Publishing content in August is a risk, if it’s something beach-friendly like a crossword puzzle, sudoku, a romance novel, or a good mystery book.
And then there are horoscopes, as we cautiously wonder… what food is our zodiac sign associated with?
You read that right: the food zodiac! And now, if you’re reading this under the August sun, get comfortable, with a cold drink or a cool watermelon at hand, and dive into the Great Terra Madre Horoscope!
Methodology of the Great Terra Madre Horoscope
A brief methodological note – since in the charts of the sages of Babylon there are no juxtapositions between the zodiac and dairy products, or the zodiac and foods in general, each sign is associated with the name of a food or geographic area that begins with that letter, and will be featured at Terra Madre 2022.
ARIES, AS IN THE ADRIATIC ALLIANCE (MARCH 21-APRIL 20)
Aries, impetuous, courageous, competitive, ready for new challenges, yet also inconstant, conservative at times… Let’s make no secret of the fact that we’ve gone out of our way to choose the date that would suit you best:A
The Adriatic Alliance is a collaborative dinner where the Marche and Albania meet in an exciting duet. On one side of the sea Altin Prenga, whose contribution to the revival of Albanian gastronomy has been fundamental, and on the other Daniele Maurizi Citeroni of Osteria Ophis in Offida. The two chefs, whom you will meet at Eataly on September 23 at 8:30 p.m., arrive with unique proposals from their respective lands.
How to experience a refreshing August–rediscover your inner ram. Plant-based cuisine.
TAURUS, AS IN THE TERRITORY OF CUBA (APRIL 21 – MAY 20)
Dear Taurus, we greatly appreciate your closeness to natural cycles, which also manifests well in an extremely spontaneous way of living and manifesting sensuality. We also appreciate your ability to focus on the important things in life and to banish waste.
We went through a thousand appointments before we decided on Reserva de Tierra Cuba, the first Slow Food Coffee Coalition-certified product, born out of the Lavazza Foundation’s project with local producers to support coffee cultivation in Cuba with a qualitative, ethical, and conscious approach. If you would like an advanced taste, we look forward to seeing you on September 22 at 6 p.m. at the Lavazza Museum.
How to experience an aromatic August… Take care of your rosemary as if it were a very dear friend. And if you don’t have it: go buy one!
GEMINI, AS IN GUATEMALA (MAY 21-JUNE 20)
Gemini, intellectual, capable of wandering in different fields, endlessly curious and armed with an insatiable desire for knowledge.
How about Guatemalan Cocktails and Chocolate, September 24 at 4 p.m.? A group of cacao artisans are coming from Quetzaltenango, Guatemala to Turin, to introduce us to their highly-prized cocoa imported directly from the Peten area, a great plain crossed by rivers and covered by a large tropical forest. Drinks by barmaster Elton Zeqiraj, founder of LeGar Unplugged Mixology will bring to life unusual cocktail pairings and chocolate. It might be intriguing enough to tickle your curiosity!
How to experience an ingenious August… Read The Art of Fermentation by Sandor Ellis Katz, and get busy.
CANCER, AS IN CACAO (JUNE 21 – JULY 22)
The whole Zodiac knows how kind, sensitive, at times lazy, and in need of protection you are. Some even say “moody,” but 90% of the time, they are wrong!
What food do we have in store? None other than … cocoa. In a not-to-be-missed experience, reserved for four people at a time, in three shifts (9:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 11:30 a.m.), at Guido Gobino’s Chocolate Factory on September 26. We participate in Sensory Analysis: everything you need to know about cacao and chocolate. We progressively train the senses, searching for aromas, scents, tactile and auditory sensations, colors, and nuances of chocolate. With the help of sensory maps, chocolate samples of different origins and cocoa percentages, and the tasting of some raw materials, we will be led through an exercise involving all the senses, to learn to consciously appreciate the quality of artisanal chocolate.
How to experience an indulgent August… Rediscover the beauty of a long afternoon snack break.
LEO, AS IN LORIGHITTAS (JULY 23 – AUGUST 23)
It’s your month, little Leos! Light up your summer and ignite the fire that drives your sign, as you are the king of the Zodiac, ruled by none other than … the Sun! But enough blandishing, which you really don’t need.
For you, we have chosen an event from the new RegenerAction! series, dedicated to the art of Sardinian pasta, including the jewelry-like pasta known as lorighittas. In this workshop, followed by a tasting, we discover the extraordinary skill of Sardinian women who, working a dough by hand of durum wheat semolina and water, which make exquisite pastas. Available for all, September 23 at 6:30 pm. It’s free entry, so show up on time.
How to live through a hot August… Make friends with hot peppers in all their forms.
VIRGO, AS IN VERMOUTH (AUGUST 24 – SEPTEMBER 22)
Punctilious, order-loving, precise. Oh, it’s not as if reading the profiles of you Virgos exalts one… But we love your ability to observe, being able to go beyond the surface of things, and also the profound candor and critical ability (as long as you don’t exaggerate, of course!).
The word we have chosen for you is Vermouth. In one of Terra Madre’s most daring Workshops – Dangerous Liaisons – we offer the drink paired with great aged cheeses: a blue from the Piedmontese valleys, roquefort, the historic Slow Food Presidium rebel, and a 60-month Parmigiano Reggiano. Marvellous!
