In this issue: KILLER mushrooms, DEATH by eggs, GREEN olives, mud, weddings and FURRY animals...oh, and we SAVE the World!
A note from The Editor
Verity is continuing her stewardship of our newsletter, adding this responsibility to her duties as mum, super-chef, chicken-girl, horticultural hack, jam-maker, master-baker, and dog-walker. She's produced another little gem here. Sorry it's such a long time since the last one. My fault entirely. I'm a bit busy too. Enjoy.
Simon - Ed
Funghi-fest
Welcome to the November edition of
Podere Patrignone's newsletter. Yes, I wrote this in November and I have been waiting for our “Editor” to pull his finger out and do his thing. And now it’s January! And so much has happened in the last 2 months that most of my work will have to be written, darn it! Curse you Editor! [Sorry! - Ed]
You may remember that our last newsletter began with a slightly frenzied report on the lack of water last autumn and winter…..no such problem this winter. No siree. All we’ve had since November is rain, rain, and more rain. Outside where Simon has been working on the new biomass heating plant there’s almost a foot of mud. So, damp, muddy, cold. Yes, we might as well be back in Ol’Blighty.
The only people who’ve been really happy with the weather are the mushroom pickers. As I take the mutts for their daily constitutional, I am overwhelmed by the number of funghi in an incredible variety of shapes and sizes. All the local old boys are out in their droves (when they’re not trying to shoot stuff) and picking bags of them. This is obviously a tricky, and potentially fatal, hobby and requires great patience and skill, which is why I’m always worried when Simon gets his book out and says, “Let’s eat this one”. For now we are just enjoying looking at them all and keeping a safe distance, especially after hearing the tragic story of family in Pisa fed bad ‘uns by the dad on a home-made pizza.
Oh and Winter also means waking to the sound of gunshots at 6am, 5 days a week. This includes Sunday (our only opportunity for a lie-in), deep joy! However, I mustn’t complain too heartily as some charming hunters brought me over 3 kilos of wild boar meat a couple of weeks ago which has been stewed and devoured. - V.
Olive-tastic
When I first wrote this back in November [again, sorry—Ed] we were still in the thick of our harvest. The lack of water over the summer meant the olives just weren't ripening. We normally pick our olives when they are between green and black (like the olives in the photo above). So this put Simon in a difficult position. Wait a bit longer in the hope that the olives ripen a little more, but risk worsening weather and a more difficult harvest. Or, pick now, make less oil (green olives produce less oil) and risk a bitter product because the olives are unripe.
In the end, the weather won. At the beginning on November there was a really strong wind, and more than a half of the olives in one field disappeared over-night. So Simon started picking straight away.
However, we needn't have worried. Yes we made less oil than we were expecting, but the oil itself is fantastic. Very spicy indeed this year, and fantastic on lightly toasted fresh bread.
We’re still shipping the 2011 oil to those who want oil that’s not too strongly flavoured for salads and cooking, but the 2012 will have settled down by the early summer and we’ll start shipping that too.
If you want to buy either, please email us and will sort everything out and get it couriered to your door. We’re shipping oil all over the world on a weekly basis to people who want to get their hands on the real deal. Remember, real olive oil and supermarket olive oil (even the expensive stuff in fancy bottles) is NOT the same thing. - V.
[I am in the middle of a massive rant on Facebook about Jamie Oliver’s so-called “olive oil” but they are all the same. Unbelievable that this crapola is still being bought and sold and fed to young children. It’s bad, bad, bad.—Ed]
Patrignone saves planet
At last! Something we can do with the crumbling shell of a building behind our house. For years we've been caught between two stools: put a roof on it, but be forced to demolish immediately it as it doesn't have planning permission, or demolish it, and lose those lovely hand-built stone walls forever.
In late November [yes, I know, this was a very different story when Verity first wrote it...Ed] me, Nicu & my builders started construction work for our new biomass & solar heating plant.
Yes, there was a lot of red tape, applications, forms, stamps, signatures, and money. But I'm getting used to all this now, and while it wasn't exactly stress free, I didn't lose a lot of hair in the process.
Inside will be a highly efficient, state of the art, biomass-burning boiler (logs or wood-chips) and above will be thermal solar panels. Between the two we will be able to provide hot water and heating all year around without panicking over extortionate, and ever increasing, LPG costs. And because our fuel source is renewable (the trees grow, we cut the trees, we burn the trees, the trees grow back, and so on), it means that very soon now we’ll be carbon positive. All our electricity needs (and more) are covered by the PV solar farm, and now we’re no longer consuming fossil fuels for our heat.
