Everyday Differences in Puglia: Unfinished Wine

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian. 

Over many years we have noticed that the Italians are generally moderate wine drinkers. Nowhere is that more apparent than in a restaurant. We have more than once seen a group of four share a bottle of wine and leave some in their glasses. This may not be so true of the younger generation of Italians from seeing them in the bars where they hang out; they do seem to have developed more of a taste for alcohol.

Recently we were in a restaurant where a table of six all left some unfinished wine. Such a waste.

Likewise, the couple on the table behind us left some in their glass. 

That just would not happen in the UK - people would make sure they finished the wine that they paid for. Maybe it's to do with the cost of wine or our respective nations attitude towards alcohol - although to be seen to be drunk would still be a "brutta figura" round here.

Everyday Differences in Puglia: the Ape

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian.

The Ape (pronounced ah-pay) is the go-to vehicle of choice for the small scale farmer or tradesman. The most common ones are made by Piaggio, the company that brought you the Vespa scooter. Fun fact: they are named Ape, the Italian word for bee, we presume because of the buzzing noise they make and Vespa is named after the Italian for wasp for the same reason.

And that basically is what this vehicle is, a Vespa: they added a third wheel, a cabin and a flatbed but, underneath it all, it’s still a scooter. It has handlebars instead of a steering wheel and a 50 cc motor. 

Woe betide you if you get stuck behind one up hill as they are not speedy!

They re-engineered a scooter to add a rear axle for the third wheel.

The steering device:

Some have a basic flatbed, some have side rails.

In the old town we get daily rubbish and recycling collections and, because the alleyways are too narrow for a conventional dust cart, they use an Ape instead.

At olive harvest time the local frantolio (oil mill) will have a queue of them lining up to deliver their crop for pressing. 

Likewise at grape harvest time you’ll see them arriving at the local wine co-op with their grapes. 

I'm not sure if this a special edition or somebody is try to emulate "Pimp My Ride"!

In Locorotondo there is even one all decked in white with ribbons for wedding hire. I’m not sure of the purpose of this mini van version.

Update from our visit to Palermo. An Ape Taxi...

... and a mobile Aperol Spritz vendor!

A versatile vehicle indeed!

Everyday Differences in Puglia: Pomodori Al Filo

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian. 

The pomodori al filo (tomatoes on the string) also called pomodori eterni (everlasting tomatoes) are a Salento method of preserving tomato as an alternative to sun-dried tomatoes or passata (see Everyday differences in Puglia: Tomato Bottling). In this method bunches of tomatoes are braided on strings of twine to be hung in cool, dry places. These are usually local varieties such as the Giallo d'Inverno tomato or the Regina tomato, which lend themselves to preservation. This practice allows you to have tomatoes available throughout the winter.

I first learnt about the pomodori al filo from our friend Mino the chef when he appeared on Rick Stein’s Mediterranean Escapes (2007). 

In that segment he cooked the traditional orecchietti con cime di rape but his version of the recipe included these pomodori al filo. These are available in a number of the shops around us so we can replicate Mino‘s version.

Everyday Differences in Puglia: Rounding Down The Bill

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian. 

I don’t know what Americans would make of Italian restaurants. Not only do they not expect a tip - it’s just not part of the Italian culture - but also they often round the bill down. They will knock a couple of Euros off to make the total a nice round number.

I used to think that it was because we were locals and regulars in Cisternino. However, last week we were in Polignano a Mare (about 20km away) for a very nice lunch and the same thing happened. The total was €105 rounded down with a discount to give us €100.

Perhaps our making the effort to speak Italian helps but I think they just do it to be nice. It is not really going to affect their bottom line, we get a nice feeling about the restaurant and maybe they hope it will encourage us to return.

Everyday Differences in Puglia: Death Notices

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian.

In the UK, the average time between death and a funeral is typically one to two weeks. In Italy, the average is typically three to seven days. 

