All photos from Friuli Doc website's press kit by tassotto&max 2017

​It's the only international festival in Friuli Venezia Giulia encompassing theatre, dance, music and contemporary performing arts. Mittelfest 2020 has been running in Cividale del Friuli (near Udine) since 1991 challenging all kind of odds, including this year's pandemic: that's why it's been postponed, in order to make shows available safely for the audience. 
From September 5th to September 13th the beautiful, ancient hamlet will become a stage to 25 artistic projects, 10 national and international premières and 3 "Mittelforums". The festival's artistic director Haris Pašović announced "empathy" as the 29th edition's theme in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis, wondering if a new world and a more compassionate society could be ensuing as a consequence.

Mittelfest 2020: programme's highlights
Among the events scheduled for the opening day, the FVG Orchestra will play Mozart's "Requiem" at the Duomo of Santa Maria Assunta, honouring Covid-19's victims. The Mittelfest 2020 programme will feature big names from the Italian and Middle-European cultural scene: actor Alessandro Benvenuti will premiere his Covid-themed monologue, award-winning actor Elio Germano will perform his "La mia battaglia", while from neighbour countries there will be a homage to the late Slovenian director Tomaž Pandur and the drama "Till Death Do Us Part" by Croatian actress and author Mira Furlan. The Dutch Ikarai Ensemble will present their show dedicated to boxer Mohammad Alì, "Muhammad", in collaboration with Dutch Performing Arts, and famed theatre director Emma Dante will put on stage her pièce "Misericordia".
There will be varied live music too, from classical to folk: Italian eclectic musician Vinicio Capossela will bring a bit of "Pandemonium", while the Philharmonic String Quartet (the Berliner Philharmoniker's chamber ensemble) will play Beethoven and Haydn. Digital and visual arts will also be a central focus of the festival, with many performances.

30 years promoting culture and tolerance
Mittelfest was born during hard times, when the Iron Curtain was crumbling down but things in the near Balkans were getting worse, instead. It is one of the most important cultural events of the Central European Initiative area (which includes most Eastern and Central European countries, and Italy of course) and spanning over three decades it gave voice to extraordinary artists from all over the world: choreographer Pina Bausch and dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, actress Isabelle Huppert, musicians Brad Mehldau and Richard Galliano, film director Emir Kusturica and writers and intellectuals of the likes of Václav Havel, Peter Esterhazy, George Tabori, Claudio Magris and Biljana Srbljanovic. The festival's director himself, Haris Pašović, is a renowned theatre director and the founder of the Sarajevo Film Festival.

Cividale and its historical heritage
To mark the importance of Cividale del Friuli, it would be enough to mention that the region’s very name came from it. The city was founded by the Roman emperor Julius Caesar under the name “Forum Iulii” (Julius’ square), hence the toponym “Friuli”. It then grew to become, in 568 a.C., the first Langobardic duchy in Italy, for which reason in 2011 it has been enlisted into Unesco’s World Heritage sites. Many archaeological discoveries belonging to that era helped resurface ancient treasures, like the ones found in the city’s wide Langobard necropolis: relics are on public display at Cividale’s National Archaeological Museum. Having also been a home to Aquileia’s Patriarchs for a long time, extraordinary artefacts are also kept in the Museo Cristiano del Duomo, testifying its early Christian heritage. The Tempietto (little temple) is another impressive monument worth visiting, but Cividale’s history is so interesting and ancient that we’ve set to devote an entire article (or even more, maybe) to it. So stay tuned, then!

ABOUT MITTELFEST 2020:
Tickets available on the website www.vivaticket.it
More infos at: info@mittelfest.org
Subcriptions only by appointment: (+39)0432.734316, biglietteriamittelfest@gmail.com

All photos by Luca A. d'Agostino/Phocus Agency, taken from the website www.mittelfest.org

Ferragosto, on the 15th of August, is the Italian summer holiday par excellence. It's usually celebrated at families' barbecues or, of course, on the beach, often with fireworks lighting up the night sky and romantically reflecting on the sea waves. So food plays a central part in it, and we thought it could be nice to keep on feasting the day after, maybe trying something different!
Like the incredibly tasty recipe that Chef Justin Quek, one of Asia's celebrity chefs, especially realized for our partner Do Ville's “Ars Vivendi” Rosé Venezia Giulia IGT (vintage 2018). The dish is included into the 2020 edition of “Zhong Can Yi Jiu”, the culinary guide from the project “Chinese Cuisines meet Italian Wines”. Light curry with a refreshing fine wine, what more one could ask for?

