"From field to table' for Mastrototaro Food is not an abstract concept but a real promise the company makes to the consumer.     We are in BISCEGLIE (Bat), a flourishing land lapped by the waters of the Adriatic Sea. It is precisely between the land and the sea that the preserves of Mastrototaro Food are born, products that symbolise the authenticity of Apulia and the genuine flavour of tradition.     The company has a long entrepreneurial history behind it, which began in 1956 and runs in the agricultural sector.     In 2008, Mastrototaro Food decided to further enhance the raw materials produced on the company's land by transforming them into excellent agro-food preserves. Three decades of expertise in the sector did the rest.     Today it is the three brothers, Mauro, Giulio and Roberto, who with skill and ingenuity run the company, which is certified organic and one of the few in Italy to organise production from scratch. The cicerone of our journey through the delicacies of the Mastrototaro brand is Mauro, who, amidst vast expanses of olive groves and vast fields of cultivated land, tells us about the great effort made to offer the consumer a product in which quality is the undisputed queen.     The cultivation of vegetables according to the ancestral customs of our ancestors and love for nature are the winning elements of the company, which harvests the raw materials by hand and transforms them into preserves in just a few hours.     This makes it possible to preserve the organoleptic qualities of the vegetables, which unleash their goodness and taste delicious just by looking at them. Aubergines, artichokes, mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, olives and courgettes are the raw materials that go well with the extra virgin olive oil produced by the company.     Looking at the farm shop, we seem to be looking at a slightly larger version of grandma's classic larder. A triumph of colours is what presents itself to our eyes as visitors, where we gaze in amazement at the different nuances of the jarred vegetables.     With pride, Mauro explains the company's precise philosophy: to recover the ancient recipes for preserves in order to make them known beyond the borders of Apulia. And so we discover the 'Pric 'o prac', an ancient Molfettese sauce, now impossible to find, made from peppers and tomatoes, or the biscegliese antipasto with artichokes, champignon mushrooms, peppers and olives.     We cannot fail to mention the exquisite artichokes available in several versions. Grilled, stemmed, 'della mamma' or 'pugliese' style: all are exceptional with their tender heart dipped in the golden yellow of extra virgin olive oil. Tradition yes, but also innovation, like the refined lentil and sun-dried tomato mousse that combines the nutritional properties of the legume with the lively flavour of sun-dried tomatoes.      Mastrototaro Food's list of products is a long one. Mauro explains that a company like his, which puts the consumer before turnover, is the result of great teamwork. A team that wins because it plays well in the field. That field that Mastrototaro Food brings in jars directly to our.    

"You have to love what you do to want to do it every day" With this love comes achievement!!!!!  In the picture you don't find the producer, the president, a leader. You find the cross-section of a community-our own!"   An almost 100-year-old winery and an area naturally suited for the production of rich and fine wines. These elements would be enough to describe L'ANTICA CANTINA DI SAN SEVERO (fg) one of the most dynamic and long-lived Apulian wineries in the region.    Telling us the story of Antica Cantina is Ciro Caliendo, the winery's president, whom we meet in the San Severo plant. Behind him, as has happened numerous times before for other historic businesses like this one, is a wall crowded with awards and recognitions, many of which are true historical relics.   The Antica Cantina di San Severo is actually a social winery founded in 1933 and, just as it was a vine, it has its roots in local culture and culture. It is no coincidence that San Severo saw the first Apulian DOC recognized in 1968, a tangible sign of a peasant and winemaking custom that to define millenary is reductive.   The strong point of the Antica Cantina's wine production is not only the synergic and joint work with its members who confer the quality grapes, but it is also represented by a thousand hectares cultivated according to a system of company certification and traceability that contributes to producing wines that represent the harmonious, joyful and elegant synthesis of the typicality of this land.   In the fertile Daunia, the dream of many farmers has come to life: to offer the consumer the sensations that express at the same time the pleasantness and passion that the land of San Severo offers.  It is the way to get to know our history and the culture of the land, toward which all the locals nurture a boundless passion, the same as there is in San Severo DOP.   {IMAGE_0}{IMAGE_1}   San Severo Bianco as early as 1932, was recognized as a typical local wine. Castrum San Severo Bianco is made from a blend of Bombino, Trebbiano and a touch of Malvasia. Rosso and Rosato round out the San Severo DOP offering. The Castrum Rosso is a wine with just the right structure. It releases aromas of plums and black cherry that blend with the floral of violets and cyclamen. Castrum Rosato" with its delicacy offers a fruity, intense bouquet with hints of peach to satisfy even the most sensitive palate.   With the Nobiles line we find the typical varietals. Noble and positively austere is the Nobiles IGP obtained from Nero di Troia grapes, one of the native vines of lands cultivated on the slopes near the Gargano. With its almost impenetrable color, Nobiles Nero di Troia has a full-bodied but refined structure and a taste of red fruits and spices that intrigue and intoxicate the palate.    

