White Wine | Barr & Table

Did you see my guest post today on Eating Bird Food? So glad to share some of my honeymoon experiences while she’s away on her honeymoon!

Maybe it should be what I drank Wednesday..? But let’s be honest, you can’t drink in Italy without being fed some amazingly delicious home-cooked food!

When we were at Pedroni for the balsamic tasting, we met another group of people that were also tasting and touring a la Anthony Bourdain recommendations. They told us about a biodynamic, organic winery called Cosimo Maria Masini where we could have a similar experience. Wine tasting with a multi-course meal? Done!

Not only were we in for good food and wine, but also for incredible views of Tuscany. I kept snapping pictures and telling Nathan that no matter what I did, the pictures could never do any justice for the breathtaking sights.

One of the managers gave us a tour of the grounds and each of the buildings where they age and harvest their wine. He went into great detail about the biodynamic process; it is a chemical-free process that “tries to regenerate the soil and the plants, through organic activators which help plants to find their own nutrients in the soil.”

After the tour, it was time to eat! We sat down with the manager and his father, who was visiting from Naples. It was just the four of us enjoying a homemade meal.

First Course
Charcuterie of sopressata and 2 kinds of salami paired with the Daphne, an unfiltered white wine that is processed with the skins to give it an orange tint. The process gives this wine a bit more flavor than a typical white.

Second Course
A delicious ragu paired with the Cosimo. Still in love with the ragu and totally missing it everyday. Again, this just melted in your mouth and light meat sauce was the perfect accompaniment.

Entree
Braised beef and potatoes paired with the Nicolo; this was a more robust red wine that stood up to the stronger flavor of the beef. The beef had great flavor and fell apart the second the fork touched it. No knives here!

Dessert
Blackberry tart. It had the perfect crumbly crust and wasn’t overly sweet. I can almost taste it now..

BONUS!
I didn’t snap any pictures, but apparently up until this point, we had been missing out! To finish off your meal in Italy, you are supposed to have a small glass of Trebbiano wine and cantuccio—an almond cookie, similar in shape and texture to biscotti. You dip the cookie into your wine and sip slowly as you’re eating the cookies. It is the perfect way to end a meal.

We walked out of there with two bottles of Nicolo and two bottles of the Trebbiano. And incredibly full stomachs! When people ask what my favorite part of the honeymoon was, I tell them I don’t have one, single favorite. I just can’t choose. Visiting Cosimo Maria Masini was just one more of my top experiences that I adored. And speaking of adoring something, I leave you with the sign below found at the winery.