How is your week going? Here, things are moving fast – we are getting our Certificate of Occupancy and hope we pass our health inspection (fingers crossed!) over the weekend.

Meanwhile, here is what is happening in the Italian media:

There is a huge olive oil scandal in Italy right now — much imported oil that has been market as “extra virgin” is, in fact, no such thing. This is why you should buy from people you trust and know, aka us (and stick with the smaller producers).

Conde Nast Traveller interviews cashmere superstar Brunello Cucinelli on his home region of Umbria, with some beautiful photography thrown in for good measure.

We also like his view on lunch from two years ago in Bon Appetit (if only we all had a Villa to retire to for a nap after lunch!)

Stop being intimidated by wine, says Bon Appetit. Which is why at the new Via Umbria we promise no judgement, only delight and discovery, when shopping for wine.

This cat had a three day hangover after breaking and entering a wine cellar and lapping up some bottles. We can relate.

It is time for lentil soup. Get your lentils and cozy up.

And don’t forget our Book Club is next week! Grab your copy here.

Ci Vediamo!

—Via Umbria

Hello Italophiles! How are you easing into November? Is Daylight Savings Time causing a major bummer or letting your morning nature shine?  Whether you read this curled up at night, or first thing to start your morning, this the Italian media this week that has caught our eye.

Darker days have you snuggling up with the TV? Here is the definitive guide on where and how to stream Italian movies.

“Olive Oil is Back” says the Los Angeles Times. After the blight last year, chefs are celebrating as they get access to some of the finest fresh pressed oils.

Now in the Via Umbria test kitchen: truffled deviled eggs (with EVOO, not mayo). We went there. Coming soon to #spritzoclock in Georgetown.

Sagrantino has been called “Rebellion in a Glass.” We like that idea. The Globe and Mail says that Umbria

…has an unusual red wine called Sagrantino, which coincidentally drifted into the Italian-wine cognoscenti’s radar space around the time Umbria started becoming cool. There’s something wonderfully rebellious about sagrantino, an aggressively tannic, astringent grape that seems like it’s flipping its middle finger at today’s ocean of smooth, mass-appeal reds.

Did you know that Simone and Ombretta are coming for our grand opening? We are making this pizza over the weekend to celebrate a little in advance.

Have a wonderful weekend!

— Via Umbria

What a week! With our new sign, announcement of a new chef, and a food and wine tour, things are in full swing at Via Umbria.

Here’s what’s happening in the Italian media around the web!

The artist Christo is installing art that lets you walk on water on Lake Iseo in Italy. His project “The Floating Piers” will let you walk on floating golden cubes over the lake, and it scheduled to be ready in June.

The Italian post office goes private, the largest of a string of privatizations Matteo Renzi is planning to convince foreign investors that Italy is on the road to recovery.

You know what they say, fashion is a cycle. So Facist architecture is chic again? The fashion house Fendi sets up shop in an old Roman Facist government building.

Did you see our lunch at Il Molino? The Food and Wine tour is wrapping up tomorrow, but we have more photos for you, coming soon!

And Italian liquor, Cynar, goes high-proof with a new digestif that ups the ante to 70 proof. Just in time for the week-end!

Cheers!

–Via Umbria

Now in Umbria, we are gearing up for our Food and Wine tour part two, which begins tomorrow! In DC, we are busy rounding up excellent bakers, baristas, and chefs to prepare for our opening in November. But in both places, we are always taking a little pause for #spritzoclock, and we hope you are too.

Tomorrow is National Pasta Day! See our pasta recipes here, and get some truly original creations at our online store. 

Last year, on our food and wine tour, we were met with a sad sight. The olive harvest of 2014 met a combination of terrible conditions that cause the crop yield to be incredibly low, or nonexistent. This year, we can personally witness the bounce back in Umbria. The LA Times wrote an article that rejoices with us – Umbrian olive oil is back.

Starbucks is in talks to open stores in Italy. How do you feel about mega-chains (such as the Dominos plan we mentioned last week) moving into Italy?

Our Food and Wine tour kicks off tomorrow! Prepare for more fun updates from Italy! And we have some Vinopalooza spots left if this is giving you major wonderlust…

Italy is going to dig for ancient Roman treasure which fascinated the Nazis.  They are digging in the tomb of Alaric, king of the Visigoths who sacked Rome, which is thought to include gold, silver and a priceless Menorah looted from Second Temple.

Have a wonderful week!

– Via Umbria

All this week we have been receiving photos from Italy about the food and wine tour. Our guests went truffle hunting yesterday, with a special truffle dog, Camilla, and then got to cook up their findings! Luckily for us, we carry products from the same truffle hunters right here in the United states.

In other news…

Bon Appétite makes an homage to their best homemade pizza recipes. In the Via Umbria test kitchen we made a gorgonzola, red onion, and beet pizza on Monday, which was very tasty.

In more food news, a study says that Italian origin is the key to the buying decisions of 71 percent of Italian consumers. Italian origin is more important to Italians than any kind of quality guarantee—which only 67 percent of those polled look for. Furthermore, Italian origin outweighs the absence of preservatives, which 66 percent deem important. It even trumps organic certification, significant for 61 percent of the population. So what me mean to say is…Italians like Italian food. 

Bill writes a personal post that sums up our business approach and nails why Umbria and Italy fill us up with life. 

Sea salt, good dark chocolate, balsamic, olive oil, and part? Washington Post, we agree: always worth the splurge. Here are 10 healthful foods always worth the premium price tag. 

More pizza news…Domino’s is now selling pizza in Milan. It is the first major pizza chain ever to enter the Italian market. Do you think it will work?

Italy became the world’s largest wine producer, ahead of France. But don’t get too excited – it’s mainly due to Italy’s perfect weather conditions this year and France’s poor ones.

We hope you are enjoying this beautiful fall and feeling “fed” by life.

Ci vediamo!

Via Umbria

Well, this rain is bleak. We hope you all are staying warm and snuggly. Bill and Suzy are avoiding this mess by heading off to Italy for two food and wine tours. You should be able to keep up with them here, on the blog!

The New York Times interviews a Monk from Norcia about his daily life.  His activities are pretty interesting.  If he even feels the stress of email, is anyone safe?

We’ll just leave this here… where to find the best pizza in DC. You’re welcome.

7 things you might be doing wrong with pasta! This list is essential, please take a look before you cook your next pot of pasta.

The wild boars of Italy are going on birth control.

Now that we are officially in October, we can start the slow move towards Halloween…so here are the 10 Best Dario Argento films to keep you transfixed and freaked out all month.

Stay dry, friends!

–Via Umbria

We’ve had an interesting week in DC, with all of the commotion from the Pope.  We love the power of an image from the Washington Post – DC starts to look a lot like the Vatican, right down to the obelisk.

If you’r reading this on Friday, it’s probably time you poured your self a Spritz. Here are five bitter drinks we wish were a bigger deal in the USA, from Food 52. Italy has been drinking bitter for a very long time—and we should be following suit.
Here are just a few reasons why having a kitchen garden on vacation is amazing.

Were the bones of the Real Mona Lisa just unearthed? We’ll let you decide.

Milan Fashion week just began! Here is the recap from the Wall Street Journal.

We kicked off our weekend a little early with a wine tasting with Arte Modus Design Studio last night. Cheers to everyone who came out! We hope your weekend is filled with little luxuries and relaxation.

–Ci Vediamo!

Via Umbria