It was the beginning of the 1960s when Vittorio Fiume made his first experiments with liqueurs and almond milk in a small artisan laboratory.   Animated by his passion for Puglia, at the time he was probably unaware that those artisanal attempts of his would have transformed over time into an Apulian brand known throughout the world. The history of the Fiume brand is a story that speaks of love.   Love for Puglia, for herbs, spices and infusions. Located in the industrial area of Putignano, a town famous for its ancient Carnival, the Fiume plant today produces highly appreciated drinks in the liqueur and non-alcoholic sector.   The Fiume brand liqueurs communicate the link with the territory, starting with the raw materials. As Caterina Fiume, Vittorio's daughter and brand research and development manager, explains to us, one of the first liqueurs to bear her father's signature is the "Elisir dei Trulli", whose name evokes a miraculous potion and amazes with the enveloping flavor of the alcoholic and aromatic notes.   Chocolate, rum, hazelnut and coffee are some of the scents of the Elisir dei Trulli, which offer the consumer a sensory journey that delights the palate with warm and intense flavours. The "Amaro Pugliese", famous contemporary of Elisir dei Trulli, is famous because it conveys Apulian character not only in the name but also in the choice of raw materials.   And so in the Officinal Teriaca of Amaro Pugliese we discover mint, fennel, sage, artichoke, citrus fruits and so on. All raw materials from the area, transformed to create a amaro that speaks of customs and collective memory.   While she tells us about Amaro Pugliese, Caterina takes out a small box with some of the herbs used. And so, next to the mint, a native herbaceous plant, we notice the China Succirubra which instead comes from Ecuador, the Rhubarb, typical of China and the Quassio of Jamaica. And it's incredible how a single liqueur can contain entire portions of the world while remaining tied to tradition.   {IMAGE_0}{IMAGE_1}   Tradition that is also expressed in the "Limoncello", produced according to the ancient recipe of Caterina's grandmother and which seals a little secret handed down from generation to generation. Remaining on the side of alcoholic beverages, "Amarum" is another Fiume brand creation that mixes territoriality and international influences.   In Amarum, Jamaican rum sublimates the infusion of local spices and nuts. A amaro so precious as to be recognized at the SIAL in Paris in 2008 as one of the 100 most innovative products, and awarded at the 2020 Rome Bar Show for being able to make the most of the excellence of the territory.   For those who don't like alcohol, there is a decidedly tasty alternative. It is the "Almond Milk", born as a syrup, now also in the delicious ready-to-drink version, Mandorlè, and which is produced by extraction using only and exclusively sweet Apulian almonds.   Yet another trait of attachment to its origins of a brand that, with one foot in Puglia and one in the world, takes its drinks beyond national borders.    