I say “soon” with a certain amount of trepidation. In a week our boiler arrives. It weights 1000kg (this is very heavy), and somehow, we have transport the boiler and the two 2m high1500L water tanks across a swamp of mud a foot deep. We have a plan involving tractors, palate shifters, and bits of scaffolding pole, but am nervous of discussing these plans in public for fear of ridicule.
In any case, even when/if we have the components in place, it’ll take a couple of weeks to plumb in before we go live.
So, maybe it’ll get used a bit this winter, maybe not. Either way I know we’ve completed our renewable energy plans, and just about within our 5-year plan.
And from now on our guests will be able to off-set the carbon from their flights to Italy just by staying here.
Finally, the guilt-free Tuscan holiday we've been promising our planet-conscious customers. - S
Wedding bells
Having given ourselves a bit of a break from weddings in 2011, we made up for it in 2012. We do love a good wedding but each one turns us a little greyer and adds a few extra wrinkles. We did our biggest ever in June with the lovely Brits, Simon & Kayleigh. Kayleigh, it has to be said, could be the best organised bride the world has ever seen, which led to a very painless, stress-free wedding where we actually enjoyed ourselves as well as worked (& sweated) like demons.
Our second wedding was more intimate with a wonderful, musical bunch of creative Canadians. Our bride, Marissa, was a bridesmaid here a few years ago and we were delighted when she chose Patrignone as her ideal spot to tie the knot with the gorgeous John. We will always remember the sound of Marissa’s family rehearsing their music in our front gazebo as we ran around doing our preparations. Magical (where’s my CD!?)
And not forgetting Rino & Kirsty who stayed here for their wedding week whilst having their reception off site. A lovely Australian group, partly of Italian decent and with the best behaved and charming boys on the planet! Congratulations to you all and we’re hoping to see you all back for an anniversary or two. - V.
Remember the summer...? If you are lucky enough to be in Tuscany in May, you must not miss the Iris & Rose festivals in Florence, just spectacular. I finally made it this year before everything had gone over!
Death by scrambled eggs
So here they are! After much talk and little action we finally got around to getting ourselves a brood of chickens. Not only are they fun to have around and an attraction for the kids but, allegedly, they would provide us with eggs.
Simon spent many an hour researching thoroughly all the various coop options and decided to build our own. With Nicu’s help, in just a couple of days, a veritable chicken Duomo was constructed.
We visited our local man, supplier of, allegedly, laying chickens and chose two each of three varieties. Despite the warnings of another local chicken buyer not to go for Livornese (the white ones) as they tend to be naughty And fly off, I didn’t think anything could be naughtier than our kids, so I picked them anyway.
We held a nail biting vote on Facebook to choose the names for said 6, the only stipulation being they had to begin with A. Introducing Annie, Agnes, Agatha, Adele, Annouska and Alexia. I believe that myself and my nieces are the only ones who know which are which and I wouldn’t bet the life of a child on it.
Naturally, I immediately stopped buying eggs and waited patiently for them to settle in to their new, palatial surroundings. And I waited, and waited, and waited. Then we got a couple, then none. Then a few more, then none. Then 5 or 6 a day (more like it…..must have been all that talk of the pot) but then, again, none! We did not get enough for our own needs let alone enough to sell a few to hopeful guests. And these are the fussiest chickens on the earth! They only eat certain kinds and colour of scraps, leaving the rest to go manky.
Anyway, despite being warned by everyone that our chooks would stop laying in the winter, and after a further pot-related chat with a couple of slackers, I am still getting 5 or 6 eggs a day and am making fresh pasta, frittata and custard like there’s no tomorrow (when there will probably be no eggs). We have so many eggs we are getting thoroughly sick of them and have started freezing them. Hey ho.
This secret stash of eggs was found beneath their hut. They’d been squirreling away their produce for days, no doubt planning to exchange them for booze or tobacco or bribe a guard into helping them escape.
Vegetable gardening & other vices
This is the result of more hard graft on the part of Simon and the tireless Nicu. Phase two of my vegetable garden was completed in time for spring planting. Made from our very own cypress trees, these are much prettier and a darn site cheaper than phase 1!
