One small thing we can do to help our Italian friends at this difficult time is support businesses involved in the procurement of Italian food and wine.  Here are a few of our favourite suppliers and if you felt in any way you could lend support we, and they, would be very grateful!

Australia

In Sydney, Pino's Dolce Vita in Kogarah is a cafe and kitchen, butcher and deli all in one! When you walk through the door you are stepping into the home and heart of the Tomini Foresti Family. Pino was born into the seventh generation of a butchery family in Terranova, Calabria before moving to Australia at the age of 16. He pursued a dream to run his own business and since 1978 he and his wife Pia have been serving the people of Sydney. Choose from over 100 types of sausage, fresh cuts of prime meat, handmade small goods and imported cheese. 

In Melbourne the Enoteca Sileno is something of an institution. The first family member arrived in Australia from Molise in 1953 and quickly built a reputation for importing fine foods, liqueurs and espresso machines!  The first store opened in 1982 in Carlton North in Amess Street but in 2004 the family moved premises to the current location in Lygon Street.  The shop sells everything from artichokes to zucchini involtini as well as a comprehensive selection of Italian wines.  You can visit the store or shop online. 

United Kingdom

James and Cinzia have owned Cuculo in Heathfield in East Sussex since 2010. Their reputation is based on quality, service and product selection and they are passionate about cheese, Italian wine and chocolate. As well as the shop, Cuculo is an important social hub with regular meals, a weekly pizza night, wine tastings, live music and cookery classes.  They can also cater events and new for this year is a pizza and wine delivery service on Thursday evenings!  Alongside Cuculo Cinzia has worked with Hedonistic Hiking for ten years as a tour manager and many Hedonistic Hikers will remember her amazing picnics and endless enthusiasm for the wines of Italy.

Italy

Italian Wine Clubs are a great way of tasting wines which might not find their way to mainstream supermarkets and wine shops around the world. Tuscany in a Bottle will select and ship wines and olive oil from the Tuscan area to addresses in the US and EU.  The deliveries come with a description of each bottle so you can read up about the wine whilst enjoying it, and you can join their Wine Club for regular shipments.  In Piedmont, the Barolo Wine Club ships curated wines direct to the US from small family-run wineries in the region. They put together selections of unique and hard to find wines, each with a story to tell and often from vineyards with a limited bottle production.