Late Spring 2022

Colombe for Easter which will not have arrived for Easter

Due to myriad transport problems for importing anything these days, Corti Brothers’ order of the Easter Colombe from Loison and Cocchi have arrived to us more than a month late. Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do except wait and offer them when they arrive. Thus, they will be late for Easter, but still delicious. They will come in handy during late Spring/Summer entertaining. Perhaps, we may even find unthought of uses for them. Here is our selection: Please note that the prices are not changed or only very slightly from 2021. We are simply absorbing the new, exorbitant shipping costs. We want to sell them for you to enjoy them!

LOISON and COCCHI COLOMBA

Just as panettone means Christmas in Italian culture, the COLOMBA means Easter. This is a baked cake, in a rather odd shape--that of a flying dove, seen from an angle. It is made with a mother sponge, raised dough, to which candied citrus fruit is added, and the top is decorated with either whole almonds from Sicily or hazel5uts from Piemonte. Beside being a festive cake, it also has myriad uses as the base for fresh fruit desserts, where the Colomba acts as the base for almost every kind of sliced and sugared fruit teamed with whipped cream, or whipped cream blended with some Mascarpone, a bit of sugar, and some vanilla. The Colomba, sliced horizontally acts as the pastry base in this case. Used as the base for bread pudding, sublime!

Here are our selections from that most genial baker, Dario Loison. All 1 kg size unless noted otherwise.

COLOMBA:

CLASSICA: with candied Sicilian orange peel and almonds on top, unfilled, wrapped $28.99 (#5500)

CAMOMILLA e LIMONE: Roman chamomile flower, Sorrento lemon peel, boxed $30.19 (#5508)

CLASSICA MAGNUM: cellophane wrapped, ribbon, 2 Kilo size $49.89 (#5510)

The VENEZIANA: Venice’s “year-round cake” similar to the Colomba, traditional all year in the Venice area.

VENEZIANA:

CLASSICA : with butter, almonds, four spices, boxed, 550g $22.89 (#5511)

ALL’ ALPIANE: with raisins plumped with Vignalta’s passito Alpiane, wrapped, kilo $29.99 (#5512)

AL MANDARINO DI CIACULLI: with Palermo’s mandarino, boxed, 550g $20.99 (#5513)

AL PISTACCHIO DI BRONTE: with Bronte pistachio cream filling, boxed, 550g $27.99 (#5514)

ALBICOCCA e SPEZIE: with candied Po Valley apricots, ginger, and spices, boxed, 550g $24.79 (#5515)

FOCACCIA MANDORLATA: no candied fruit, with almond topping, wrapped, ribbon 750g $19.89 (#5516)

LOISON PAN FRUTTO FILONE

We have again added this year that specialty from Loison bakery that was created in 1930s by Dario Loison’s grandfather: it is a type of FILONE, an elongated, baguette shaped loaf with candied fruit and raisins that is similar to, but not the same dough, as panettone. It is a tender, leavened cake with candied fruit and raisins glazed with a hazelnut glaze. It can be sliced and enjoyed or sliced and toasted. Either way, it is delicious and shows what deliciousness can come from thinking outside of the box. Two versions, boxed, 450g

PAN FRUTTO FILONE:

Limone (Amalfi lemon peel, raisins and IGP Piemonte hazelnut glaze) $17.39 (#5517)

Late Ciaculli Mandarin (Ciaculli mandarin and raisins, IGP hazelnut glaze) $17.39 (#5518)

COLOMBA AL BRACHETTO d’ACQUI COCCHI: A new iteration of the classic

Similar to the COCCHI PANETTONE AL VERMOUTH, the geniuses at both Albertengo (the baker) and Cocchi (the winemaker) have created an Easter Colomba made with COCCHI BRACHETTO d’ ACQUI. Much like the very popular Panettone al Vermouth Cocchi, the Colomba is the Easter version of this marriage. The wine is used to macerate the fruit in the cake and then added to the dough.

COLOMBA AL BRACHETTO d’ACQUI kilo size, wrapped, $36.89 (#5519)

TERMS OF SALE: This list supersedes all others. All taxable items, such as wine, beer, spirits, books will be taxed at the rate of 8.75%. This is for all sales since we sell in California. Foodstuffs are not taxable. Shipping will be charged at prevailing rates. PLEASE NOTE: In extreme weather, either hot or cold, please give us a shipping address where your order may be properly received and stored. Corti Brothers cannot be responsible for items left without protection.

LINGHAM’S SAUCES SINCE 1908

Lingham’s chilli sauce was born in Penang, Malaysia in 1908. From that time it has changed hands only three times, the last time in 2011 into the hands of the Yeoh family. It is found pretty much around the world.
Depending on the flavor, it is made with only four ingredients--cane sugar, red chillies, salt, and vinegar--and no preservatives or stabilizers of any sort. More than one hundred years old, the ingredients for Lingham’s recipe have not changed--making it one of the original “natural” food condiments.

I happen to like Lingham’s very much. Unfortunately, it has been a bit difficult to find these last few years. But Corti Brothers now has a good supply, and I am pleased to offer it again to our customers. There are many, perhaps too many, chilli sauces on the market, but none compare with Lingham’s. It’s unusually good and its balanced hot and sweet flavor combines very well with the two added ingredients of ginger and garlic that flavor

two of the Lingham sauces. The Original Chilli Sauce, called Hot Sauce for our market’s label, is delicious with its mouth filling warmth and balanced sweetness which allows food flavors to play with spiciness. There are four types which Corti Brothers offers of Lingham’s: Original Chilli Hot Sauce; the Extra Hot, (which is really not that hot); and then the Garlic and the Ginger versions with their dominant flavor from fresh garlic and ginger. There is one thing one must do with Lingham’s: You must shake it from side to side to mix it before using. I store mine, once opened, in the refrigerator for best quality. If you have not tried Lingham’s before, I suggest you try it now. You’ll probably not be without it again. I cannot imagine corned beef hash without it!

LINGHAM’S SAUCES 12.6 oz bottle $4.99 each

ORIGINAL HOT (#5520)

EXTRA HOT (#5521)

GARLIC (#5522)

GINGER (#5523)

CORTI BROTHERS CANZONIERE CABERNET FRANC RISERVA 2017

This wine is again the product of a friend’s estate in the Colli Euganei, outside of Padova in Italy’s Veneto region. I first tasted the wine in the spring of 2018, when in Italy for CIBUS, its famed food show. The wine had just finished its malolactic fermentation and was in a 500 liter tonneau. I liked its scent and balance and asked if it could be kept out and bottled for Corti Brothers separately, UNBLENDED. My friend agreed and chose another cask of the same wine to be bottled for his winery to be sold only there.

The wine has been bottled as of late spring of 2021 and is a fine example of Cabernet Franc. This variety is one of the parents of Cabernet Sauvignon and has distinctive Cabernet scent and flavor. It has been grown in Italy since first introduced in the early 1800s into Veneto, and in Italy, is sometimes confused with Carménère. CANZONIERE will make a fine bottle with more age, and you should not try to drink it all up young. Again, there is not much, so decide early on laying some down.

The name CANZONIERE was selected for this wine in keeping with the Petrarch motif of our label since the Canzoniere was the collection of Petrarch’s poetry collected in one work. The Canzoniere is the model on which Renaissance lyric poetry is based. The town where the winery is located is called Arquà Petrarca, where the poet died in 1374. Petrarch is regarded as the father of Humanism.

CORTI BROTHERS CANZONIERE Cabernet Franc 2017 Colli Euganei Riserva 14.5% $39.99 750ml(#5524) $215.00 cs/6 (#5524C)

Note:The un-linked items in the newsletter are not available for purchase on our website. If you are interested in any of those items, please phone or email us your request. 916-736-3800 or 800-509-Food cortibros@sbcglobal.net

OUR SELECTION OF CALIFORNIA Extra Virgin Olive Oils FROM THE LAST HARVEST

This year we have only one California Extra Virgin oil which is under our label. The producer is Pablo Voitzuk.
We do have several under Samir Bayraktar’s “Olive Truck” label. Both use the Mori-Tem extraction system, put together by the late Marco Mugelli. This system uses the concept of a vacuum system for malaxating the olive paste and a closed, vacuum system for extraction. The thought was that since olives suffer from being exposed to air, in a vacuum there would be no air (oxidation) and the fresh fragrance and flavor of the olives would be preserved. Pablo Voitzuk uses a system which is fixed while the Olive Truck uses a similar system inside of a 40 foot shipping container which can go to the orchard where the fruit is. This system is newer in technology. Then there is the area where the olives are grown. In this last harvest, most of our selection comes from a grower outside of Woodland, California, and the fruit is hand harvested. It may come to pass that hand harvesting may well become an important factor in oil production. It is definitely a contributing factor to quality oil.

Under the Corti Brothers’ label, we have LECCINO from Pablo Voitzuk. It has been said by Marco Mugelli, the Tuscan oil expert, that Leccino in California is better than the same cultivar in Tuscany. It probably likes it better being in California.! Leccino is a sensitive variety and may just like the dry conditions in California better than the somewhat wetter Tuscan climate. It is a very elegant oil, not too bitter and pungent, but still with that green fruitiness which is typical. This oil won a Gold medal at the Los Angeles tasting.

CORTI BROTHERS LECCINO, Pablo Voitzuk, $22.99 500 ml (#5525)

From Samir Bayraktar’s Olive Truck, we have TAGGIASCA, FRANTOIO, PICUAL and TUSCAN BLEND. The first two are related. Taggiasca from the Italian Riviera is a type of Frantoio, and Frantoio is the most important cultivar in Tuscany. Picual comes from the southern end of Andalucia in Spain and Tuscan blend features Frantoio, having won Best of Show at the 2022 California State Fair and Expo tasting. California’s climate is more like Southern Mediterranean, showing results that cultivars like Picual perform very well in California–making, perhaps, some very fine oils. At the Los Angeles tasting, the Tuscan Blend won a gold medal as did the Taggiasca. The Picual was given a Bronze. All are $25.99 500ml.

TAGGIASCA (#5526)

FRANTOIO (#5527)

TUSCAN BLEND (#5528)

PICUAL (#5529)

GREEK EXTRA VIRGIN OIL: PSYLLAKIS BIOJOY FROM CRETE

Corti Brothers has had this oil several times in the past; it is a wonderful example of Koroneiki oil from the island of Crete in the Greek Archipelago. Emmanuele Psyllakis, who now runs the family estate outside of Chania, has taken over from his father, one of the pillars of quality Greek Oil. Its appellation is KOLYMVARI.

The Psyllakis oil is pungent and aromatic like all very good Koroneiki oil with the pleasant bitterness that marks this cultivar and its aromatic, leafy character. It is also grown in California and it is just these characteristics which make the cultivar so useful here where it “spices up” the more bland oil from intensely planted Arbequina. If you want to see what really fine Greek extra virgin oil is like, here is your opportunity.

PSYLLAKIS BIOJOY EXTRA VIRGIN OIL FROM CRETE $13.99 500ml (#5530)

MARMELLATA DEI CINQUE AGRUMI Five Citrus Marmalade 2022--Just made

Once again, the five citrus varieties grown in my back yard, have been transformed into marmalade by The Good Stuff in Sacramento. These five citrus varieties are Bergamot, Citron, Blood Orange, Meyer Lemon and Chinotto. Every production is slightly different due to the amount of fruit the trees produce, and it is stated on the label in order of predominance. Usually Chinotto is the last since there is so little of it.

This year, 2022, production is a little larger than in previous years, but not all that big. If you enjoy very fine citrus marmalade, I would suggest you let us know right away. This will sell out quickly to its admirers.

CORTI BROTHERS MARMELLATA DEI CINQUE AGRUMI 10 oz jars $9.99 each (#5531)

POLINKA FRUIT COMPOTES FROM ARMENIA: The drink with fruit in it.

