For a babà—an individual mushroom-shaped dessert with leavened dough—to retain its quality in a can is no small feat. Being soaked in a rum syrup (water, alcohol, sugar, etc.) gives it a certain degree of sponginess and a lot of flavor; the very balanced aromatization of the liquid, probably with vanilla, also adds to it. The cake is just slightly too floury, though the flavor and texture are corrected by the syrup. In short, a true drunken sponge cake for the drunk.

Also sold with limoncello.

Frédy Girardet, the best chef that Switzerland has ever had whose name is etched in gold in the history of gastronomy, recommended to us in the early nineties the cheese manufacturer E. Richoz (+41.026-9127286), in La Tour-de-Trême, just a few steps away from Bulle. Here we found the best Vacherin Mont d’Or, the best Vacherin fribourgeois, and the best Gruyère, in short, the “crème de la crème” of international cheese.

This Gruyère, found five minutes from the town by car, was chosen, microscopically selected by Edmond as one of the great emblems of his establishment. It is aged for 26 months, which gives it a creamy yet crystallized texture. In the mouth, intensity is blended with finesse, delicacy with persistence, knowing what distinguishes the very best cheeses: an exceptional base product. The quintessence of cow milk; famoos!

The Salcedo family, owner of the legendary restaurant Juanito, in Baeza (Jaén), has made a transcendental leap in the world of olive oil, substantially changing the development of the brand as well as the final product. The oil is now obtained from trees planted on terraces that have at least 4 meters separating each in height, situated in the Fuente del Robledillo, Los Villares. The hilly terrain and the characteristics of the soil impart a special personality to the product, along with the rigorous selection of the olives themselves, producing only 7,500 of the 500 ml bottles per harvest.

Roberto Vezzoso is an example worthy of imitation. On his 25 ha. estate, he cultivates fruits and vegetables that, after collection, are elaborated as hand-canned preserves. In this case there are only 40,000 kilos of this curious variety of pear. They come unpeeled with the core removed, in whole and halved pieces. Its consistent, granulated texture stands out: meaty, crisp, and clean. An extremely pleasant sweetness manifests on the palate, without excess, perfumed by the well-resolved Muscat syrup that enhances its qualities without affecting the natural flavor.