Immense marble quarries surround the vineyards of CANTINE LE GROTTE, a winery in Apricena (fg).     The small village, located close to the Gargano, is famous for the quality of its stone and its excellent wine, and is appreciated for its fertile soil and pleasant climate. At the winery we breathe the scent of centuries, of the history that has made this area important and of the tradition that survives and makes its way through progress.     Guiding us on this journey between stone and wine is Biagio Cruciani, the winery's sales manager, who tells us about a strongly identity-driven enterprise whose birth is inextricably linked to that of the town. Apricena is "attached" to the history of its stone, and that of Cantine Le Grotte embraces the local marble tradition.     It is in the Dell'Erba family quarries that the vineyards from which the wine is produced are planted. The family's marble-making tradition is also imprinted on the company logo: a large block of stone split by a vine, two elements of nature that coexist with each other.     It is from the living rock, from the fertile earth, that the story of Cantine Le Grotte's plant was born, immersed in nature and surrounded by greenery. It is a palette of colors that is presented to our eyes. The white of the nearby stone quarries allows the green of the landscape to triumph with its immense seasonal hues, while the blue of the sky divides the green of the sea from Lake Lesina and the Tremiti Islands in the background.     The vineyards are located in the foothills of the Gargano and are rooted in mineral-rich limestone soils, the same soils in which the best Apricena stone is grown. The winery produces excellent native red wines such as Nero di Troia and Primitivo along with international varietals such as Merlot and Sirah that have adapted well to the area's warm, temperate climate. Respect for the area of origin is one of the characteristics in which the winery continually invests.     Its philosophy espouses a concept of cultivation in which nature does the work. The link with Apricena is also told through the names of the wines.     Petrata, for example, is vinified in red from the Nero di Troia grape variety or in white from Bombino and is the "Italianized" version of the dialect term for quarry. The red has powerful hints of blackberry, while the white is finer and fruitier. Selva della Rocca, vinified in red (Primitivo and Nero di Troia), rosé (Nero di Troia) and white (Falanghina) is named after the Santa Maria Selva della Rocca Sanctuary in Apricena, probably built between the 8th and 9th centuries by Benedictine monks, and all are fine wines with intense, fruity and floral aromas.     Not to be missed are the bubbles in Charmat and Merlot Classico versions, and completing the line is the Sico high catering version identified by a label depicting a medieval coin called "Sicone" from the Lombard period found in existing vineyards. Wines that symbolize gratitude and respect for this land and are inspired by it to offer the consumer all their goodness.    

A wonderful village, known as the Pearl of Gargano, stands on a bluff overlooking the crystal clear sea, kissed by white sand and embraced by towering rocky cliffs.     We are in Peschici, and in this incredible landscape that smells of salt and Mediterranean vegetation, GARGANO DELIZIE® was born, an artisan distillery that shares the history of the territory through its products.      Started in 2002 by Michele and Patrizia Caputo, the couple immediately based their production on quality and craftsmanship, resulting in a series of unique creations. Crossing the threshold of the small laboratory, we are immediately attracted to the tanks containing delicious infusions and delighted by the contagious enthusiasm that Michele and Patrizia have for their work.     Production takes place in Ischitella (fg), a town a few kilometres from Peschici, but the salespoint is found in the historic city centre of Peschici (fg), in an area brimming with tasty shops full of local goodness. The Peschici shop also offers other local specialities and traditional gastronomy, such as jams, preserves, pâtés, and much more, offering a variety of products that fully reflects our culinary culture.   {IMAGE_0}{IMAGE_1}   Sharing all the unique characteristics of a territory, passing down its traditions and unearthing its cultural heritage, is a great undertaking. Each liqueur by Gargano Delizie (of which there are about forty) is born from a careful study of the local traditional recipes, but most importantly from the scrupulous search for raw materials that are processed according to the artisanal and homemade methods used by our ancestors. Michele and Patrizia tell us about their flagship product, the "Amaro della Suocera", a sweet elixir from 1900 also known as the “cherry of the grandmothers".     "Amaro della Suocera" is made with local Primitivo wine and black cherry juice, and it was their 90-year-old uncle who shared its ancient secrets with them. Patrizia also tells us about their "Amico", another greatly enjoyed liqueur dedicated to their customers to celebrate 18 years of production.     The idea came from a childhood memory of her grandfather dunking a slice of peach into his glass of wine. That's why "Amico" is made with Falanghina PGI wine and Gargano peaches, an elixir in which the goodness of the fruit is enhanced by the alcohol. In this family-run workshop, two other products must be mentioned: the "Lemolivo", a lemon liqueur made with local orange peels and olive leaves which infuse it with a green colour reminiscent olives, and the "Gargano's” artisan beer, developed from a recipe by Michele and Patrizia that includes, among other ingredients, peels from the Gargano bitter orange.     A product that symbolises the territory in its very label: a pearl resting in an oyster with a historical “trabucco” fishing machine, with citrus fruits crowning the beautiful Pearl of Gargano.  

