I'm proud to say that food markets and festivals are becoming more and more popular in England at the moment. This is of course a good thing because they promote local produce and artisan producers. I'm a big supporter of both of these things, but I have to confess that I also have a certain love of the free tasters that these events supply. As generous as these tasters are, in England, they are mostly offered to entice us to make a purchase... and consequently many people play the game of fake interest, using the stock phrase "so can I buy this online" to get their tasters and get out without splashing the cash. I do admit to playing this game from time to time (I know, I'm sorry... can I play the "but I'm only a poor student" card here to excuse myself?) but not without a little guilt creeping in. Here in Italy however, I had a completely different 'free tasters' experience...
I went into Montefalco today to visit the Enologica event (a weekend celebrating local Sagrantino wine) and, on entering the main piazza, I was stopped in my tracks by a piece of bread and prosciutto being held in front of my face. Instantly a little confused, I looked up to find the source and saw a women reaching out over the side of a small stage. At first I thought she was rudely throwing me her leftovers, but then I saw an army of people behind her preparing trays and trays of these meaty bites. "Per me?" I questioned. "Ci, ci, prenderlo!" she said (for me? / Yes, yes, take it!) I scouted about to see what she was selling and saw nothing, these were quite literally gifts for every visitor (and there was no entry fee). As we scrambled through the bustling piazza, we came across more and more of these free tasters - grape tarts, meats, wines on tap (yes really, it was self service!) I'm sure the cynics out their would argue that they were promoting their products, even if not to sell immediately, but there were no business cards, no leaflets and no branding. Yes their were plenty of other shops elsewhere in Montefalco promoting their wares, but not in the main piazza, this was just a place to eat, drink and be merry. This seems perfect I thought, guilt free tasters. However, this method does have a rather amusing downside. When food is free and accompanied by no obligation of further interest or purchase, people suddenly become transformed into food seeking demons. It seems this freedom gives them the sense that they deserve the food, "if it's on offer, then I should have it" they seem to think. As a result, the good old fashioned English queue was nowhere to be seen and bustling elbows were accompanied by grabbing hands and cries of "è per i bambini!"(it's for the children!) I couldn't help but think people had become a little confused as to whether they were reaching out for prosciutto, or for the last lifeboat on the titanic.
That aside, the event as a whole is a must for any wine lover in the area. It's now in its 34th year and the chaos of the free tasters sits alongside calmer, bookable events such as guided vineyard walks, wine tastings and cookery demonstrations.
Click here to visit the website.
No comments:
Post a Comment