A heavenly dish, and life becomes... rosé
Justin Quek is one of Singaporean cuisine's most renowned representatives. The special creation he devoted to Do Ville's “Ars Vivendi” Rosé perfectly mirrors the city's international spirit: fish curry with four heavenly vegetables (click here for the recipe's full details).
It features halibut's fillets, a fish dwelling in oceanic waters, and vegetables that are typically picked up during the summer: eggplants, the delicious okras, cherry tomatoes, long and wing beans. The curry note obviously bears a reference to Indian cuisine, but it differs from its homeland equivalent being a less spicy version of it. The coconut milk and the fresh curry leaves also give a touch of summer to the dish, and are crispy balanced by the Rosé's cherry and strawberry back taste. A wine to be served cool, its Cabernet grapes manage to keep it as enjoyable as it could be, making it the perfect choice for seafood, fish and aperitifs.

Justin Quek, the king of Singapore
A very peculiar city-state, which flaunts cosmopolitan ancestry and is very proud of it. In Singapore, people from all over the world have been mingling for a long time, with mutual respect for different ethnicities and religious creeds and with one thing always bringing them together: food. Its cuisine have been influenced by neighbouring countries, with particular impact on it by Malay, Indonesian, Indian and Chinese traditions, in addition to European ones such as Portuguese's and English's. An extraordinary varied, rich blend resulting in national dishes which locals love to enjoy not only in restaurants, but mostly at hawkers' stalls in the streets and in food courts. Just to name a few examples, the most popular choices are chili crab, Hainanese chicken rice and laksa.
Justin Quek brought the tradition to a higher level at his own restaurant in Marina Bay Sands, Chinoiserie, where he harmonized Singaporean and French flavours into a unique tasting experience.
He mastered his long-running skills over three decades of hard work and discipline, beginning to practice in the kitchen at a very young age: as a starter, he was a trainee at the Mandarin Oriental in Singapore and then in Bangkok. But it was his decision to embark on a year trip to Europe that made him change his culinary views for the best, and open his mind to unusual horizons. Throughout his carrer, he worked at Michelin-starred restaurants in many countries, thus acquiring techniques and ideas that helped him revolutionise both his style and Singaporean cuisine, ultimately setting his own terms for a new, creative way of cooking.

About the 2020 “Zhong Can Yi Jiu” guide
It's the second edition of the guide, first published last year, which is part of a very interesting, wider project called “Chinese Cuisines meet Italian Wines”. Promoted by the Italian Wine Bank and produced by The I Factor (organizers of the Italian Cuisine and Wines World Summits and of the Italian Wine List Awards), the program involves 24 talented Chinese chefs from Beijing and Shanghai and is implemented thanks to a collaboration with the Italian Sommelier Association's Club China and the Hong Kong Chinese Culinary Institute.


All photos taken from the Zhong Can Yi Jiu website

The first week has gone by, and we’re welcoming now the second one. Calici di Stelle 2020 is still running and will keep you company up to August 16. The event, involving more than 800 winemakers' cantine all around Italy,  was created by Movimento Turismo del Vino and Città del Vino to promote wine tourism through tastings, open air dinners under the stars directly at the winemakers' venues, or in Italy's most beautiful old town centres.
A collective toast will also be streamed live on August 10, at 7.30 pm, thus uniting all winemakers and cantine to raise their glasses and cheer up together, though only virtually. All the events will be respectful of social-distancing rules, for which reason most of them will need a reservation beforehand.

All Calici di Stelle's second week events in FVG – From August 9 to August 16
Here's the full list of Calici di Stelle 2020 events in Friuli Venezia Giulia for the second week running. Be sure to save the date if you're interested, and to ask for your reservation because it's mandatory in most of the events.
Beside the scheduled events, many winemakers will host tastings under the stars at their own venues: Borgo Conventi in Farra d'Isonzo (Gorizia), Cantina Puntin in Aquileia (Udine), Elio Vini in Cividale (Udine), Ferrin Paolo in Camino al Tagliamento (Udine), Graunar in San Floriano del Collio (Gorizia), I Magredi in Domanins (Pordenone), Isola Augusta in Palazzolo dello Stella (Udine), Le 2 Torri in Corno di Rosazzo (Udine) and Parovel Vigneti&Oliveti 1898 in San Dorligo della Valle (Trieste).