The term “compote” means different things to different people. To some, it is a cooked fruit. To others, in Eastern Europe, Armenians in particular, it means a fruit based drink, a water and fruit drink where the fruit is cooked with water, then other fresh fruit pieces are added to the liquid to give more flavor. We tried POLINKA COMPOTE, a new Armenian “Compote” and it is really delicious. Especially attractive are the Quince, Sour Cherry, and the Apricot and Sour Cherry blend. These are to be served very chilled and can be doctored with alcohol such as vodka or white rum to make a cocktail drink, or served very well chilled, with a splash of fizzy water, they can be enjoyed just as they are. Part of the pleasure of the compote is enjoying the liquid with some of the fruit in the bottle. The fresh fruit added to the bottle gives the compotes added flavor and zip. (Be careful with the cherries: They have pits!) With warm weather here,5these should make a welcome distraction from “sodas.” The bottles are all liter size and once opened will disappear very quickly. They cost $4.99 each liter bottle.

POLINKA COMPOTE:

QUINCE (#5532)

SOUR CHERRY (#5533)

APRICOT & SOUR CHERRY (#5534)

CORTI BROTHERS Russian River Valley PINOT NOIR 2020, BAKER FAMILY WINES

In the 2020 vintage, Corti Brothers again has a bottling of Russian River Valley Pinot Noir from Baker Family wines. The winemaker, Chik Brenneman, business partner with Dusty Baker–yes, that Dusty Baker--has once again produced a truly lovely example of the variety that will please Pinot Noir fans. It has a luminescent, pretty color, just the right tonality for Pinot, a lovely Pinot aroma and then a decisive Pinot flavor without a lot of wood mucking it up. It is a wine that will give pleasure now and even more with 4-5 years more bottle age. This vintage we also have magnums which will age even better. There is more than in 2019, but not a lot more. Please do not dilly-dally!

CORTI BROTHERS Russian River Valley PINOT NOIR 2020 13.5%
$29.99 750 ml (#5535) $323.00 case/12 (#5535C) $69.99 magnum (#5536) $377.00 case /6 (#5536C)

Note:The un-linked items in the newsletter are not available for purchase on our website. If you are interested in any of those items, please phone or email us your request. 916-736-3800 or 800-509-Food cortibros@sbcglobal.net

A BRAND NEW CONCEPT FOR A PRODUCT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT

Since 1899, the Italian family firm of MUTTI in Parma has produced tomato products exclusively. They have been innovators. In 1951, they put the first tomato paste into a tube. Now, in 2021, they packaged the first tomato passata (tomato puree to us) from a mobile plant directly in the tomato field. The result is a splendid, thick, beautifully colored “passata” made in the field “Sul Campo.” But this is not your ordinary tomato puree!

This new product is limited in supply right now, but since it has the hallmarks of a successful idea, there will be more with the 2022 harvest. The “Instafactory” as Mutti calls the new facility, eliminates the time lapse between harvesting the tomatoes and processing them. They can be harvested at optimal ripeness and transformed almost immediately into this fragrant, thick passata. When I was shown the sample bottle, I decided to taste it first just out of the bottle. To my surprise it is was a delicious, very smooth, yet tasty product that reminded me of a local product no longer made in Sacramento. It was very much like the original Sacramento Brand Tomato Juice that used to be made at the Bercut-Richards plant in North Sacramento. The motto of the brand was: “So think it plops.” Just showing it around in the store, we almost finished the 19 ounce bottle. It is delicious as a beverage made with only fresh, ripe tomatoes and Mediterranean sea salt. Using vodka or blanco Tequila, it would make a splendid drink since it is thick enough not to become watery. If you wanted it thinner in consistency, just thin with a bit of water.

Used as a sauce, it can be put on ravioli or pasta without heating it, just putting it into a warmed bowl and adding the freshly drained pasta for the clean, fresh flavor of tomato.

The tomato variety is a new hybrid called ROSSORO, a round tomato, grown in the Parma area, and processed with innovative, all stainless steel equipment. From field to processing to bottling almost simultaneously. There is no oil, just tomato; no spices, just salt and tomato. It takes 2 kilos of fresh tomatoes to make 1 kilo of Passata.

For this first go around we will not have a large stock, but you should at least taste the product. This just may be the new world of tomato.

MUTTI PASSATA “SUL CAMPO” 19 oz bottle $6.99 each (#5537)
Limited to 3 bottles per customer.

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