The spring wine dinner at Piccino is one of our favorites. The markets are starting to pop with bright colors that have been absent all winter, and the restaurant is pulsing with excitement over what new things will be on the menu. The bounty of spring comes in many flavors: sugar snap peas, fava beans, young ceci, and all things tender and sweet. Green garlic and baby leeks are showing up on restaurant menus all over the city. Chefs circle around preferred purveyors with hawk-like vigilance for items like ramps and morels.
For me, the season and the cuisine speaks directly to what we do at Piccino. Find the best ingredients, direct from the farm, and bring them to you in a dish that allows the food to speak for itself. Thoughtfully pair it with an equally special wine that only amplifies the flavors. Keep it simple; less is more.
And that's what we're doing with this dinner – straightforward, fresh, and utterly enjoyable. The season calls for clean, crisp white and rosé. Think riesling, kerner and pinot grigio; Friuli, the Mosel and Alsace. We're tasting, musing and tweaking the dishes to bring you the perfect combinations. At the moment we like a vegetarian crudo, English pea pasta, and maybe a gamebird to top off the evening. Of course we'll have to pair that with a dash of red wine.