How to experience a sugary August… Rank the best breakfast pastries. And then pick the custard and black cherry pasticciotto.
LUXURIOUS LIQUIDS FOR LIBRAS: BALSAMIC VINEGAR (SEPTEMBER 23 – OCTOBER 22)
Justice and beauty, that’s your mantra, Libra! The first, even at the cost of challenging the constituted rules if they do not satisfy your sense of fairness. The second, understood as the pursuit of harmony, symmetry, perfection.
As for food, we have chosen one that represents a search for perfection: balsamic vinegar. In balsamics, regeneration is a process that happens every year in the barrels, or batteries. We will be tasting four different pure balsamic vinegars and in combination with as many gastronomic proposals: from the raviggiolo of the Tuscan-Romagnolo Apennines (Slow Food Presidium) to the typical cured meats of Emilia, to the classic risotto enriched by the combination with balsamic vinegar. See you on September 23 at 12 noon.
How to live a balanced August… by indulging in the rhythms of nature, and looking at the eggplant-tomato pairing as the most desirable one can be.
SCORPIO, AS IN SYMBIOTIC AGRICULTURE (OCTOBER 23-NOVEMBER 22)
Smart, clever, gifted with an incredible sense of humor, but also – shall we say it – a little difficult, complex and sometimes elusive. What do the stars of Earth Mother see in your August, dear Scorpio?
We had no choice but to choose an experience that epitomized your complexity, and of not settling for the easy stuff: symbiotic agriculture. By symbiotic agriculture we mean a process whereby different lifeforms, including humans, animals, plants and microorganisms, are able to co-exist in a mutually beneficial relationship of biological equilibrium. Accompanied by Sergio Capaldo, who promotes this style of agriculture, we’ll taste the products of conventional agriculture side-by-side with those of symbiotic agriculture: milk, hazelnuts, gelato, jams, eggs and vegetables will all be compared and contrasted.
How to experience a complex, and fulfilling August — practice the art of preparing cappon magro.
SAGITTARIUS LIKE SALSA XATÓ (NOVEMBER 23 – DECEMBER 21)
Sagittarius, if there is a sign that never stops, it’s yours. You are in constant motion, driven by a will to conquer that leads you to desire, and achieve, goals unknown to most.
For you we could only select a travel experience, taking you, on September 23 at 11:00 a.m., to school desks in the Spanish regions of Catalunya and Aragón for one of our newest regenerAction! events. See how some institutions are educating younger generations about good, clean, and fair food. We grow local vegetable varieties such as the Catalan cabbage, known as col paperina (Ark of Taste). And we learn how to taste, with products such as Aragonese melón de Torres de Berrellén (Ark of Taste) and xató, a typical Catalan sauce made with almonds, hazelnuts, breadcrumbs, vinegar, garlic, olive oil, salt, and ñora pepper.
How to have an adventurous August… Arm yourself with a bowl, wooden spoon, eggs, oil and quality lemon. And make mayonnaise. By hand.
CAPRICORN, AS IN CITIES OF WINE (DECEMBER 22 – JANUARY 20)
Capricorns, your signature animal is the sea-goat, and you are wild and fierce. You can reach pristine peaks, aim for the top, and have the finest palate.
For you we have chosen a Workshop that is a bit of a challenge to your wildness. With City Wine, scheduled for September 24 at 2:30 p.m. you will have the opportunity to taste wines produced in urban settings, and together we will question the possibility of regenerating the urban fabric with agriculture, and highlight the benefits that urban viticulture brings to the cities where it is practiced. Vienna, Barcelona, Naples, and other European metropolises: urban viticulture can also be the source of good, clean, and fair wines.
How to experience a wild August… Enter a forest and seek its most precious gift: mushrooms!
AQUARIUS LIKE AMARONE (JANUARY 21-FEBRUARY 19)
Competitive, lovers of freedom above all else, allergic to jealousy, fine minds, somewhat inconstant, sometimes unreliable… Aquarius… you are the real challenge of the zodiac.
For you we’ve chosen a homage to Amarone, at 5.30 p.m. on September 22. We offer Allegrini’s Amarone in its classic form and from a specific vineyard, Fieramonte, which represents the some of the best Valpolicella has to offer, with south-facing slopes on high hills, in a vertical tasting that starts in 2018 and goes back to the early 2000s.
How to experience a lively August… Let’s cut to the chase, treat yourself to the joy of self-producing kefir, which is very alive!
PISCES AS ALIEN PRESENCES (FEBRUARY 20-MARCH 20)
Well, perhaps for you, Pisces, Slow Fish’s horoscope would be more fitting. But we know we can find the right ingredient for your brilliance, your ability to adapt to the unexpected, and, also, living life intensely, including loves (yes, plural).
For you we have chosen not just one ingredient, but a whole host of alien presences that we’ll discover in a special workshop on September 25 at 1 p.m. These are new forms of wild life that have taken up residence in our lakes and meadows. Would you like to learn how to use edible grasses and fish in the kitchen that until recently were not present in our local lakes and meadows? In this meeting we’ll try out a few useful recipes to give, with gusto, our own small contribution to the regeneration of ecosystems, employing these alien presences – raw materials that are often underestimated because we’re unaware of their existence.
How to experience an aquatic August. Why limit yourself to garden salads when you could make your own seaweed? Give it a try!
by the Sorceress Silvian, info.eventi@slowfood.it
