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IN THIS ISSUE

NEW ENGLAND AUTUMN:
SAYBROOK POINT INN   
By Edward Brivio


IF YOU ALREADY OWN A THREE-YEAR-OLD
MICHELIN GUIDE TO NYC,
  DO YOU REALLY NEED TO BUY THE 2015 EDITION?
By John Mariani


NEW YORK CORNER
DECOY
By John Mariani


NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR
The Wines of Bolgheri Show a Higher Profile
By John Mariani


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NEW ENGLAND AUTUMN
SAYBROOK POINT INN   

By Edward Brivio
Photos by Robert Pirillo


View from Saybrook Point Inn's  Lighthouse Suite

    Is it appropriate to speak of a New England version of Italy’s Cinque Terre?
    Probably not, and yet the eight small communities strung out along the Connecticut coast, between New Haven and New London, do enjoy that same relaxed, seaside, away-from-it-all vibe. True they’re not situated on promontories that cascade dramatically down to the sea, but sit rather on a coastal plain, and Long Island Sound doesn’t have the profound historical resonance the Mediterranean does. These eight Connecticut towns of the Shoreline: Branford, Guilford, Madison, Clinton, Westbrook, Essex, Old Saybrook, and Old Lyme, however, are rich in a Colonial history all their own.
      Old Saybrook was the site of one of the earliest European settlements in New England, the English having established the Old Saybrook Plantation in 1635. It is also the only place on the New England coastline where the confluence of river and sea has not lead to the development of a full-scale commercial hub (e.g., New Haven on the Quinnipiac River, New London on the Thames etc.,) the wide sandbar found at the mouth of the Connecticut river having hampered navigation from Colonial days to the present.
     For a visit to the town, there’s no better home base than the Saybrook Point Inn and Spa (left), a sprawling 80 room hostelry with adjacent marina that has been welcoming guests, and their pets, since 1989. In order to give his customers a more intimate, B&B-like experience, owner Stephen Tagliatela has just opened in May of this year a smaller guesthouse called simply Three Stories (below), across the street from the main building. In restoring, and completely renovating and refurbishing what had once been the single-family home of locally prominent engineer, William Vars, Tagliatela and his design team have created an elegant mansion in the full-blown Victorian Italianate style of the original structure, a style that dominated American residential architecture in the middle of the 19^th century.

     The subdued, pink exterior is embellished with vivid white trim. Clapboard siding, verandas extending across the front of all three stories, wide, overhanging eaves, and a flat roof give the building a predominantly horizontal, rectangular shape. The balustrades and square columns of the porch and balconies supply strong vertical elements to the facade as do tall, narrow, two-over-two windows in simple white surrounds. Gingerbread porch brackets, and incised, cove corbels beneath the eaves repeat this vertical thrust and provide a bit of curvilinear appeal. All faithfully reproduce the house’s original Italianate design, as do a square cupola and a tower (which in the house’s present incarnation serves as an elevator shaft.) The building is even more beautiful at night.
    Like the exterior, the interior is an impeccably turned-out period showpiece, with decoratively paneled wainscoting, squat Doric columns, and opulent crown moldings, all painted white, as well as hardwood floors, and large, lavishly carved fireplace mantels in every room. Overstuffed, tufted white leather sofas, Delft-blue and white drapes, and an Aubusson-style carpet grace the public living room, which is next to a formal dining room.
     A graceful serpentine stairway climbs up to the third floor. Every detail of the interior is exquisite; everything looks fresh and newly-minted. To complete the decor, there is a collection of beautiful landscapes of the surrounding sea and marshes on the walls. And the Three Stories own Concierge, Mrs. Anna Pratt, provides a welcome as warm and wonderful as her setting, as well as knowing all there is to know about the area, its history, and its denizens.
     Our large guestroom had an enormous, extremely comfortable, king-size bed, a couple of armchairs, a small desk, and a fireplace. A pristine bathroom combined period details --including a console sink and bulls-eye window-- with up-to-the-minute fixtures and an arsenal of thick, fluffy white towels. Overlooking the marina and the mouth of the Connecticut river beyond --and overlooking the marina’s parking lot as well--the semi-private balcony was big enough for a cocktail party.
     The Inn’s restaurant, Fresh Salt (left) spreads-out over three softly-lit dining rooms including the bar room, each a few steps down from the one before. Maritime paintings grace the walls. Bare tables with cloth napkins and comfortable armchairs, banquettes along the back wall, and floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a marina filled with boats. One of the room dividers is a large fish tank inhabited by appropriately sized tropical fish, some in the most amazing Day-Glow colors: aquamarine, orange, and a yellow so intense that it looks like it’s more about Benjamin Moore, than about Mother Nature.

