Romancing the Vine: Life, Love, and Transformation in the Vineyards of Barolo (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: nebbiolo grape, first pruning, herb bouquet, New York, Barolo Chinato, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 2002 Tardi closed his New York City restaurant, Follonico, and slowly emigrated to a new life in Castiglione Falletto, a village in Italy's famous Barolo wine region of Piedmont. He was drawn away from a post–September 11 New York (where he still spends part of the year) by the love of a beautiful woman, Ivana; the reassuring natural rhythms of wine making; and the casual culinary splendor of local cooking, which he recounts in 25 recipes featuring regional and personal specialties like Renza's Chicken, Frog-Style and Grape Must Conserve. Tardi spends much of his time working Ivana's family vineyard back to life with her brother Fabrizio, relating his experience tending vineyards and giving folkloric accounts of Barolo's vinicultural history. Although Tardi himself experiences a transformation in the vineyards, readers familiar with food and wine memoirs will likely not encounter anything they haven't read before—recipes interspersed with charming anecdotes about local characters, descriptions of age-old customs, conspiratorial asides about how different his lifestyle has become—but much like the reliably good food Tardi served for years in his restaurant, his take on the healing powers of old-fashioned hard work and his guidance into his lifestyle is comforting and satisfying. (Nov.)
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Product Description

Alan Tardi, former owner of Follonico in New York, describes his life in the Piedmonte district of Italy focusing on the cultivation and harvest of the region's celebrated Barolo wine, and including rare local recipes

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (November 14, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031235794X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312357948
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #264,600 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tardi's Breakout Story, July 2, 2007

By	Christopher Gulotta (New York, New York) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As a fellow Italio-American New Yorker, Mr. Tardi's quest for an NYC exit hits home. As much as we "New Yorkah's" love NY, we hope that a better lifestyle is out there and that we are able to break free to experience it. Also like Mr. Tardi, I found a similar venue for my ultimate "escape from NY"-Torino (only 45 minutes from Barolo). The combination of the author's thirst for a richer life and a delicate romance (I too am married to a beautiful Italian "testa dura") woven into age-old Piedmonte recipe's and nurtured along with tantalizing tales of the "King of Wines" results in wonderful read, that inspires the reader to eat, drink and live La Dolce Vita! Bravo Mr. Tardi! (maybe I'll run into you on July 5th when I take a day trip to your new home!)

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, June 21, 2008

By	Bob (Portland, Maine United States) - See all my reviews

I've read many books of this genre (American/Brit starts a new life in Europe, American goes to find his roots, American/Brit leaves his or her job to pursue food or wine career in Europe, etc.), generally involving either Italy or France, and I found this one of the most disappointing. Too wordy, too self-centered, the writing made what should have been interesting stories fairly boring.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Come Taste and See, February 4, 2007

By	M. A. DelGrosso "Millie" (Vero Beach, FL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Alan Tardi has a true gift for description as evidenced in the wonderful book, Romancing the Vine. I felt as if I had been transported to Italia and dropped into the Barolo region every time I picked up the book! The people became real through his picturesque representations, and you could feel the temperatures as he worked in the vineyards, and taste the food as he sat down with the various individuals with whom he came into contact! I thoroughly enjoyed Romancing the Vine, and hope that it is only the first of many books from Signor Tardi!