It's the last post from Italy, and as I am writing this days ahead of time, I hope that by the time it posts I am also blogging from Ireland. We shall see! But it feels a little sad to let go of the Italy vacation and consign it to fond memory. Alas. Ah well.
So then, let's go out with a bang. Or, rather, a meal. The most refined of all our meals in Italy, in this case, a tasting dinner at Lorto at our hotel, the Nordelaia.
I was so looking forward to this meal. We had had a full day in between it and our big meal at Filario, so we were up for another big meal. Happily, the portions made more sense for a tasting meal, and while we were full, we didn't have difficult nights of sleep from it all. But we sure did eat well. The most interesting thing I had in Italy was a dessert course. The service was exceptionally polished. The setting was gorgeous. It was a serene experience, and if Conrad, Van, and I didn't chat as much as we might, it's because we truly were drinking it all in.
The three of us got into our pretty outfits for one last time in Italy,
paused to admire the Piedmont sunset,
and then strolled over to the restaurant building for a drink before dinner. We each tried a different gin - their selection was remarkable - and I enjoyed a local choice
paired with some tonic.
That started off the evening right for us before we headed upstairs to the dining room.
The menu offered three tasting menus: vegetarian, seafood, and chef's choice. We opted for that last one because it was vacation and why not? And they did right by us, though it was a dinner heavy on seafood, leaving us wishing a tiny bit that they had swapped out one or two of the seafood options for the vegetarian for the sake of the variety. Still, we soldiered on, if you can even say that.
That pristine kitchen
sent out one excellent thing after another:
An amuse of a delicious broth that I cannot remember more about.
Lightly sweet and savoury fried treats like doughnut holes.
An amuse of a piece of sashimi grade fish on a "crumpet" and carrot tartare.
A glorious tartare of San Marzano tomato with a pistachio gazpacho. This was the first real course, and it was a winner.
Baby octopus. So pretty.
Dry aged fish crudo with a hazelnut gazpacho. Van, I should add, does not care for raw fish or for some other seafood, but he will try it. And he liked this one. I loved this dish.
Plin, a filled pasta whose sauce included sea urchin.
A risotto that was a bit too intensely flavoured for Conrad and Van.
Dry aged fish with two sauces that included a fish head caramel.
Loved the sauce! Even better - and I have never had this experience at a restaurant - they served it with little rolls and told us that the intention was to use the bread to mop up the sauces.
I mean we all do that, so thank you for the blessing!
Melon sorbet with tomato water. A palate cleanser that kind of blew my mind. What a pairing!
A dessert of sea buckthorn gelato (or was it sorbet?) and samphire with that I swear they said was white chocolate.
OK, this was so cool. First off, damn beautiful to look at. But the flavours were so interesting. The sea buckthorn was tart and a bit bitter. Other parts balanced that with sweetness and creaminess, but there was also a hint of salt and the sea in there. The most intriguing dish I had in Italy.
And, of course, some sweet treats at the end.
We slowly went through a bottle of a 1998 Nebbiolo after a good read of the extensive wine list and some consultation. I am pretty sure I had an amaro one more time as well. I don't recall having coffee. It doesn't matter. This was such a beautiful meal to share with Conrad and Van and cap our last night in Piedmont with. A delight, through and through.
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