The very successful bed and breakfast establishment Casa Fontana run by Ron and Susi Gauld in Barga Vecchia celebrated the start of the summer season this evening with a party in the gardens of the house for many of their friends here in Barga.
The main star of the party was without a doubt, the traditional pig roast. The roasting over a wood fire took three hours with some sophisticated equipment turning the pig at a constant speed. Luckily there were many experts on hand to give advice and consultation on all subjects pertaining to pig roasting from the time needed, the type of wood needed and type of fire.
Porchetta [porˈketːa] (or sometimes “porketta”) is a savory, fatty, and moist boneless pork roast of Italian culinary tradition. The body of the pig is gutted, deboned, arranged carefully with layers of stuffing, meat, fat, and skin, then rolled, spitted, and roasted, traditionally over wood. Porchetta is usually heavily salted in addition to being stuffed with garlic, rosemary, fennel, or other herbs, often wild. Porchetta has been selected by the Italian Ministero delle Politiche Agricole, Alimentari e Forestali as a “prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale” (“traditional agricultural-alimentary product”, one of a list of traditional Italian foods held to have cultural relevance).
Ancient Roman writings mention it as far back as 400 B.C. It was a favorite meal of Emperor Nero, and frequently served at festive Roman banquets.
A precisely 9.15 pm the pig was pronounced cooked and the party began in earnest with Geoff supplying the music with a new set of songs, a new guitar with a new set of strings and a new crisp sound. Well played Geoff.
Amongst the guests were spotted many members of the Lake Angels – they too know something about pigs and pig roasts.
The season has now been officially opened here in Barga Vecchia – Pig roast for previous years can be seen here: 2009 | 2010 |