnut and hawthorn and an elegant finish.
My little trip to the Prosecco-producing lands led me to discover another company: Sarah's Vineyards. The girl at the banquet passionately told me about a enchanted place, an organic farm where you can even sleep in barrels equipped with every comfort! Fascinating! As for the wine, Bunches of Moon is a vintage Prosecco that has the particularity of following a night-time harvest. Hill 170 represents a 'more classic' version of Prosecco, more vertical than Grappoli di Luna, but still with great drinkability.
And finally, a greeting to the Tre Gemme is a must, even though in the photo the third bud had not yet arrived and in its place shone the 'gemmo'! I've already said it, but Passerina d'Abruzzo, although not my grape variety, turned out super this year! Perfect for an elegant and disengaged aperitif of rare pleasantness! For more on this winery you can read this article: Communicating Abruzzo wine: backstage between characters, art, land and history.
Finally, I must say that I had a wonderful sandwich, with raw Piedmontese fassona! And I also tasted some delicious kneaded cheeses, but although I took two of them home, I didn't get to take a photo!
What can I say, a really nice day of wine and orchids! I was also happy to meet Patrizio Busa of Tannini Setosi to whom I promised an interview a long time ago, which I am so happy to do this weekend! Finally, the little machines where you put down your glass and select the wines tasted that email you the data sheets are crazy cool and every wine event should use them (I just have to check what they are called, but I will write it down in a comment)!
See you soon,
Chiara
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