The journey to Noci (ba), a small town in the pleasant Murgia hills where Cantine Barsento is located, is studded with natural landscapes that stretch as far as the eye can see, breathtakingly beautiful. In this unspoilt territory, a winery was born more than fifty years ago that, as the current Sole Director Rocco Colucci tells us, 'translates the essence of Puglia into wine'.     Cantine Barsento is a lively winery founded in 1969 with a visionary mission for the time: to promote quality wines from the Nocese countryside alone. What makes this winery so special and unique is something that, once you cross the threshold of the establishment, you do not expect to find: about one thousand square metres of underground cellar dug into the limestone rock and 15 metres deep.     A true oenological jewel that amazes for its unexpected beauty, with its tunnels and perfectly organised cells that enclose true and precious treasures of our winemaking tradition. The function of the underground cellar is to obtain a wine aged in the rock cellar, ensuring that there is precise control of temperature and humidity.     The indigenous grape varieties are Primitivo, Malvasia and Negramaro: grapes chosen for their expression of territoriality, authenticity and specificity and whose quality is further sublimated through an exclusively manual harvesting process.   {IMAGE_0}{IMAGE_1}   Cantine Barsento's labels (they are divided between IGP and DOC) are not simply wine products, but are much more: they represent the passion for quality grapes and their bond with nature, the sole creator of the rare characteristics of each raw material.     Intense and generous is the Paturno, a ruby with a complex and at the same time sweetish bouquet typical of the Primitivo from which it comes, or the Ladislao, a pure Negramaro that is impenetrable, almost gloomy. It has mature, decidedly virile aromas, is aged in oak barrels and is a wine for those who love to surprise and be surprised.     If we wanted to give it a personification, Casaboli would certainly be a woman with an elegant appearance and refined intelligence. Made from Primitivo, this DOC is a wine of depth that blends its pleasantness with tannicity. Playful, fresh, sweet. This is Primitivo Malicchia Mapicchia, a meditation nectar of great vinosity on the palate, aged for a year and pleasant for any culinary combination.     Cantine Barsento's winemaking tradition also runs on the catering track through the Bamì restaurant. The mission? To fuse two incredible arts: the art of cooking and the art of winemaking and bring them together in one form, Bamì. The restaurant is located inside Cantine Barsento and espouses the concept of enhancing raw materials and dishes that respect the organoleptic properties of the ingredients. A concept that, if we dare say so, is clothed in sacredness.     The same that has always accompanied those who, in various forms, work the products of the earth with respect and devotion.    

Along the path that crosses the fascinating natural landscape of the Regional Natural Park 'Terra delle Gravine' one arrives at Mottola, a municipality in the province of Taranto called 'Spia dello Ionio' (Ionian Sea Beach) due to its panoramic geographical position that embraces the entire Gulf of Taranto and the splendid Ionian Sea with an area rich in natural ravines and rocky villages. In this enchanting landscape one encounters a genuine reality dedicated to the production of wine and grain.     We are talking about Masseria Liuzzi located in contrada Marinara, which now has a sales outlet in via Risorgimento in Mottola.     A combination of passion, commitment and spirit of sacrifice, whose protagonists are Marcello Latorrata and Barbara Lattarulo. The couple, who inherited the business from the Latorrata family, carry on, day after day, a tradition that has been handed down for four generations.     It all started more than a century ago with a different name, 'I Casidd d Liuzzi', with a cereal-livestock focus. The metamorphosis into Masseria Liuzzi took place with the transition to wine production on a predominantly calcareous land covering approximately 10 hectares. The quality of the products is also guaranteed by the altitude of about 270 metres above sea level, a good temperature range between day and night and adequate ventilation.     Masseria Liuzzi's wine is a product that fully reflects the Apulian territory: the vineyards are transformed into wine grapes by a natural process. The result is a primitivo with an unmistakable flavour, processed in purity. We are one of the few wineries in Apulia to treat in purity also the rosé, which at Masseria Liuzzi is a primitivo to all intents and purposes, as it preserves the same alcohol content as the red primitivo.     