Italy forms coalition against wine ‘health labels’ in Ireland
The Italian government is working to block Ireland’s new law requiring health labels on alcoholic products such as wine, a move that, according to one of the governing parties Forza Italia (EPP), breaks the internal market and generates unfounded alarm among consumers. In Ireland, wine and spirits sold in the country must have health labels from 22...
Sanzotti family serves up its cultural legacy through recipes
Butler, Pennsylvania, is a long way from Italy. After a vast earthquake destroyed Reggio Calabria on Dec. 28, 1908, Vincenzo Sanzotti decided to leave his home in Italy and find employment elsewhere. American steamship companies advertised free transportation to America for workers needed in the coal mines. Vincenzo left Calabria and arrived in the...
San Gusmè: A hidden jewel in the heart of Chianti
San Gusmè is a small but charming Tuscan village, located in the municipality of Castelnuovo Berardenga, which has managed to retain its ancient and authentic charm. Its narrow, winding streets, stone alleys and arches arranged along the way retain the essence of a bygone era. The stone houses, churches and surrounding walls testify to its thousand...
Italians in America – Our Immigrant Stories: Family’s strong work ethic gave siblings the tools to excel later in life
My parents immigrated from the picturesque town of Isca sullo Ionio in Calabria. In 1964, after completing his two years in the Italian army, my father, Saverio, left Italy to meet up with his father, Domenico, who had already been in the United States. He found work right away in a clothing factory, then eventually in his trade as an auto mechanic...
What to do in Lake Como like a local: 7 travel tips
Long before George Clooney moved to these shores, Lake Como was already an inspiring destination for novelists, poets and painters. The labyrinthine streets and stairways twisting through lakeside promenades offer a fairy-tale setting with voluptuous villas that attract the international jet set and gardens that seem straight out of a storybook. Fo...
Ferrero brings Kinder Chocolate to the US
Kinder Chocolate, one of the flagship offerings of Italy’s Ferrero confectionery brand, will be available in the U.S. for the first time starting in August. Catherine Bertrac, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Kinder and mainstream chocolate for Ferrero USA, said the company has been gearing up for its biggest U.S. launch over the last several...
Montalbano: The Hit Series of Sicily's Favorite Police Commissioner
“Hello, I’m Montalbano!” Almost every Monday at 9:15 PM, I would hear these words blaring from the TV in the living room. This is how the episodes of Italy’s most beloved Sicilian police commissioner always begin, alongside a nice close-up of Luca Zingaretti answering the phone, perhaps while sipping coffee on the terrace of his small villa in his...
Italian Festival Coming Back to San Francisco’s North Beach in June
Music history has long been shrouded in myth—from the lore around Delta bluesman Robert Johnson selling his soul to the devil to become a guitar master to the tall tale that Jimi Hendrix lived in Haight-Ashbury (he didn’t). Similarly, the story of how the accordion became the official instrument of San Francisco may sound legendary. But in this c...
Photographer Valerio Geraci in Arkansas
The museum was happy to host researcher and photographer Valerio Geraci originally from Palermo, Italy, now residing in Paris, France. Valerio arrived in America and began his travels through the south documenting Italian communities for his book, starting in Little Italy, AR and then from Tontitown he journeyed to Lake Village, AR and onwards out...
Italy becomes European leader in technical textiles production
Technical textiles are utilised in a plethora of fields, although they are still relatively unrecognised and not very visible. Yet they are playing an increasingly important role in fashion, especially in the luxury sector, always keen on innovation. European consumption of technical textiles has grown from a value of €8 billion in 1995 to almost €...
The Consulate of Italy in Detroit Takes Students on “A Journey to Italy”
The Consulate of Italy in Detroit has started a new program to bring knowledge about Italy to the schools and libraries in the Consular Jurisdiction (MI, OH, IN, KY, and TN). Consul of Italy in Detroit Allegra Baistrocchi and Pierluigi Erbaggio from the Italian Consulate staff visited the Père Gabriel Richard Elementary School in Grosse Pointe Farm...
Maria Mazziotti Gillan Receives National Prize for Literature
The literary prize of the city of Cetraro, Italy has been given to the poet Maria Mazziotti Gillan. As the newspaper headline there says, "Assegnato alla poetessa Maria Mazziotti Gillan il Premio letterario della città di Cetraro. Maria Mazziotti Gillan is the poet who this year was awarded the National Prize for Literature which takes its name fro...