On Thursday, October 27, as part of the first-ever Taste of Italy Dallas, Italian food expert Jeremy Parzen will lead a seminar on the olive oils of Calabria featuring the oils of Tenuta Pantano (Badolato, Catanzaro).
As guests sample a flight of extra-virgin olive oils, they will also enjoy light bites created especially to pair with the oils.
SEMINAR
CALABRIAN OLIVE OIL
with Italian food expert
Jeremy Parzen
Thursday, October 27
12:00 p.m.
Eataly Dallas
The Italy-America Chamber of Commerce South Central is pleased to present a Calabrian extra-virgin olive oil tasting featuring the oils of Tenuta Pantano. The guided tasting and seminar will be led by Italian food and wine expert Jeremy Parzen.
As Italian gastronomy took the world by storm in the 1990s and early 2000s, the interest in artisanally produced Italian extra-virgin olive oil grew swiftly. At the time, Tuscan and Sicilian olive oils were the focus of most food lovers in the U.S. No surprise there. But over time, Americans have expanded their interest in the category as they discovered Sardinian olis, Ligurian, and even Veneto olive oils produced along the banks of Lake Garda.
Despite this robust interest in top olive oils from Italy, Calabrian olive oils — some of Italy’s most coveted — have remained under the radar. That’s because Calabria is still Italy’s greatest “undiscovered country,” a land teeming with culinary treasures and delights that Americans have yet to experience. We are confident that tasters at the October 27 event will be excited to learn about Calabria’s unique soils and terroirs, including the maritime influence of the Mediterranean sea, which gives the oils their signature freshness.
“Calabrian oils are among the best I’ve tasted in recent years,” says Parzen, who launched his food writing career at La Cucina Italiana more than two decades ago. “Thanks to the work of the chamber, I’ve had the opportunity to taste a number of Calabrian products that are not yet available in the U.S. And I’ve been blown away by the quality and depth, especially when it comes to the oils and the wines.”
The Calabrian extra-virgin olive oil event is the featured seminar at this year’s Taste of Italy Dallas, the IACC’s first trade fair in that city.
