A food hub in the heart of Tramonti. A place of enhancement, education, and experience of the agri-food excellence of the Amalfi Coast.
December 20th, 2022, by Anna Volpicelli
“The Borgo del Gusto, located in Tramonti, along the route of the Wine Route and in the heart of the agricultural and viticultural area of the Coast, is called to play the function of a permanent laboratory of research, training, communication, sensory and food education. A function aimed at affirming and spreading the pleasure and culture of quality food and wine. A structure destined to inform, delight, entertain, and educate about food simultaneously becomes a center of aggregation of producers and consumers…All in the awareness of belonging to a land, the Amalfi region, with a strong agribusiness vocation with typical productions of excellence.”
These are the words written by Raffaele Ferraioli, former President of the Comunità Montana Penisola Amalfitana, in the introduction to the small volume dedicated to the birth and development, precisely, of the Casa Del Gusto, a hub or rather a village, as it has been renamed, food and wine inserted in the green lung of the Amalfi Coast. And in those words are defined, an excellent center’s objectives and mission for enhancing the entire territory’s wine and food uniqueness. Indeed an ambitious project, but one that brings together prominent table experts in the sector and the environment who, with courage, tenacity, and strong will, have decided to make Raffaele Ferraioli’s dream an engaging reality.
The relaunch
After nearly five years of uncertainty and trial and error, a few days ago, a conference was held to launch the new rebirth of the Borgo del Gusto. A choral and collective project involving 12 entities, including public and private, animated by a single intention: to exalt, to tell, to enshrine a memory, and to experience an entire territory through its products.
“This project is proof that inland towns bordering coastal ones can be enhanced, focusing on the enormous tourism potential of the area but only in a sustainable key. It is essential to network, both on the public and private sides, to unite for a common effort,” said Domenico Amatruda, mayor of Tramonti, during the presentation.
The partners
The project involves many partners, including CoopCulture, the Department of Architecture DIARC of the University of Naples Federico II, the Mountain Community of Monti Lattari, the Amalfi Coast Tourist District, the Gambero Rosso Foundation with Gambero Rosso Academy, Sal de Riso, FadWine Srl, and Elettrify. Each entity involved will play a vital role in the development of the Borgo del Gusto. “At the basis of the project is a public-private partnership with CoopCulture for the design of the tourist offer,” says Letizia Casuccio, general manager of CoopCulture. “The aim is to give the village a connotation of an authentic destination, with a strong agri-food vocation. It will not just be about food. But about protecting and implementing community knowledge and technological innovation are necessary to preside over and manage the territory.”
The cornerstones
What will the Borgo del Gusto bring to life? The hub will perform several functions, such as organizing a tourist-cultural offer and a reception system such that it can generate tourist flows not only in the summer; training, that is, an educational center, a permanent research laboratory, communication, and sensory and food education. Among the teachers, in addition to those from Gambero Rosso Academy and the Amalfi Coast Delegation of AIS Campania-Associazione Italian Sommelier, under the Aegis of FadWine srl, there will also be Salvatore de Riso, who built his production laboratory in Tramonti.
The master pastry chef and his team will organize pastry courses for professionals and enthusiasts. Inside the structure, built with large windows that open to the green hills of Tramonti, a narrative museum of traditions and history will be set up, with cultural and nature itineraries. In addition, it will give ample space to the engagement of the locality communities to implement a model of governing through the creation of a community cooperative, precisely, which will set up a series of training courses on ancient crafts within the project “Tramonti Borgo Gentile”.
The innovative products of history
In the words of Raffaele Ferraioli, “The Borgo del Gusto will be the place to tell what a land produces and its history,” and also its innovation. “The Borgo del Gusto,” says Andrea Ferraioli, president of the Amalfi Coast Tourist District and Raffaele’s son, “is an idea strongly desired by my father in his long journey serving the Amalfi Coast. Our role as a District is to carry on a path of training on ancient crafts. We build a bridge with the artisan translation of our territory, pursuing the double objective of safeguarding local traditions and enhancing the authenticity of the Amalfi Coast, offering the visitor a genuine encounter.” And it is precisely on genuineness that the future of this initiative will hatch, which will have a significant value not only for present generations but also for future ones.