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR UDINE:
August 9 – Aquileia
In the city of Unesco's World Heritage: Agro Aquileiese's tasting experiences
Aquileia is an ancient city of Roman origin, featuring on Unesco's World Heritage list since 1998 due to its relevant archaeological area and the Patriarchal Basilica, this one being just one of the beautiful scenery for the three-days event. Live music in piazza Capitolo will provide the perfect background for local products&wines' tastings, and interesting Night Tours will bring tourists around the city to enjoy all the historical places: from the Roman burial ground and the Domus, to the Bishop's Palace and the National Museum of Archaeology. All sites will be open by night thanks to Fondazione Aquileia and Polo Museale del Friuli Venezia Giulia. For more infos please call (+39)389.12858620 or send an email to: calicidistelleaquileia@aquileia.org.

August 9 – Corno di Rosazzo
Concert, wine tastings and Yellow Dinner at Villa Nachini Cabassi
In the gorgeus 18th century Villa Nachini Cabassi, in the heart of the Colli Orientali (Oriental Hills), an entire night to remember with live music, wine tastings and an unforgettable dinner. Starting at 7 pm in the inner garden Giardino del Pozzo with a concert featuring 17th century composer Georg P. Telemann’s music: Giampaolo Pretto will play the flute, while Massimo Somaglino will recite selected poems and short stories. The attendance to the performance is free but reservation is mandatory. Meanwhile in another garden, Giardino del Morar, the Corno di Rosazzo’s Winemakers Association will be introducing their sparkling, red and white wines (from 7 pm up to 10 pm). From 8.30 pm, the restaurant inside the Villa will host a yellow-themed dinner, matched with local wines such as Ribolla Gialla. Both the wine tastings and the dinner are upon paid admission and reservation is mandatory. From 7 pm to 11.30 pm. For more infos please call (+39)0432.753568 or send an email to: infopoint@iatcolliorientalidelfriuli.it.

August 10 – Bertiolo
An open air tasting event in the town's central piazza della Seta
During the night local products will be paired with local wines, with live music and DJ-sets as a background. From 7.30 pm to 11.30 pm, for more infos please call (+39)0432.914014 or go to the website www.bertiolo.com.

August 13 – Camino al Tagliamento
Tasting night with local winemakers Ferrin, Forchir and Sbaiz
In the beautiful palace known as Casa Liani, typical delicacies cooked by Al Molino di Glaunicco restaurant will be paired with the three local producers' most renowned wines, with live music in the background. From 8 pm, for more infos please call (+39) 0432.919000.

August 13 – Latisana
Tastings between flavours and nature, from Piazza Indipendenza to Gaspari Park
The spectacular Park Gaspari will be the perfect location for a romantic night, surrounded by nature and delighted by local wines and delicacies, just a few minutes away from Tagliamento river. All shops in Latisana's central squares will be open as well. For more infos, please call the local association Pro Latisana (+39) 0431521550, or send an email to: info@prolatisana.it or turismo@prolatisana.it.

August 13 – Trivignano Udinese
Dinner and wine tastings at La Corte dei Vizi restaurant
At La Corte dei Vizi, near one of Italy’s most beautiful hamlets, Clauiano, guests can not only taste extraordinary dishes, but can also stay overnight and relax in the estate’s nice surroundings. For Calici di Stelle 2020, the restaurant created a special menu, pairing the courses (including the delicacy D’Osvaldo ham and the typical gnocchi di susine, or plum dumplings) with local producers’ wines: Borgo Claudius, Foffani, Ariis, Sturm, Isidoro Polencic and Rosa Bosco, most of them from the famed Collio area. From 8 pm, reservation is mandatory. For more infos please call (+39)351.6117196 or send an email to: info@lacortedeivizi.it.

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR PORDENONE:
August 10 – Casarsa della Delizia
Burovich Palace: A meeting between theatre and Filari di Bolle 2020's sparkling wines
Dino Persello, along with musician Pasqualino Petris (accordion) will play their show “Parole e Musica. Lungo la Strada del Vino e dei Sapori del Friuli Venezia Giulia” (Words and music, along FVG wine and tastes' road) in the breathtaking scenery of Palazzo Burovich de Zmajevich's ancient orchard. Meanwhile, sommeliers from AIS Friuli Venezia Giulia will introduce the sparkling wines that won Filari di Bolle 2020 competition. More events in Casarsa here. In collaboration with the association Proloco Casarsa. From 9 pm, for more infos and reservations please call (+39)0434.871031 or send an email to: segreteria@procasarsa.org.

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR GORIZIA:
August 10 – Gradisca d’Isonzo
Tastings and live music in Piazza Unità
Local winemakers and farmers will showcase their products at the many stalls set up in Piazza Unità and nearby. Visitors will be able to taste both local wines and food, while listening to the Sarahband &Sound Brass Ensemble performing for “Concerti sotto le stelle” (Concerts under the stars), a series of summer events in Gradisca. In collaboration with Proloco Gradisca. From 7 pm, reservation is mandatory. For more infos please (+39)0481.960624 or (+39)338.3968204 or send an email to: prolocogradisca@virgilio.it.

August 13 – Cormons
Excellence tastings in the heart of Collio
A night full of events in the streets of Cormons, promoted by the municipality. Tastings of the celebrated Collio hills' wines will light up the night. And all around the area there's so much to see, as we already saw in our blog. From 8 pm to 11 pm, for more infos please call (+39)0481.630371 or send an email to: cormons@gmail.com.

 Sipping on excellent wines on summer nights, in towns overflowing with nice historical buildings or by the vineyards. There's an event that can't be missed, this summer, and it's Calici di Stelle 2020 (“Stemware of Stars”) promoted by Movimento Turismo del Vino and Città del Vino, involving more than 800 winemakers' cantine all around Italy from August 2 to August 16.
Here we'll detail all the events in Friuli Venezia Giulia during the first week of Calici di Stelle, that is from August 2 up to August 8, and next week we'll publish all the events from August 9 to August 16.

The event was created to promote wine tourism through tastings, open air dinners under the stars directly at the winemakers' venues, or in Italy's most beautiful old town centres. It has been rescheduled due to Covid crisis, and all the events taking place will be respectful of social-distancing rules, for which reason most of them will need a reservation beforehand.
And the title given to the 2020 edition is a sign of hope as well for the wine sector: “E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle”, “and at last we came out to see the stars again”, a famous quote from 13th century Italian writer Dante Alighieri's “Divina Commedia”. That's just the point with Calici di Stelle: it would like to take the wine business by the hand and lead it out of the pandemic darkness gently.

All Calici di Stelle's first week events in FVG – From August 2 to August 8
Almost all Italian regions are taking part in Calici di Stelle, and a lot of events have been scheduled in Friuli Venezia Giulia too. So here we go with the full list in FVG! Be sure to save the date if you're interested, and to ask for your reservation because it's mandatory in most of the events.
Beside the scheduled events, many winemakers will host tastings under the stars at their own venues: Borgo Conventi in Farra d'Isonzo (Gorizia), Cantina Puntin in Aquileia (Udine), Elio Vini in Cividale (Udine), Ferrin Paolo in Camino al Tagliamento (Udine), Graunar in San Floriano del Collio (Gorizia), I Magredi in Domanins (Pordenone), Isola Augusta in Palazzolo dello Stella (Udine), Le 2 Torri in Corno di Rosazzo (Udine) and Parovel Vigneti&Oliveti 1898 in San Dorligo della Valle (Trieste).

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR UDINE:
August 2 – Dolegna del Collio and Prepotto: CANCELLED DUE TO BAD WEATHER FORECAST!!
Gala dinner on the Schioppettino bridge, with Dolegna del Collio's Ribolla Gialla and Prepotto's Schioppettino
These two towns joined forces for a night of wine tasting and stargazing, on the bridge over the Judrio creek, between Mernico and Albana. They chose the two most representative wines for their own territories, for a night to remember.

August 7 – Moimacco
A Night at De Claricini estate with historical local producers
Various local winemakers will be at the fabulous De Claricini estate, in Bottenicco di Moimacco, for a night of wine tastings. Among the cantine you'll surely find, beside De Claricini, also Elio Vini, Le 2 Torri, Parovel Vigneti&Oliveti 1898, Rocca Bernarda, Tonutti Vini&Vigneti, Vini Grillo: they're all historical winemaking firms and they'll introduce to participants their most celebrated wines. Visitors will also enjoy the 17th century Villa De Claricini and its marvellous surroundings, including the farm where legumes and cereals too are grown: all of them belong to the De Claricini Dornpacher Foundation. From 8 pm to 12 am, for more infos and reservations please contact De Claricini at info@declaricini.it .