What makes the Mottola-based company's wines unique are also the names on the labels. Products that tell their own story. Starting with the primitives, we find the 'Marnera', which recalls the Marinara district in dialect, literally meaning 'land covered by the sea', the 'Tuppétt', which owes its name to a small hillock on the Masseria Liuzzi where the vines overlook the property.     The last on this list is 'Rosasso', whose name derives from the combination of the colour of rosé wine and the limestone soil on which the vines stand, in which marine fossils can be found whenever there is ploughing or soil movement.     Added to these are 'Scinò', a black malvasia whose name is a fusion of the malvasia vine and the word 'malvagia', a reference to that magic that in Apulia is immediately linked to the so-called 'affascino' and, to end on a high note, 'Bolloro', a fiano that pays homage to Frederick II of Swabia, a fiano lover who issued the Golden Bull in Rimini back in 1235.     Equally characteristic is the production of wheat, which takes place with full care in each of its phases. After periodic ploughing, sowing and harvesting, the wheat is taken to a pasta factory in Matera, where the traditional formats that can be found in the Masseria Liuzzi shop are created.     Cavatelli and orecchiette are at the top of the shelves, strictly bronze-drawn pasta using 'Senatore Cappelli' flour.      Depending on soil conditions, then, the farm's production also periodically turns to pulses, especially chickpeas.     In the characteristic Apulian landscape, made up of natural ravines and rocky villages, lies the soul of Masseria Liuzzi, which among oaks, olive trees and wheat, represents the soul of Apulia.  

A typical mildly hilly Murgia landscape, made more barren by the paths of the karst blades that furrow its path. We are in ACQUAVIVA DELLE FONTI (ba), a small village in Puglia that, like a precious ancient mosaic, delights visitors with its beauty.     In this area that encloses ancient farms surrounded by the inimitable dry-stone walls, trulli and underground caves, the Iannone Farm was founded in 1996, producing the Red Onion and the Red Sponzale of Acquaviva delle Fonti flanked by the Black Chickpea of the Murgia Carsica, a triad of goodness that over the years has won the coveted Slow Food Presidium.     Leading us on this journey that speaks of traditional and incredibly territorial productions is Vito Abrusci, farm manager, whom we meet directly in the field in one of the districts that hosts the cultivation of onion, sponzale and black chickpea following the dictates of organic farming.     One can speak of a genuine advantage that such areas offer to this type of product due to the uniqueness of the organic richness that positively impacts the land. The excellent quality of the deep, potassium-rich, well-drained and aerated soils allow these crops to be born and grow abundantly, preserving all the incredible organoleptic and beneficial characteristics contained by nature.     The cultivation and harvesting of the Iannone company's red onion is manual, and the product is distinguished by its flattened shape and weight that are difficult to replicate. In this vegetable, the outer color is clearly distinguishable, evoking a palette of beautiful shades ranging from red to magenta almost purple and then showing the pale pink interior fading to white.     The sweet taste and intense aroma make the Red Onion perfect for fresh consumption or as a processed product. Speaking of red onion, we cannot fail to mention the sponzale, which is the bulb that is born by reproduction from the mature onion. The company cultivates it according to traditional methods, and the sponzale, also known as sponsale, keeps the delicate and light flavor of the onion intact.     An ancient vegetable whose name of Latin origin evokes the flatbread that was eaten during the sponsàlia, the ceremony that celebrated the future spouses. To think that the black chickpea of the Murgia Carsica has gone into space is something that leaves one astonished. The space chickpea, in every sense of the word, was chosen for its incredible properties for astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti's soup.     It is different from other legumes because of its dark color and hooked, wrinkled shape. Already known in the nineteenth century, Vito explains that Black Chickpea has always been the staple of the agricultural diet as a substitute for meat, at that time a food prerogative only of wealthy families.     The "poor man's meat," as the legume was once called, is palatable and very rich in fiber and iron. A peasant food that opens the door to a wonderful land.