The Italian Food, Wine vs Beer Pairing at Via Napoli starts with a light complimentary Sangria while you wait for the event to begin!
The Italian Food, Wine vs Beer Pairing takes place in what I call the "west wing" of Via Napoli. Although one side of the room is a giant window, it is (thankfully) a totally air-conditioned space.
Each place setting includes all the flatware and glasses that will be used along with a handy menu/guide of the food and beverages that will be served.
A table for four set up looks stunning! This is a rather communal event, and a table for four is the smallest grouping. Parties of two (or one) will be seated with other guests.
Look at all those glasses! There are five beer samples and five wine samples (and a water glass) that will be used over the course of the event. In order to really taste each beverage, a totally fresh glass is used each time to insure there's no cross-contamination between beverages.
There is a small bread and breadstick offering on each table, along with oil, balsamic, and powdered cheese. This is not one of the official courses, but it's a totally yummy bonus!
The Italian Food and Wine vs Beer Pairing event provides the perfect mix of education and food. A small presentation about the food, wine, and beer precedes each course, and then you will have ample free time to enjoy and discus the offerings before the next course is presented.
The First Course Beverages for 2015's Italian Food, Wine vs Beer Pairing... Wine: Gavi - Batasiolo & Beer: Moretti's La Rossa.
The first course at 2015's Beer vs Wine Pairing was this Parmigiana de Melanzane - Eggplant, tomato, mozzarella, and basil.
The USA/Canada Director for Batasiolo S.p.A., Richardo March is as informative as he is entertaining. If you see Mr. March in the room, you're in for a great presentation!
The Second Course Beverages for 2015's Italian Food, Wine vs Beer Pairing... Wine: Barbaresco - Batasiolo & Beer: Nora - Birra Baladin.
The second course at 2015's Beer vs Wine Pairing was the Pizza Margherita D.O.C. featuring San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella di bufala, and basil.
A closer look at the Pizza Margherita D.O.C., which is quite similar to the pizza that Via Napoli offers on their regular menu.
Executive Chef Charlie Restivo has (thankfully) been with Via Napoli for quite some time and makes sure that everything plated for the Food & Beer vs Wine event is top-notch.
The Third Course Beverages for 2015's Italian Food, Wine vs Beer
Pairing... Wine: Barbera d' Alba - Batasiolo & Beer: Via Emilia - Birrificio del Ducato.
The third course at 2015's Beer vs Wine Pairing was this Agnello Arrosto Lamb chop with mint risotto.
A closer look at the lamb chop with mint risotto. The lightly seasoned lamb chop was great, but the real star here was the mint risotto which highlighted the herbal qualities of mint rather than the "candy" flavor of the green herb.
The Fourth Course Beverages for 2015's Italian Food, Wine vs Beer
Pairing... Wine: 4Dolcetto d'Alba - Batasiolo & Beer: Grape - Birrificio Montegioco.
The fourth course at 2015's Beer vs Wine Pairing was a cheese plate Tavolozza di Formaggi, Miele e Marmellate featuring Asiago, Parmigiano, Smoked Caciocavallo.
The cheese course looks so much larger when you get closer to it! Cheese is expensive, and while not large, the fourth course's Tavolozza di Formaggi, Miele e Marmellate presented three really nice, fresh cheeses.
There were also three accompaniments on the cheese course, some sweet fig paste (I think), honey and a couple of small pipe bread sticks (these were the same bread sticks that are also in the table's bread basket).
If you have spent any amount of time eating at Epcot in the Italy Pavilion's Via Napoli or Tutto Italia, you've probably seen one of these guys!
The Fifth Course Beverages for 2015's Italian Food, Wine vs Beer
Pairing... Wine: Spumante - Brachetto d' Acqui & Beer: Chocarrubica - Birrificio Grado Plato.
The fifth course at 2015's Beer vs Wine Pairing was a Torta di Polenta which is a dessert Polenta with chocolate and hazelnuts.
It's the take-away table! Unfortunately, the bottles are not one of the take-aways... those are for display purposes only. What you do get as a parting gift, is a small sample of red, white, and green cake with a thin layer of berry compote between the layers!
A closer look at the Italian Food, Wine vs Beer Pairing's parting gift... three slices of red, white and green chocolate cake with thin layers of berry compote between the layers! The fact that the event organizers provide a parting gift helps to illustrate that this is a well thought-out, top notch event.
A big thank you to the amazing Via Napoli cast for executing another great event, at the 2015 Italian Food, Wine vs Beer Pairing Lunch, held during the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival.