Sunday, May 22, 2016

Wine and Food of the Giro 2016 Stage 15: Ansitz Rynnhof Vernatsch & Apple Strudel

Where are we?  Watching an uphill, 10.8 kilometer time trial in the Dolomites from Castelrotto/Kastelruth to Alpe di Siusi/Seiseralm.Why two names? This area was once part of Austria, so it is a multi-lingual area. 

The Giro site says: A mediaeval town and the major centre of the Seiser Alm (the largest high-altitude Alpine meadow in Europe), Kastelruth, where the native languages are German, Italian and Ladin, stretches with its towers and belfries in the wonderful setting of the Dolomites, part of the UNESCO World Heritage. Mount Schlern, with its unmistakable rocky profile, is the signature landmark of this territory.
Major activities include hiking and skiing, respectively in the summer- and wintertime.
COOKING: Legumes soups, knödel, strudel, krapfen, Christmas sweet treats


The stage: Up they will go. The time trial today is short and steep. The early finishers were coming in close to 30 minutes, with Boswell in the hotseat at 30:04. 28:39 for Foliforov. Wow. Apparently it is the best time ever on this climb. 
Nice place for a time trial:



With the top GC contenders on the road, Foliforov's time was holding. Zakarin though, was looking very fast. Our penultimate rider of the day:


And our race leader:


And wow, was he fast. Looking very good at the first time check with the fastest time of 9:07. 
Nice day for Valverde, coming in at 29:02. Bike change for Nibali. That won't help. Chaves in at 29:19. Nibali, angry on the road, pushing spectators away as he rides. Nibali in at 30:49. Ouch. 

Stage:



GC:




Wine: Ansitz Rynnhof vernatsch
From the producer: The history of the Rynnhof can be traced back to the Middle Ages. In 1438 the indication of origin "an der Rynnen" appeared for the first time in a document. The property probably takes its name from an open water channel that once ran by. In 1479 the Prince-Bishop of Trento made the estate over as a fiefdom, with its wine-growing lands being mentioned even at that time. Winemaking therefore has a long tradition at the Rynnhof. 

In 1516 the noble von Greiffensee family came into possession of the wine estate and held it for over 100 years. Four more aristocratic families followed them up until the middle of the 19th century. It is likely that not all of them resided permanently in Tramin, but that they simply stayed there during the wine harvest with the intention of enjoying the fresh grapes and the new wine produced from them.In 1862 the Tramin hospital fund inherited half of the house, with the remainder purchased shortly thereafter. A private chapel was built at the estate entrance. The property subsequently served for a time as a hospital. In 1928 Oswald Bellutti finally acquired the Rynnhof and established himself there with its family.

I say: Speaking of grapes that I love, it is time for vernatsch, also known as schiava or even Trollinger. Strawberries and violets. 

Food: Apple Strudel We used the recipe on Food52 here. From the link: "You may not think of strudel as a classic Italian dish: The name strudel isn't even Italian, but rather German. This is what makes regional Italian cuisine so interesting. The country's geography –- its borders, its landscape –- factors into the character and traditions of each region.
Apple Strudel -- a dessert of apples, pine nuts, and raisins or currants rolled up in paper-thin pastry -- is the defining dish of Italy's Trentino-Alto Adige region. This autonomous province borders Austria to the north and is squeezed between the Veneto and Lombardy regions to the south. Knowing this -- and that the region was part of Austria until after the first World War -- helps explain why this Austrian favorite is also beloved in Italy. Strudel's history goes back even further, though: It was brought to Austria by the Turks (there's an undeniable similarity between strudel and the more ancient baklava).

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