Tuesday May 9, 2023
We are on our own again today as Dave and Gwen decide to take a later train to Modena. This is in part as to when their apartment will be ready and also because we are doing a tour this afternoon that they did not want to do. So we have a nice little breakfast and catch the train for a short ride to Modena about 30 minutes away. We will meet them later for dinner. We arrive in Modena and find our way to our apartment. The owner said it would be ready early for us as there were no guests the night before. It is a self check in process with a code to get the keys out of a lockbox and it works smoothly. We are in a small attic apartment which will work nicely for us. We settle in, get the lay of the land and are out the door around noon.
Today and tomorrow called for rain but it is mostly sunny right now. We head to Piazza Grande which is where the Modena Cathedral; is located. The piazza used to be the towns only marketplace, was where justice was served, and also where religious processions took place. When a prince was born or a Cardinal elected, people celebrated by lighting bonfires here. Since it is a nice day we just check out the exterior and save the inside for tomorrow. The Cathedral dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta was built in 1099. Sculptures make the cathedral a true stone bible for the faithful, telling the stories of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel and the Universal Flood. There are also sculptural cycles dedicated to the months and the activities associated with them, stories of the patron Saint of the city (San Geminiano), and even the story of King Arthur. There are two lion statues near the main entrance. We take some nice pictures.
Nearby, we discover the central market and go in to check it out. It is really nice with stands selling fresh pasta, fruits and vegetables, cheese, meats, and many other items. there are also places selling food to take out and some with seats where you can sit, eat, and have a glass of wine. We find the most dangerous stand in the place, the dessert and pastry stand. There is a good variety of treats and the first cannolis we have seen which look really good. They are 3.50E each or four for 10E. Who in their right mind would pass that up. We get four and then decide to get a pizza to go and eat in the piazza. We sit next to the cathedral by the aforementioned lions where we have a spot in the shade and can lean our backs against the wall. We enjoy the food and the people watching and two of the cannolis which are excellent. We bring the remaining cannolis back to our apartment before we head out to walk back to the train station.
We wind through some nice colorful streets to the station and also check out a few restaurants for possible dinner. We pass the number one rated restaurant in Modena and I go in to ask about reservations for dinner tonight or tomorrow, both are full but there is a table for lunch. We text Dave and Gwen to see if thy want to do lunch there tomorrow and they say yes so I book the table for four. She also tells Carol that they booked a restaurant for us tonight that their apartment owner recommended. It is on my list and a place we had walked by so we are good with it even though we had booked another place from Parma yesterday. We will cancel that one. Making it to the station, we board our train for the very short 8 minute ride to the Quattro Villa station. This station has nothing but a platform. No office, no ticket machines, nothing. Then why are we here you might ask? I begin to wonder this myself as we look for a sign for our destination and find nothing. One way leads to houses and the other towards some fields. Well the only directions I have say to walk in the opposite direction of the village so we choose the fields. It is still a bit unsettling as we walk a few tenths of a mile not knowing for sure if we are going in the right direction. We see a lady walking the opposite way so I say excuse me, where is Acetaie Giuseppe Giusti, pointing in our direction. She answered in Italian and says yes and adds not the first one. So now you know where we are going, but would like to know what Acetaie Giusti is. I shall tell you. It is a place where they make Balsamic Vinegar and we have a 3:30 Tour.
Walking further we finally come to a sign for the place but do turn in as she told us not the first one. We find out later it is another storage facility for the vinegar. We then find the right entrance a short while later and check in for our tour. We have about 25 minutes and they tell us we can look around and see the small museum while we wait. You may have noticed if you have balsamic vinegar that most will say they are from Modena. That is because this area is famous for its vinegars. The stuff we buy is most likely the cheaper version of what they produce. We check out a room full of barrels and as soon as we walk in, you can smell the vinegar. We also read some of the history of the family in the small museum before waiting outside in the garden for our tour guide.
