A lake nestled in the hills is the founding element of excellent food and wine whose flavors are forged by the microclimate and civilizations that have lived in the area. Flavors ranging from fish, meat, spices, which are expertly linked together, crowned by a centuries-old tradition in the production of extra virgin olive oil and wine.
A cuisine that has its roots in the Etruscan civilization and summarizes the Umbrian and Tuscan characteristics and makes it its particularity, as can only happen in the border areas. Recipes based on lake fish cover an important part of the local cuisine. The tench, the pike, the carp, the eel, the smelter, the perch were real culinary and local economy treasures. With the fish of the lake succulent dishes are born such as the Carpa regina in porchetta, cooked in the oven, flavored with a mixture of lard, garlic, salt, pepper, wild fennel, to the point of becoming a "queen".
Brustico and tegamaccio are two other dishes that “tell” the Trasimeno. In the brustico, the fish are roasted over the embers made with the reeds of the lake without being scaled, then filleted and seasoned with local olive oil and lemon. The tegamaccio, on the other hand, is a lake fish soup cooked over low heat over the grill, on ancient earthenware pans that give the recipe its name. It is prepared using three varieties of fish, tench, pike and eel, with the addition of tomato, olive oil, salt, pepper and chilli. At Trasimeno, legumes and vegetables also have a place of honor in the local cuisine.
Undoubtedly, the Fagiolina del Trasimeno, a Slow Food presidium, is to be tasted: a very small legume, also called risina del lago and of various colors. It is a real niche product whose harvest is manual, preserving unaltered a precious heritage of biodiversity, already formidable food for the Etruscans. Even the subsoil at Trasimeno offers precious ingredients of local cuisine: forest asparagus, mushrooms and vegetables (in particular the Trasimeno rapi) that accompany hand-made pasta, omelettes and appetizing side dishes.
And in an area of such high environmental value, a fine production of honey cannot be missing, from wildflower to many single varieties, by numerous small producers, so that it is not uncommon to see small groups of bee boxes in the countryside.
The queen of spices in Trasimeno is saffron: Città della Pieve together with Cascia is one of the two places in Umbria suitable for the production of the delicate flower. The Statute of Perugia of 1279 documents the ancient Pievese tradition. In 2002 the Consortium "Il Croco di Pietro Perugino - Zafferano di Città della Pieve" was born.
But Trasimeno is also one of the most suitable areas for the production of cured meats: the typical local products are ham, sausage, salami and capocollo prepared according to traditional Umbrian recipes and quality and genuineness criteria. These products are very often found in traditional local dishes as appetizers accompanied by the Torta al testo or the Easter cake.
The climate of Trasimeno then kisses the production of oil and wine, wise accompanists of local dishes. The hilly area around Lake Trasimeno was initially cultivated by the Umbrian people then subjugated by the Etruscans and later by the Romans and local populations. The production of wine in the area has therefore been constant over time favored, rewarded by the lake climate and the hilly slopes.
Today the Colli del Trasimeno Doc counts four white wines, five reds, a Spumante Classico, and then several single-grape varieties (Grechetto, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Gamay and related Reserves). perched on the hills, an oil from green to veiled yellow, bitter and spicy notes that seem to be made specifically to marry with local fish and vegetables. All this and much more is the "Umbria" DOP Oil named "Colli del Trasimeno", the result of this land and the peculiar characteristics of the land as well as the different microclimates that have a decisive role in characterizing the quality of the oil.
