BATALI’S LAW AND VINO 2015 ITALIAN WINE WEEK
The principle that I like to call “Batali’s Law” is named after Mario Batali, the American chef and restauranteur who has done so much to promote all things Italian here in the United States. Americans sometimes talk about “Italian food,” which we love, but Batali has said that there is no such thing as Italian food – there are only the many regional cuisines of Italy. And these can’t and shouldn’t be reduced to a single generic category. Anyone who has traveled to or lived in Italy knows that he is right about this and Batali has used his celebrity to open many eyes (and mouths) to the delicious diversity that Italy’s regions have to offer. Bravo, Mario!
Stated more generally, Batali’s Law is that complicated things are best understood and appreciated in complicated ways – by explicitly considering their many sides rather than trying to reduce them to some homogenized generality that conceals far more than it reveals. Batali’s Law seems especially relevant in today’s smartphone-equipped, web-enabled world where anyone with the least interest can drill down through the surface layer of any question to find a treasure trove of tasty detail. Batali’s Law isn’t an abstract concept, it is something that seems to guide us every day.
The organizers of Vino 2015 seem to have been guided by the principle behind Batali’s Law when they planned the Italian Wine Week and these seminars, panels and tasting will inform, delight and reward all who take part. The Vino 2015 program, which examines the many sides of Italian wines and the U.S. market, is Batali-esque (if that is a word) in its depth and detail. In this brief foreword I’ll touch on four topics inspired by the week’s scheduled events: the complicated U.S. market for Italian wine, the importance of Italian regional wine character, the power of Brand Italy and the expanding boundaries of the world of Italian wine. . . . (continued on the Vino 2015 website. You can read the whole essay here.)
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Thanks to the Italian Trade Commission for inviting me to speak at Vino 2015 and to write this essay. We enjoyed fine wine and great food at Vino 2015, but it was the people who made the trade and media gathering both memorable and effective. Look for more about Vino 2015 and Italian wine in my column next week.