She arrives and we begin to learn the process and types of vinegar that they produce. The Giusti family has been making balsamic vinegar since 1605. Now that is a long standing family business. Balsamic vinegar used to be considered as a small treasure. the batches were like family because they lived in the same house and breathed the same air. When a baby was born a new batch was started and bequeathed to the child. It was used as a dowry, presents for friends and a family legacy to share. We go back into the barrel room where we Lear the difference between IGP and DOP designation of the vinegar. All the vinegar produced here is protected by law and has to use grapes from Lambrusco, trebbiano, and other grape varieties from this specific region. The grapes are skinned and juiced. The juice is cooked over low heat for 24 hours. The addition of sugar eventually creates alcohol. Let’s start with IGP which is the lower designation but still of very good quality. The age of the vinegar determines its value and quality. The vinegar is started in 5 barrels. Interesting to me is unlike wine, the barrels are not sealed. The barrels are filled to 80% capacity to allow oxygen to do its thing with the fermentation process. After a year some of the liquid is lost to evaporation. They take vinegar from barrel number 2 and fill barrel number one back to 80%. Then Barrel 3 is used to fill barrel 2 and so on. Barrel 5 is filled with new product from the current year. The Balsamic from here must age a minimum of 12 years before it is ready for sale. The IGP designation is because they can not say it is 12 year or 25 yer old aged vinegar as they have added new product to barrel 5 and therefore each barrels vinegar has not truly aged for 12 to 25 years. Barrel number 1 has the oldest batches of vinegar in it and depending on how long they do the yearly process can determine its value and flavor. Now the DOP designation is more strict and the age is truly how long the vinegar has been stored and fermented. They still start with 5 barrels and do the yearly add to bring the barrels back to 80%. The difference is they do not fill Barrel number 5 with new product so however many barrels they end with are exactly the age of when they were first started. The DOP designation allows them to say it is 12 year old or 25 year old vinegar. There is some vinegar in their attic that has been aging up to 100 years. Now that is pretty astonishing. The DOP also regulates the shape and size of the bottle that it is put in which is always a round bottle further distinguishing it from its IGP cousin.
We learn more about the production and the Giusti family. There is one Vinegar Master for their production and he is responsible for checking the quality and also for the yearly 80% refills of the barrels. However, it is now time for the best part as we head to the tasting room where we get to try several different productions of vinegar. We start with the IGP vinegar and learn a bit more. Since they can not say it is 12 year old or 25 year old, etc. the vinegar is rated by quality which is designated by a number of medals on the bottle from 1 to 5, 5 medals being the best. 5 medals are usually the vinegar that has been in the barrels the longest. The color of the bottle labels also coincides with the medal designation. We start with one meal tasting and taste up to 5 medal. he one medal is more like what we use in the United States for our salads and cooking. As we go up in medal and age, the flavor changes as well as the consistency. It is a bit thicker with each step and a bit sweeter also. the flavor gets more intense and you would use a lot less to flavor your dishes, it is even used on ice cream or some desserts. We get to taste the DOP 12 year and 25 year old and all I can say is Wow, it is difficult to describe the flavor and practically a syrup sensation, unlike any vinegar we have ever had. Before we leave and since we are not royalty, we buy a three medal vinegar to carry around Italy and hopefully use along our travels. We really liked this one best out of the 5 medal vinegars we tasted, it has a very nice balance of flavor.
It is a nice walk back to the train station and in no time we are back in Modena. We decide to try a route on the map that looks like it may be shorter. this turns into a route that may or may not exist and a definitely not shorter walk to our apartment. We see a whole different part of Modena walking along the outside walls of a large park not exactly sure where we are on the map until we finally come to a street that will get us back toward the town center. Along the way we pass the Palazzo Ducale which was the home of the Duchy of the Este for more than two centuries. Francesco I, one of the Dukes of Modena commissioned the construction of the palace to some of the greatest artists of the time. We also pass a partisans wall with pictures of resistance members that were killed for their efforts. We pass under a walkway between two religious buildings that we think was a way for the local religious figures to get from the seminary to the church without walking the streets. Sometimes getting a bit misplaced, lets you come across and see things you might not have if you stay on the main routes.
When we return to our room, we relax and freshen up for dinner as our reservation is only a little more than an hour away. On our way to the restaurant I notice a street with umbrella art, whic is to say many umbrellas hanging above the street for quite a ways. Could this be a sign of rain tomorrow? We get to La Danilo Restaurant practically on time and Dave and Gwen are already seated. We order a Green Lasagna and a steak with Balsamic Vinegar. After our tour today, how could we resist. The steak is the clear winner as the local balsamic lives up to its reputation and the reduction on the perfectly cooked steak is amazing. When we leave the restaurant, Gwen goes back inside and comes out to say she reserved for four again for tomorrow night and that they do not want to have lunch at the place we booked because Dave went in there today and it was too crowded. We stop at a nearby gelato place on my list and get some Gelato which is the best we may have had so far. I get three flavors, cannoli, cheesecake, and pistachio almond. All three were excellent. After gelato we talk more about tomorrow and we tell them we thought we still wanted to eat lunch at the place we booked and would let them know tomorrow if we happen to change our minds. We also say if we have lunch there and they keep their reservation that we may not see them tomorrow at all as they are going to the Ferrari Museum in the afternoon and we are doing a few things before lunch. They say we can go bar hopping before dinner so we will see them. It is starting to rain while we talk so we end up going our separate ways back to our places. Hopefully it rains tonight and ends tomorrow. We will see.
Expenses Train from Parma to Modena 12E Pizza Lunch and Cannoli from Market 17E Train to Quattro Villa ( for balsamic vinegar) Round Trip 6E Balsamic Vinegar 16E Dinner at La Danilo 61E (balsamic steak) Gelato at Gioelia 7E Excellent gelato Flavors tried cannoli, cheesecake, pistachio almond La Mansarda en Centro Apartment 73.27E Walked 9.5 Miles
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