Our Christmas container is finally here!! A little late, as containers all seem to be these days, but the contents are exciting enough that we’ve almost forgotten tearing our hair out over the delay.
So, lovely retail shop customers, this one’s for you.
We have an AMAZING selection of Scarpato Panettone over from artisan Venetian baker Pasticceria Scarpato. Kiwis are definitely coming around to the idea that a light, fluffy sweet bread might be a nice change from a hefty fruit cake in our hot summer weather, and some of these flavours—single origin chocolate, gin and Sicilian lemon, and tiramisu and mascarpone, to name but a few—sound almost too delicious to wait until the big day. You’ve probably noticed a number of international chefs trying Panettone in recent years, and discovering that it’s nowhere near as easy as it looks. Pasticceria Scarpato still uses a recipe handed down from the bakery’s origins back in 1888, so it’s safe to say that they have the art mastered. We also like that their yeast is refreshed every day of the year by their chefs to nourish the microorganisms that help the all-important dough to rise over the three-day baking period. Their attention to detail carries right through to the packaging, which is always exquisite and will look incredible on your shelves.
Amaretti Virginia is another Italian bakery with a long history of craftsmanship. Founded back in 1860 in beautiful Sassello, not far from Genoa, it first became famous for its Amaretti biscuits. Amaretti Virginia does produce the crunchy variety of this almondy treat, but it was the soft, fresh version that made the bakery so well-known that it became a meeting place for locals and visitors alike, with postcards of the time referring to the square that it overlooked as ‘Piazza degli Amaretti Virginia.’ Today, in addition to its artisan amaretti in various flavours (most of which are naturally gluten-free, by the way), it also produces an assortment of pastries, all of which are again beautifully packaged in a variety of sizes and formats (those ‘book’ tins!) using the original graphic from the 1860s. The large tins in particular will make a special gift not just for their original contents but as beautiful and practical storage for generations of biscuits to come.
Are you a fan of Panforte? If so, you’ll love the La Fabbrica range of this flat, dense, rich cake straight out of ancient Sienese tradition. Operating a few kilometres outside of lovely Siena, La Fabbrica Del Panforte is a small company using original recipes passed down from master bakers to create artisanal baked goods that are simple, straightforward, original and natural—according to them, just like the good folk of Siena. Each Panforte is exquisitely wrapped, so that’s one less Christmas chore. Hint: because these Panforte are so rich, we recommend cutting a small slice at a time as the perfect side to a cup of coffee or a glass of wine for a quiet moment.
Moving to confectionery, our cheerfully Christmas-themed chocolate treats from famed Spanish chocolatier Simón Coll are now joined by the full range of effortlessly elegant truffle concoctions from ancient Italian artisan nougat maker Antica Torroneria Piemont. As we’ve mentioned before, this nougat manufactory from Piedmont, which dates back to 1885, crafts its Tartufi Dolci, or sweet truffles, from hazelnuts, cocoa powder, whole milk powder, sugar and a hint of vanilla. Different ingredients are then added according to the particular flavour, from pannacotta to pistachio and everything in between. Each truffle is individually wrapped to preserve the freshness of the taste and aroma. The range is presented in boxes, tins and bags, as well as the option of large bags which can be broken up for POP displays that are sure to be a hit with customers looking for stocking fillers, those last-minute little expressions of appreciation, and perhaps a sweet treat for themselves!
Oh, and last but not least, we have a couple of products from the iconic Rossella brand. Originally founded in 1897, Rossella’s fruit jellies have been a fixture of Italian childhoods for generations, and these lovely little assortments really do have the feel of a different, slower-paced time.
And now it feels like Christmas!
