Love is in the air, and that means I’ve got Cravero Parmigiano-Reggiano on my table! It’s the fruit of February — moist, sweetly complex, and full of crystals. In May, I’m headed to Cravero country for our Northern Italy tour, the first Cheese Journey of spring! Not only will we visit my friend Giorgio Cravero at his ripening cave in Bra, but I’m delighted to announce a new cheese celebrity who will join us as a co-host: Emilio Migniccui of Di Bruno Bros.
If you’ve been to Philadelphia, you’ve probably visited one his family’s cheese shops. Emilio is a legend in the business, and it’s my pleasure to welcome him on board, along with another cheese celeb from Philadelphia: Tenaya Darlington (a.k.a. Madame Fromage) who collaborated with Emilio to write the book, Di Bruno Bros. House of Cheese.
Emilio and Tenaya have hosted numerous events together and will teach the tasting sessions on our tour. Plus, they’re the kind of folks you can pal around with at dinner or enjoy a glass of Barolo with in the kitchen while Chef Sylvain Jamois and Chef Robert Springer roll pasta. For me, this is what a Cheese Journey is all about. We’re not just a food tour company; we’re a passionate dairy-driven food tour company! And you can’t hang out with Emilio and Tenaya without experiencing their infectious passion for artisan cheese.
I can’t wait for you to meet them!
If you’ve ever dreamed of owning a food business or writing cookbooks professionally, you’re about two meet two people who can give you some serious tips. Here are a few details about our co-hosts:
Emilio Mignucci is a third-generation owner of Di Bruno Bros. and Vice President of Culinary Pioneering. He’s received honors by the Italian Trade Commission and the James Beard Foundation. When he’s not slinging cheese at one of his family’s six Di Bruno retail locations around Philadelphia, he’s home cooking and eating hot soppressata. Listen to this fantastic interview with him on The Chef Radio Podcast.
Tenaya Darlington is a former newspaper journalist from Madison, Wisconsin who fell in love with Italian cheese at the Di Bruno Bros. counter in the Italian Market of Philadelphia! She was so impressed by the selection, she vowed to eat all 350 cheeses and started a blog about it in 2009, called Madame Fromage. When she’s not hovering around the cheese case, she’s in a classroom teaching Food Writing at Saint Joseph’s University. You can check out her cookbooks here.
Want to bring the cheeses of Northern Italy to your table?
Whether you're joining us on the tour or dreaming of a future Cheese Journey, we'd love for you to preview some Italian cheeses from our route. Try Cravero Parmigiano-Reggiano, Taleggio, Gorgonzola, and the fabulously boozy Occelli Cheeses. They’re all available on the Di Bruno Bros. website, or you can ask for them at your local cheese shop.
Also, want to read about the celebs on our British tour? Check out the story in CT Bites!
As always, if you have questions, requests for private tours, or a cheese story to share, please don't hesitate to email me at anna@cheesejourneys.com.