In the UK, this will usually mean an announcement in the local weekly paper. In Italy time is of the essence and so notices are quickly printed and posted on noticeboards around the town. If the person lives out of town, the notices will also appear on temporary boards on the wall at their house and surrounding country lanes  

In Cisternino the same family names keep cropping up, the local equivalent of Smith and Jones: Semeraro, Zizzi, D’Amico, Loparco.

As well as announcing the death and date of funeral, these notices will also announce memorial services to be held on the anniversaries of the deceased’s passing. 

Sadly, one of these notices is commemorating the third anniversary of the untimely death of our wonderful builder who did the restoration work on our current and previous apartments. He was a true gentleman, a craftsman and charming in every way. A prime example of “only the good die young”.

The notices will often specify “Non fiori ma opere di bene” which translates as “no flowers but good works” by which they mean donate to charity.

Everyday differences in Puglia: Prickly Pears

Puglia Differences: an occasional series on things that strike this Brit as so very Italian.

Wandering round the market I saw a hardware stall selling, amongst the easily identifiable tools, these devices.

Closer inspection was no help and my Italian is not up to enquiring their purpose.

A friend enlightened me. The centre piece is to take a pole and the cups are for harvesting Fico D'India - prickly pears.

I have tried them out of interest but would not bother to repeat the experiment. Pretty dry and flavourless and full of pips. A bit like a pomegranate with all the juice and flavour taken out. And spikes!

Everyday Differences in Puglia: The Pasta Aisle

It does not matter how small or large the supermarket there is always a complete aisle devoted to dried pasta in all it myriad forms. For a hypermarket that is some serious quantities of pasta.

It is so much an integral part of the Italian psyche that it acts as an emotional shorthand. We first noticed it house hunting when we bought Trullo Azzurro back in 2003. Every house we viewed had a bag of pasta placed prominently on the table or kitchen worktop as a piece of set dressing. The same was true in all the furniture shops and kitchen showrooms - there was that bag of pasta whispering "food, home, family".

Rather like the UK house sellers' trick of grilling a coffee bean or baking a loaf of bread to create an enticing aroma but even more universal in application. The central role of pasta in Italian life and soul cannot be disputed.

Everyday differences in Puglia: Tomato Bottling

We have been out for the olive harvest and the grape harvest but not, that I recall, for the tomato harvest. That is because we rarely come out during school holidays.

I had read about the frenzy of passata making in Annie Hawes' Ligurian trilogy and it should not surprise me that it is an Italy-wide phenomenon. The glut of tomatoes at this time of year and their prevalence as a basic ingredient in Italian cooking make this inevitable.

The evidence of all this activity is there in the supermarkets:


Big pans for boiling the jars in the Fasano hypermarket


A tomato press in a local furniture store


Tomato buckets and burners for the pots in a Locorotondo supermarket

And what should I find on YouTube but our neighbours Mino Maggi, with sister Zia and wife Carole, demonstrating the bottling and boiling of tomatoes.




How different from rain-soaked England!

Everyday differences in Puglia: Family meal

The large Italian family meal is not just an invention of the Dolmio advertising agency. It is very real as the supermarket shelves attest. Every store has stacks of disposable plates, plastic cups and paper serviettes to save on washing up when you have all your family and friends round.



Fortunately our neighbours Mino and Carole love entertaining and we often get invited round for Sunday lunch.



Their friend Vito prepares a specialty - raw mussels - well you eat raw oysters so why not raw mussels?



It was a multi-course extravaganza. First was the focaccia made by Mino's sister, Zia, which Tim declared was the best focaccia he has ever eaten; a verdict we Brits all endorsed. Then raw mussels. Then sea food pasta.



Then a main course washed down by many bottles of Mino's own wine.



The dessert was a mixture of cakes and pastries with a prosecco.



A wonderful way to spend a Sunday lunch.



Several hours later we meandered off home for a quiet evening and a very light supper.

