A CathPost!™

In Naples, we visited another impressive commission of the Bourbon King Charles III, the Teatro di San Carlo. It was opened in 1737 and for a long while was the largest opera house in the world. All the great musicians of the time performed there. It is now the oldest opera house still in operation. The royal box could accommodate 10 guests, and the other 184 boxes were designed without curtains so the sovereign could keep a close eye on all of the Naples elite. Additionally, the boxes each had a mirror inclined toward the royal box, so the distinguished occupants could monitor and be in the agreement with the King’s reactions. This all sounds thoroughly exhausting and a lot like the 18th century Neapolitan version of Instagram.

The next day, we were on our way to Avellino (Irpinia) Campagna which is an agricultural province about an hour northwest of Naples. There at the Cantina del Barone winery, we met Sarah Pompei, an American now living in the area, who was our guide for the day. Sarah’s family came from the region, and she is now living full time in Italy, married to a winemaker. She is also a graduate of Newport Harbor High School, went to Berkeley and her parents live in Irvine! What?

Our first stop was a family owned cheese shop, Antico Cassaro, founded in 1962. The owner gave us a tour of his cheese making operation and while we were there we saw the milk delivered from his herds, and piped into his storage tanks.. You can tell the milk is the good stuff when it has lots of bubbles. And of course we had to sample. Fresh ricotta, cacio cavallo, sheep’s milk pecorino, freshly baked bread, arancini, olives. Delizioso!

Our next stop was Cantina del Barone, where for over a hundred years, the Sarno family have been growing grapes and making wine. Luigi Sarno has been recognized as top new winemaker in Campagna and his respect for the land and grapes can be tasted in the all natural award winning wines he’s producing. Sarah, Luigi and Jim had quite a lively discussion about natural wine (former winemaker Jim is not a fan) but Luigi’s wines, made from the Fiano grape were truly superb. He and many of the growers in the area are committed to organic farming and only use a minimal amount of sulfates in the wine.

Jim and Sarah talking together; Luigi is at right.

Next, because we’d not had enough to eat what with breakfast, a huge cheese tasting and yet more bread, cheese and olives with our wine tasting, we headed to Trattoria di Pietro for lunch. Opened in 1934, this family run restaurant is an Irpinia institution specializing in bringing traditional regional dishes to life using hand selected local ingredients.
We met daughter, Anita, a good friend of Sarah’s and the innovator in the kitchen, Enzo, “dad and boss”, and Teresa, “mom and the BIG boss”. Two hours later we had devoured taralla, bread, more cheese, olives, focaccia, sautéed local greens, prosciutto, sausages, ravioli and busiate pasta with two sauces. Oh and sweets at the end. Just a light lunch. Then we went into the kitchen for a chat while Teresa and Anita made pasta for the dinner service. It was a real privilege to spend time with this warm and talented family who care so much about the food they serve and the community they are a part of.

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