Of course, the wine scene in Sicily took off long ago. Discovering the wines way down in Calabria, that was an area I had never been to before and it was such a joy to discover that really spicy cuisine down there. I’m sure things got left out because the wine scene there is absolutely vast. I loved writing those, but it was really hard. Again, it’s a wonder that I’m still standing after all that wine. One of the things that brought that home to me the most was that in the book, each region has a section called ‘In Your Glass’ and it made me seek out the best wines in those regions. What were some of the biggest differences between the regions? Each area seems to have its own private little thing marked out for itself. That’s an area where the best apples in the world are grown and so a lot of the cuisine is heavily roasted, things like venison, boar, things like that, but the very innovative use of apples in the cuisine is just incredible. And the restaurant at Vigilius in the Dolomites was another spectacular one. And it’s one of those very simple recipes and you think wow, somebody thought of this. I absolutely loved Il Falconiere in Cortona because the chef there is another one of those innovators, and she bakes these olives, baking them overnight in the oven and then pulverizes them and coats a filet with the olive dust on either side and roasts it. La Subida in Friuli was a huge favorite of mine. I remember in particular a really wonderful restaurant in Ostuni in the hotel there, that was one of the spectacular meals. Bonci Pizzarium is a Roman Institution, famous for its freshly baked bread, pizza by the slice, and suppli, croquettes (ph Andrea Wyner)Īnd I began to learn so much more about Italian food that I never knew before.

Frances mayes latest book