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Leonardo Romanelli is a famous food critic.

A chef, and an expert on everything to do with food and wine. We met him and had a long chat about Vinsanto, the traditional Tuscan sweet wine.

Leonardo, Rocca di Montegrossi has put a controversial label on their Vinsanto bottles, forbidding people to dip biscuits in the wine. Do you think this is just a marketing tactic or do you see it as a way to enhance an iconic Tuscan product which has sometimes been trivialised?

“It’s definitely a marketing idea, born from the desire to promote and add prestige to this wine. Vinsanto is a drink synonymous with hospitality, but it has never been as valued as it should be. It’s a bit like having a gold mine in your garden and not exploiting the wealth that’s underground”.

Are you surprised by the results of our survey, that showed that 79% of the participants like to dip biscuits in Vinsanto?

“I’m not surprised at all, but I’d like to know about the quality of the sweet wines these people are referring to. Maybe if they bought some top-quality, and expensive Vinsanto, they’d think twice before dipping the biscuits in it…”.

Is it just a matter of taste, or do you think we can talk about a sort of ‘lack of respect’ towards the Vinsanto?

“I believe this lack of respect is involuntary. Vinsanto is the first alcoholic drink that people let kids try, and that’s why it has always been associated with biscuits. I don’t think anyone loves crumbs floating in the wine, but people are used to it, they don’t even think about it”.

Can you give us some suggestions on which food is ideal for pairing with Vinsanto? Someone might like to try them.

“I like it cold as an aperitif, it goes well with Tuscan ‘crostini’, with game paté, gorgonzola cheese and semi-mature cheeses. Or with puff pastry filled with cooked ham and scamorza cheese”.

Matteo Pucci

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