07-04-2021
Maturing Tombea cheese (all the photos are from Riccardo Camanini)
Speaking of food, cooking, raw materials and techniques with Riccardo Camanini, chef at Lido 84 in Gardone Riviera, never leads to an ordinary conversation. Soon, if not immediately, the chef, with his culture, his curiosity, his refined mind, will lead the discussion to unordinary and uncommon directions. This happened recently when we asked Camanini to tell us about the discovery of a product, and a producer, who had particularly stimulated his curiosity and charmed him for some reason.
«I'd like to talk about a producer I visited a few days ago», he said. And when we asked him how he runs his research of the raw materials that end up in his food, he was surprised when he replied: «I'm not sure I can answer. I don't plan: researching ingredients is clearly crucial for someone with my job, but in my case it's not planned in detail. It's a result of curiosity, fortune, word of mouth: I'm from Bergamo, I'm not really familiar with the area of lake Garda, hence when I hear about an artisan, I want to meet him. For instance, they told me that in Valvestino there's a small production of a cheese called Tombea. Some common acquaintances mentioned Germano Eggiolini and I visited him a few days ago».
Behind the trees, you can see the remains of the customs in Valvestino
Riccardo Camanini's tale continues with a detailed and of course passionate description of the journey that led him to Eggiolini's farm in Magasa, a small village of some 100 hundred people in the north-east border of the province of Brescia: «We went there on a Sunday, driving across Valvestino, which I had never visited. I was surprised by how at some point you see the remains of the customs, which shows what was once the border with the Austrian empire: I had no idea that virtually 'on top of my head', in that region, there was such an important post: that road had surely been crowded with stories, and people and raw materials».
«Today – the chef continues – it's not very used. It just goes across three or four very small villages. The nature has a striking beauty, because in the Fifties they built a dam here. It's not the dam that is beautiful, but when it's not full, it allows you to see the road that people once took to pass the border, now full of vegetation. And then there are the remains of the customs. When we arrived in Magasa, I was struck by another unexpected cultural influence».
The mountains and the fields in Magasa
We hang from Riccardo Camanini's lips: «I noticed some thatched roofs, like those used for cottages in England and Scotland [it's the Fienili in Cima Rest]. That area had been dominated by the Celts, hence there's been an overlapping of cultures in this area which now seems remote, a place where you end up because you go to buy that cheese, or because you like riding your bike in the mountains. And it's fascinating that instead in the past both the Celts and the Austrians had occupied the area for strategic regions. Going back to our days, it's nice to see these woods and these very sloped and very clean fields, that explain the life of the woodsmen who are still here, and take care of the woods and the region, of the cows and goats which help keep the fields clean, which are beautiful under the sun».
We wanted to talk about cheese, but to begin with the chef from Lido 84 with his simple and special humanity reminds us the important and charm of the story of the places and the people from which come the ingredients we fall in love with.
Germano Eggiolini
The meeting with Germano Eggiolini was no less in terms of charm, says Camanini: «I'm always interested in the human, emotional side: this family-run business is genuinely transparent and natural. I enjoyed having a chat with the family, observing how they live in this context that clearly has a strong impact on them. It's an important choice of life, almost ancestral, which requires a precious and surely arduous dedication».
In Eggiolini's words you can notice the dedication and passion in following a family story that has been going on for three generations: «My grandfather on my father's side established the business. My father then continued it and now there's me. I have three children, we'll see if they'll want to continue. People must be free to choose their destiny. Of course it would make me proud, but I also known I cannot take it for granted because these jobs are more and more difficult, with all the bureaucracy».
Riccardo Camanini observes the making of Tombea cheese
The butter
We asked Germano to tell us how they eat Tombea: «On top of eating it as it is, we grill it, especially the less matured one, and make some excellent risotto, we also melt it in our "polenta tiragna". Some cheese ages over three years, only for us, so we can also use it as grated cheese».
Riccardo Camanini instead will tell about its use the next time: «It's a new product for me, I already have some ideas in mind but I must test them, and perhaps I must pay another visit to Germano. What I'm sure of is that it's really a great cheese, that has nothing to envy to other more famous and prestigious products ».
Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso
Reviews, recommendations and trends from Italy, signed by all the authors of Identità Golose
by
Journalist, based in Milan. At 8 years old, he received a Springsteen record as a gift, and nothing was the same since. Music and food are his passions. Author and broadcaster at Radio Popolare since 1997, since 2014 he became part of the staff of Identità Golose Instagram: @NiccoloVecchia
Riccardo Camanini, at Identità Milano 2024 shows the audience the special pastry with which he prepared the first of the dishes he presented (All photos are by Brambilla / Serrani)
Riccardo Camanini's lecture at Identità Milano 2024 will be on Monday 11th of March, at 10.55 a.m., in the MiCo Auditorium