August 7 and August 8 – Aquileia
In the city of Unesco's World Heritage: Agro Aquileiese's tasting experiences
Aquileia is an ancient city of Roman origin, featuring on Unesco's World Heritage list since 1998 due to its relevant archaeological area and the Patriarchal Basilica, this one being just one of the beautiful scenery for the three-days event. Live music in piazza Capitolo will provide the perfect background for local products&wines' tastings, and interesting Night Tours will bring tourists around the city to enjoy all the historical places: from the Roman burial ground and the Domus, to the Bishop's Palace and the National Museum of Archaeology. All sites will be open by night thanks to Fondazione Aquileia and Polo Museale del Friuli Venezia Giulia. For more infos please call (+39)389.12858620 or send an email to: calicidistelleaquileia@aquileia.org.

August 8 – Buttrio
Tastings and tour guides in Villa Toppo Florio
Live music and the best local wines' tastings at the magnificent 18th century Villa Toppo Florio, where is also to be found the Museum of Wine Civilization and tour guides to the museum will run all night. Buttrio flaunts a long history of winemaking and the most expensive wine in FVG is from here. From 7 pm to 12 am, for more infos please call (+39)0432.636114 or send an email to: protocollo@comune.buttrio.ud.it.

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR TRIESTE:
August 7 – Duino Aurisina
A toast from Sistiana Bay, in the heart of Carso
Overlooking the sea from the extraordinary scenery of Sistiana Bay, the tasting event will provide participants with the local producers' best wines, along with delicious typical dishes. Wines coming from the Carso area, Trieste, Gorizia's Collio and Slovenian Carso will be introduced by sommeliers and paired with finger foods, in line with the “Duino Aurisina Città dei Sapori” project. In collaboration with Comune di Duino Aurisina and ProLoco Mitreo. From 7 pm to 11 pm, for more infos and reservations please call (+39)348.5166126 or (+39)349.6649480, or send an email to prolocoaurisina@libero.it.

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR PORDENONE:
August 6 – Casarsa della Delizia
Burovich Palace: A bond between theatre and Filari di Bolle 2020's sparkling wines
Dino Persello, along with musician Pasqualino Petris (accordion) will play his show “Parole e Musica. Lungo la Strada del Vino e dei Sapori del Friuli Venezia Giulia” (Words and music, along FVG wine and flavours' road) in the breathtaking scenery of Palazzo Burovich de Zmajevich's ancient orchard. Meanwhile, sommeliers from AIS Friuli Venezia Giulia will introduce the sparkling wines that won Filari di Bolle 2020 competition. More events in Casarsa here. From 9 pm, for more infos and reservations please call (+39)0434.871031 or send an email to: segreteria@procasarsa.org.

August 7 – Lestans di Sequals
Tastings at Corte Morea restaurant
Live music and speciality foods by Corte Morea (which is both a restaurant and a hotel-bed&breakfast) will enhance the local wines' flavours for a unique night under the stars. Reservation is mandatory. Starting from 7.30 pm. For more infos please call (+39)3404019647 or send an email to: info@cortemorea.it.

CALICI DI STELLE NEAR GORIZIA:
August 7 and August 8 – Capriva del Friuli
Wine tastings in Piazza Vittoria
The little town of Capriva is just right in the heart of the famed Collio hills, scattered with vineyards as far as the eye can see. In the area there's also the beautiful Castello di Spessa, a stunning location consisting of tourist accomodation, restaurants, a golf club and also its very own winemaking firm. The Castello di Spessa's wines are among those to be tasted at the central Piazza Vittoria, along with some of the most celebrated local winemakers and farm estates. Just to name a few, there will be wines from Marco Felluga Russiz Superiore, Villa Russiz, Roncùs, Russian Vini, Schiopetto, Agriturismo Orzan, Budignac, Azienda Agricola Coceani, Vini Vidussi, Attems, Pighin Aziende Agricole, Amandum, Murva and Azienda Agricola Blasizza. Promoted by the association Proloco Capriva. From 7 pm, for more infos please call (+39)347 7834024 or send an email to: proloco.capriva@gmail.com

August 8 – Ronchi dei Legionari
Il vate nella terra dei vini – The poet in the land of wines
At the stunning estate Tenuta di Blasig, local winemakers and their wines will delight visitors' palate. Here are the cantine introducing their wines for a night of tastings: Conte d’Attimis-Maniago, Elio Vini, Parovel Vigneti&Oliveti 1898, Tenuta di Blasig and Tonutti Vini&Vigneti. For more infos and reservations you can contact Tenuta di Blasig by phone (+39)0481.475480 or with an email to: prenotazioni@tenutadiblasig.it.