     On any given night, a variety of local oysters are available, mainly from nearby Rhode Island, with evocative place names such as Cedar Island, Matunuck, Moonstone, East Beach, Watch Hill, Rome Point etc. Fresh and clean on the half shell, they may be even better as Oysters Rockefeller. Chef Leslie Tripp’s take on this venerable classic --created in 1899 at Antoine’s in New Orleans-- with just a touch of cream and Parmesan cheese under a thin layer of spinach, manages to set off the delicate taste of the oysters, without overpowering them, as so many modern versions do.    Other starters we strongly recommend are the Chef’s clam chowder, both New England and Manhattan, and both equally as delicious, as well as his chilled Ceccarelli Farm English pea soup, served with a parmesan flan, and some lobster claw meat. Ceccarelli’s, a third generation farm in nearby Northford, Ct., also supplies the chef with salad greens and corn grown specifically for the restaurant.  
  These same peas star in another dish, the English pea ravioli (right), one large raviolo served with guanciale, wonderfully sweet pea tendrils, Parmigiano Reggiano in a truffle butter fondue. A tasty combination of ingredients including a sprinkling of whole green peas. Anything is better than overcooked vegetables, but these peas were a little too raw and crunchy for my taste.                                            
    One night the starter specials included zucchini flowers stuffed with ricotta and crab meat, then battered and deep fried. A dish we’ve often enjoyed in Rome, the version here was at least as good, if not even better, with a very satisfying crispiness all its own. If only there had been three instead of just two.
      Main courses we can heartily recommend include Montauk Big Eye Tuna, beautifully seared, and still red inside; Scallops from Bomster Farms in Stonington, CT. once again quickly seared and still sweet, both served with a perfectly cooked arugula and corn Risotto; Maine lobster salad with artisanal greens, avocado, and asparagus, all in a lemon dressing, and Lobster roll, both Connecticut style with warm butter -- an unexpected and delicious variant-- and Maine style with a touch of mayonnaise.
    The Paella Valenciana was appropriately chock-a-block with calamari, clams, mussels and chicken, as well as a whole lobster tail --cut in two for easy removal from its shell- but the very tasty saffron and chorizo-flavored  rice was uncharacteristically a little soupy, which really didn’t seem to matter taste-wise.
    On the lunch menu, you’ll find a wonderful cod cake (left), here made with a creamy brandade of cod instead of the usual flakes, and all the better for it. Topping it with a sunny side-up egg was a delicious gilding of the lily.
    For dessert we enjoyed good Peach Melba with fresh peaches, and great pineapple upside-down cake, deep brown and soaked in a yummy pineapple syrup.

    First courses: $9.95 to $13.95, mains: $19.95 to $34.95 for filet mignon, and desserts;  Lunch: starters:$8 to $21, salads: $14 to $24, sandwiches and main plates: $14 to $24.

     The Inn is a favorite spot for weddings, and I can’t think of a better place for a honeymoon than the Inn’s Lighthouse suite, situated in a small cottage all on its own on the main wharf (above), with unobstructed views of the Connecticut River and Long Island Sound from all the windows. Its 900 square feet include a living room (below), dining area, kitchenette and bedroom. And, your own personal lighthouse.
    The lovely Sanno Spa is located right off the lobby of the main building, and provides a complete menu of services in a suite of serene, immaculate white rooms. I can personally recommend the Gents Facial, which was not only relaxing, but also left my face with a healthy glow, as well as the Deep Tissue Massage, invigorating and stress relieving at the same time. Both were administered by therapists responsive to the personal needs of their guests, and well-versed in their craft. Treatments at the Spa are a great way to start off any visit to the Inn.
     Finally, for the convenience of its guests, it also provides a complimentary shuttle for trips into town and around the neighborhood, or transfers to and from the railroad station, a very thoughtful amenity, as taxis are few and far between.
       
The hotel is dog-friendly. Rooms from $339.