Trullo Azzurro: beautifully restored trullo in delightful, secluded valley near Locorotondo, Puglia, Italy. Available to rent on a per week basis, sleeps 4-6. For more information visit http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/trulloazzurro

Everyday differences in Puglia: Pasta pot

As every Italian Nonna (Grandmother) will tell you, "You must lift the pasta out of the water". You do not tip the pasta into a colander which drains the water through the pasta, oh no!

We found this pot in Italy and use it all the time. When we tried to find one in the UK we had little success so we bought one and brought it back home with us.

You should not put the pasta in until the water has come to the boil and you should only add the salt at that point not before, so I am informed.

It also works well for vegetables.

Trullo Azzurro: beautifully restored trullo in delightful, secluded valley near Locorotondo, Puglia, Italy. Available to rent on a per week basis, sleeps 4-6. For more information visit http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/trulloazzurro

Everyday differences in Puglia: Dustbins

There was outcry in the UK when communal bins were suggested [1]. In Italy they are the norm (as far as I can see); the Italians seem to manage OK with on-street bins.

In rural Italy (and indeed rural UK) door-to-door rubbish collections really don't make sense. They are commonplace in the UK if you live in a block of flats anyway so I am not sure what all the fuss is about.

The exception in Italy is the centro storico (historic centre) where the narrow winding streets of Locorotondo or Cisternino simply do not have room for big bins. There the locals put out a carrier bag of rubbish each night for early morning collection.



Our road has one for the entire street. It is a no-through-road so everyone has to pass it on their way anywhere and taking your rubbish with you is part of the daily routine.

They are useful local landmarks - "for Anne's house turn left at the fourth dustbin". They also serve as impromptu recycling centres: if you place some serviceable, but unwanted, item next to the bin it will often be gone the next time you pass by.

[1] Daily Mail: Dumpster nightmare

Trullo Azzurro: beautifully restored trullo in delightful, secluded valley near Locorotondo, Puglia, Italy. Available to rent on a per week basis, sleeps 4-6. For more information visit http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/trulloazzurro

Everyday differences in Puglia: Cocomero

The cocomero is a Puglian speciality - it looks like a melon but tastes like a sweet-ish cucumber. Certainly the locals treat as a savoury and serve it as a starter salad vegetable or a side dish with a main course.


Cocomero 01 - Whole


Cocomero 02 - Halved


Cocomero 03 - Sliced

Everyday differences in Puglia: market vegetables

We like to support our local farmers' market and buy food that does not suffer from jet lag. 

The last time we went to Wandsworth Town farmers' market the veg du jour were sprouts and parsnips. When we went to Locorotondo market it was fava beans (broad beans in English) and artichokes. I know which have more appeal. 


Globe Artichoke (Cynara cardunculus)

I have never been sure how to prepare artichokes. By the time I have trimmed away the outer leaves to get at the heart the pathetic inner core in no way resembles those served up as part of the antipasti. 

Mary took the opportunity of her sabbatical to watch Zia and Carol showing her how to tackle this problematical vegetable and have a go herself. Of course we will now have to wait till next spring to put into practice this new found knowledge as by the time of of next visit some other veg will be in season.    

Trullo Azzurro: beautifully restored trullo in delightful, secluded valley near Locorotondo, Puglia, Italy. Available to rent on a per week basis, sleeps 4-6. For more information visit http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/trulloazzurro

Everyday differences in Puglia: garden tools

We searched far and wide for recognisable garden implements but without success. The common, or garden, fork and spade in their English form are simply not known in Italy.  The same is true of the hand fork and trowel. 

Italian spade

The Puglian design seems to be unchanged from it's mediaeval forebears and lies somewhere between a shovel and a spade. It has a shield shaped blade and long straight handle. 

I must say I do prefer the English version. The blade has a more pronounced flange across the top for applying foot pressure. The shorter haft and D-shaped handle allow the digger to apply, or control, turning action.

English fork and spade

We met an ex-pat couple at the local garden centre who had resorted to bringing a fork and spade out in their hold luggage. We may consider doing the same.