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s was the custom and culture among
well-to-do landowners, my great-grandfather Anselmo Ligabue
made up a set of wooden casks of balsamic vinegar for her,
and this was part of her dowry when, in 1915 she married
Ricordano Dodi, Master Dairyman for the production of
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese in Bastiglia, near Modena. In
1925, the market for Parmigiano-Reggiano went into a
terrible slump that ruined many operators, including my
grandfather Ricordano, who lost everything and had to leave
Bastiglia with his wife and their five children, and move to
S. Valentino di Castellarano (Case Ferri district).
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o help them through the hard times, Grandfather Ricordano
asked Grandmother Carmelina to sell her casks of balsamic
vinegar but she was adamant: "I held onto them when you
were at war, and I'll save them again this time to leave to
our firstborn son Rolando". They lived in S. Valentino
until 1930, poor but proud to keep alive the family
tradition of balsamic vinegar to hand down to their children.
Grandmother Carmelina pressed Trebbiano grapes for the juice
to top up the casks of vinegar she stored like precious
treasure in a tiny attic room over the children's bedroom.
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Il
mosaico che vi accoglie a Casa Dodi
n
February 1930, the family moved to a nearby town called
Cadiroggio. There Rolando, the eldest son, worked as a
master dairyman, married Elda and in 1951 I was born. As the
firstborn son, and according to the custom of commemorating
my grandfather, who had died, I was named Ricordano. |
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randmother Carmelina, for whom I always had a special
fondness, communicated her love of balsamic vinegar to me as
a child, and taught me all the rituals that for centuries
have characterized its preparation: how she gathered the
grapes, and pressed them with her feet, then cooked the must
in a copper pot to top up the casks. She taught me many
little secrets as well - and the best technique to make an
excellent cooked must: add a few nuts to prevent it from
turning the greenish color of the copper pot; boil it over a
low flame; put a few glass balls in the pot to keep the must
from burning. When Grandmother Carmelina died, as the
firstborn son I inherited the casks of Riserva di Famiglia.
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y busy life as a cheese producer, following in my father's
footsteps, never quenched my passion for balsamic vinegar,
but rather increased it. My sister Liviana's marriage, and
the birth of her two sons Mirco and Herry are some of the
events associated with the growth of the number of casks in
our vinegar plant. This passion is shared by my wife Valeria
too. So now you could say that the entire Dodi family is a
"prisoner" of the world of balsamic vinegar. Our
plant, called Acetaia Dodi, is in Casalgrande along the old
road that leads to Canossa, the Fortress of that great lady
of history, Matilde, a place rich in history and site of
fabulous events. Today, I am happy to be able to let you
enjoy part of our Riserva di Famiglia. |
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Casalgrande,
agosto 2002
Ricordano Dodi |
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