 
  

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IF YOU ALREADY OWN A THREE-YEAR-OLD
 MICHELIN GUIDE TO NYC,
  IS THERE REALLY AND REASON TO BUY THE 2015 EDITION
By John Mariani





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Tuscan Wines of Bolgheri Take Their Place in the Sun

By John Mariani

 

        The wholly unofficial term “Super Tuscan” was once a convenientcatch phrase to sell expensive, non-traditional blended wines like Sassicaia, Tignanello, Solaia and Ornellaia, and it worked well until anyone and everyone in Tuscany started to call their wines Super Tuscans, even though the best vineyards were already owned by producers like Antinori, Ruffino, Frescobaldi and a few others who now shy away from the term.

       The Italian government hasn’t made things any simpler, at first prohibiting the iconoclastic new wines from carrying anything but a designation of “vino da tavola” (table wine), then, in 1994, coming up with “I.G.T.” (typical of the geography), for such wines.  

Some of the most illustrious of the original Super Tuscans were from the region of Bolgheri, south of Livorno in western Tuscany near the Tyrrhenian Sea.  Not least among them was the Bordeaux-like blend Sassicaia, which was at first simply labeled “vino da tavola” in 1968.  But in 1994 both Bolgheri as a region and Bolgheri Sassicaia received a legal designation of denominazione  di origine controllata (controlled designation of origin), or DOC.

        So, now that the “Super Tuscan” name has faded, more wineries are proudly marketing their wines as from Bolgheri, whose hillside vineyards and cool sea breezes make for distinctive terroirs and allow the propagation of excellent sangiovese—Tuscany’s most traditional and famous grape—along with merlot, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, and petit verdot, which have for centuries been the varietals blended to make Bordeaux wines.

        Currently there are 38 members of the Bolgheri Consortium, spread over 2,650 acres. One of the best is the forward-looking Aia Vecchia (below), owned by the Pellegrini family, which produces four wines, three reds and one white, made from two estates comprising 118 acres, with 74 acres under the Bolgheri DOC.

        I had dinner in New York with the young—twenty-six years old—scion of the family, Elia Pellegrini, who looks very much like the professional soccer player he was not long ago, before joining  the family business.  Affable, earnest and fluent in English, Elia is typical of the Tuscan youth who have been driving the wine industry to experiment while retaining all the traditions that have made Bolgheri so prestigious.  

Aia Vecchia, which means “Old Barn,” has really developed its portfolio only since the 1990s, now under winemkaer Nicolo Scottini, and in the past decade has gained global distribution as far away as Zanzibar.

        Over a diverse meal of cold salumi and cheeses, ravioli with duck confit, sautéed calf’s liver with onions, and roast pork at the Theater District restaurant Orso, we drank three Aia Vecchia wines: first the Vermentino  2013 ($12), a fresh white wine with a charming bouquet and good citrus qualities that can serve as easily as an aperitif—the alcohol is 13 percent—as with antipasti like the sausages and mozzarella we enjoyed. Since it spends only four months aging in stainless steel and two in bottle, it is a wine to be enjoyed right now with no need to wait.

      Lagone  2011 is, at $15, amazingly well priced for a Tuscan wine of this caliber.  I scribbled down on my notes “it tastes like wine,” which I mean as praise at a time when so many wines are made to taste like high alcohol fruit punch.  Here, the blend of 60% merlot, 30% cabernet sauvignon and 10% cabernet franc has the lusty character of what a Bordeaux-style Italian wine shows at its best. 
         Lagone spends 12 months in oak barriques and six in bottle;  although it can certainly mature further, there’s every reason to enjoy it right now with a rich pasta or red meats. At 13 percent alcohol it is nicely textured and layered in its components.

    The denomination “Bolgheri Rosso Superiore” hardly does justice to Aia Vecchia’s top-of-the-line red, Sorugo 2010 ($35), made from 50% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 15% cabernet franc, and 5% petit verdot. The first varietal gives the wine its body and tannin, the franc rounds it out, and the petit verdot provides fruitiness and acid, all adding up to a very well priced red wine that would be an ideal match for red meats and, now that autumn is here, game and white truffles.

    The wine ages at least 18 months in barrel, then another year in the bottle, achieving at least 13.5 percent alcohol, although Elia Pellegrini told me that, owing to climate warming, it’s not always easy to keep the wines at that level.

So, for those who have only dreamed of tasting Super Tuscans like Sassicaia selling in excess of $150 a bottle, the acquisition of a wine like Sorugo will tell you almost as much about modern viticulture in Bolgheri.