10-05-2018
Massimiliano Alajmo’s "Vibrazioni - gioco al cioccolato 2018" in a video. It’s a fantastic dessert in 16 acts, now in the menu at Le Calandre in Sarmeola di Rubano (Padua)
A few months ago a marvellous dessert was introduced in the menu at Le Calandre in Rubano (Padua). It’s called Vibrazioni – gioco al cioccolato 2018 and it’s at the end of the Max tasting menu, named after Massimiliano Alajmo, the cook who wrote the rules of the game.
The last 100 seconds in the video give a good explanation of how the game works. They place a dark squared board on the table, with 16 delicious tastings on top. On the left side of the “dish” there’s a pair of headphones and the waiter invites you to wear them.
The first time I tasted a dish while listening to something was a decade or so ago. It was Heston Blumenthal’s The Sound of the Sea: an iPod played the sound of seagulls flying over the cliffs of the Channel, the same birds that in theory had been deprived of the seafood in your plate. Using this trick, the great British chef wanted to pinpoint the synesthetic value of the tasting experience: it was proven that the sound significantly increased the overall appreciation of the tasting. The same happened with Nino Di Costanzo’s Napule é, a dessert that acquired power thanks to the strophes of a popular song by Pino Daniele.
The dessert, the way it is served at Le Calandre
So you can listen to the Sage and lemon chocolate rubbing the surface. To the crackling of the Crispy flakes of chocolate with Tonka beans. To the spoon dipping into the Mango and passion fruit spumoni. To the crispiness of the Buckwheat crostolo with gianduia and powdered spices. To the sound made when drawing the White chocolate cremoso with vanilla, apricot and ginger through the straw. To the one made when sucking a Banana gin tonic, to the breaking of the raspberry millefoglie with pistachios and red fruits… and so on for each of the 16 strictly Italian pastries: there are no macarons, no shiny glazes, no perfect coating. Just pure flavour that will have any Italian recall his memories.
A detail of the 16 elements
Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso
See also Alajmo: «La cucina stia lontana dalle farmacie» Il senso di Alajmo per la materia prima
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born in Milan, 1973, freelance journalist, coordinator of Identità Golose World restaurant guidebook since 2007, he is a contributor for several magazines and teaches History of gastronomy and Culinary global trends into universities and institutes. twitter @gabrielezanatt instagram @gabrielezanatt