Substance and soil Mamerie meets Pepenero in Pavia di Udine
There is a substantial difference between eating in the countryside and tasting the countryside. The first means enjoying a meal in a pastoral setting. The second means absorbing a landscape. In Pavia di Udine, among the neat rows of Friulian vineyards, stands Pepenero – Locanda di Campagna, a country restaurant set in an 18th-century farmhouse. It was here, at the truffle tasting dinner on 7 October, that Mamerie’s products found their ideal expression. The evening was defined by warm lighting and tactile textures, at tables where food stops being mere nourishment and becomes an occasion for conviviality and culture. At the centre of it all were two great protagonists: Friuli and truffle. The Menu The Mamerie truffle menu is a score in seven courses, composed and conducted by Chef Annalisa Battigelli, in which our truffle creations enter into dialogue with the cornerstones of Friulian cuisine. Nothing is layered at random. Every pairing is designed to let the ingredients resonate. The journey opens with sorghum bread, served with pitina (a smoked meat speciality from the Friulian mountains), lardo and summer truffle butter. It is a rustic, clear-cut opening, where rounded richness meets elegance. Next comes toc in braide, soft polenta with cheese fondue, finished here with truffle morchia. The ancient ritual of polenta is enriched by the complexity of the truffle. The dish is an open tribute to the great Gianni Cosetti, the legendary chef of Carnian cuisine. The pasta courses are an exercise in precision. First come truffle cjarsons, Carnia’s sweet-and-savoury filled pasta, reimagined with bianchetto truffle. Then come blecs, rough-cut buckwheat pasta with summer truffle butter and Montasio cheese. In this dish, the rustic texture of the pasta catches and holds both the cheese and the elegance of the truffle butter. The main course and cheeses explore deeper, more persistent notes. First comes an unexpected salame all’aceto, Friulian salami cooked in Refosco vinegar, with black truffle pearls. It is followed by a selection of mountain-pasture cheeses with truffle honey, where boldness is balanced by sweetness. For the finale, Annalisa chose a tribute faithful to tradition: warm gubana, Friuli’s spiral cake filled with nuts and raisins, served with ice cream and truffle honey. The quintessential Friulian dessert is deconstructed through the contrast of hot and cold, then skilfully brought back together by the aroma it releases. Time for Truffle A menu of this calibre demands attention and technique. It is not an experience to be rushed. If you couldn’t join us at the table on 7 October, you haven’t missed your chance. This truffle tasting journey, priced at €85 per person, will remain available at Pepenero until the end of December. Book your table at Via 3 Aprile. Take a seat. Listen to the silence of the Pavia di Udine countryside. And let each dish reveal the place to you.