Saturday

March 19, 2023

The wind has gone back to its normal, occasional light breeze. We are becoming locals. The 2 Nonnas we pass on our way to our caffè bar are returning our buongiorno with a smile. Today I met Steve and Jeff at the caffè and Antoinella made my cappuccino. Two weeks ago she would place the cup on the counter and if we tried to get up from our table to get it, she would say no, I serve you. Today she said “Jeff” and looked at the cup. As if to say, it’s here, Jeff come get it.

Today we are going to a wine and olive oil tour that Glenn had recommended. It’s outside of Carovigno. L’Essenzza di Puglia. It took us about 45 minutes to get there. The price of gas is just over $7.00 a gallon.

We found the address and pulled down the driveway. Giancarlo was waiting for us. There is a large white stone building on the left as you come down the driveway. Giancarlo lives here with his family.

The olive trees are what you notice at first. They are dark green and very healthy. He explained that the land was part of his wife’s family for 4 generations. She grew up on the Masseria (farm) just over the hill. They moved here and built their home in 2017. Giancarlo said they have 400 olive trees. They are all the same type of olives, small black ones just used for making olive oil. His trees are registered and protected by the olive cooperative of Puglia.

This olive tree is more than 1000 years old. If you look at the circumference of the trunk of the tree, 1 meter (a little more than 3 ft) is 300 years old.

Next we went over to the grape vines. He has a small section right next to the olive trees. He uses vines in other parts of the farm as well. The vines are beginning to start to bud.

Next came the tasting. Giancarlo produces 20,000 bottles of wine each year. He also makes several flavored olive oils. We tasted wine that was paired with a different flavored olive oil. Giancarlo was amazing. He is such a knowledgeable, soft spoken man. He answered all of our questions in excellent English. His fields and home are fantastic. He made us feel as though we were invited guests in his home. We bought several bottles of wine and olive oil to bring home for a taste of Puglia.

Next it was time to find someplace for lunch. It was the bewitching time of 1:30 and it’s riposo. The beautiful town square of Carovigno was deserted.

There were 2 men sitting outside a bar drinking beer. We started to go in the bar. They said it is closed. He asked if we wanted to drink or eat. We said eat. Mind you we are speaking in pantomime. They don’t speak English. We don’t speak Italian. He said follow me I’ll take you to Fantasy. He got in his car and we drove around the square down several streets to Fantasy Cucina.

It wasn’t my idea of a fantasy! It was dark and dingy. We were seated in the dining room. We thought we would just have pizza. Then the owner came and in very fast Italian said a lot that we didn’t understand and it ended with what we thought was antipasto for 4? We shook our heads yes. The next thing we knew she and the waitress were bringing out several plates at a time. Meatballs, cheeses, shrimp, shredded calamari, bread balls, stracciatella, and who knows what! It was 14 dishes and a bread basket. All for 12 Euros each. Jeff had asked her to put our 2 escorts drinks on our tab! They were very thankful.

Some were good, some not so good!

Next stop back to Polignano a Mare. As we passed the soccer stadium, a game was on. Jeff and Susie got out and watched the game. Steve and I went back to the house to put our wine and olive oil away. We made some phone calls and read until dinner.

Next thing we knew, it was time for dinner. It is getting more crowded in town now. Lots of people walking around the streets. We thought we might not get a table for dinner. We walked through our neighborhood to Old Town and found a spot outside at Bella ‘M briana. We shared 2 appetizers and Steve and Jeff had the Sea Bass special and I had spaghetti with clams. Susie had orecchiette with a stracciatella sauce. Everything was delicious!