Believe it or not, manure is like gold dust in these parts. How many cows, sheep, horses have you seen in Chiantishire!? And so, beggars can’t be choosers. Nicu and I had to dig well rotted, rather beautiful, goats pooh from a fantastic cashmere goat farm near Radda (well worth a visit). Fine if you are strong and in your twenties, not quite so easy for someone a little more mature and of the fairer sex.
I am dearly hoping that my chickens will help alleviate that necessity this year. For six smallish creatures they do produce an incredible amount of ghastly-smelling poop, which I believe is some of the best fertilizer you can have. However, if there’s one thing I have leant in 2012, it is not to count on your chickens!
Recipe
Crostini Fiorentino
This is a recipe from an old aristocratic Tuscan family that I don’t believe I have seen anywhere but in their home. It is extremely simple but delicious and an excellent appetizer at any time of year. Oh and it uses eggs!
To serve 6
1 baguette
4 fresh organic eggs
1 large beef tomato
1 tsp of rinsed capers
3 tbsp green herbs
Salt, Pepper
Extra virgin olive oil
Start by boiling your eggs for 10 minutes and then placing in a bowl of cold water. Finely chop your tomato, capers and herbs and mix well. Peel and chop the eggs and then mash, wish a fork, in to the herb mixture. Add salt, oil and pepper to taste. Refridgerate for at least one hour before serving.
Slice your baguette in to 1.5cm (1/2 inch) slices and toast. Generously spread to egg mixture on top and drizzle more oil before serving.
Forever on the lookout for new and interesting places to eat , we would like to thank Hans for recommending La Bottega del 30 in Villa a Sesta. This is a Michelin star restaurant that lives up to the star. It is a good 45-50 minute drive from here and not a cheap meal but we were not disappointed. It is a beautiful setting with a small internal courtyard and dining area. Unpretentious and relaxed, this is worth a visit if you are celebrating whilst you are in Tuscany. www.labottegadel30.it
Who’s in the house?
It was a truly sad day in November when our Pammy packed her bags for the last time and left us for more fun and exciting things. However, she did ensure that she had provided us with an able replacement for 2013 so mustn't grumble! It is a dirty, sweaty job but someone has got to do it. Anyway, Pammy, we would like to thank you for your tremendous efforts over the last two seasons with us. I will miss our kitchen cocktails! And warm welcome to Anika who will be arriving, from Germany, in March.
As always, our animals have proved to be far more popular than us…...it’s OK, we’re used to it and we understand. They are much sweeter. When people get in touch after their visit it is not usually for anything other than to ask us how Charlie & Lola are doing, or to send us some snaps of them.
Well, they are both doing nicely thank you. Funnily enough they have both begun to shed a few pounds since the end of the season…...now why could that be!? Despite our pleas and firm instructions, both in person and in our Big Book, we were ignored and our dogs (and the cat for that matter) got very fat in the summer of 2012…….you know who you are!!
Not only were they fed by extremely disobedient guests but they were also invited in to/ encouraged to enter apartments and, I am led to believe, on to beds! This is utterly unacceptable and we know who you are and if you want to come back contracts will be signed, in blood.
The poor doggies are missing the wealth of fuss and attention as well as the wonderful walks our guests drag them on, and I am trying my best to take them off for a good ramble or run each day.
Sam took this photo below of Lola which I think shows great artistic promise! Oh by the way, Lola is available as honorary bridesmaid for a small fee. [Not so small, actually—Ed]
Billy the pigeon is still here despite risk posed by local nutters with guns. The cat has a nasty cough (too many cigarettes) but is otherwise fit and well. She spends most days staring at Billy from about 1m (and 4 panes of glass) away.
And the fish? The fish are huddled together in a big group in the centre of the pond, waiting for Spring. As are we.
And there you have it.
Was it worth the wait? Unlikely, but thank you anyway for getting this far. You’re very kind.
We’ll try and do this 2 or three times a year—I’ll give it my best shot anyway.
There’s a bunch of links here where you can stay in touch with things on a more regular basis, and I may even steal Simon’s blog as, frankly, he’s been pretty useless with that too. [Hear, hear! - Ed]
Until then, we wish you all the best and look forward to seeing you out here one day soon.
Ta-ta for now, and thank you. [Thank you too darlin’! - Ed]
Verity
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