Campania Wines is excited to unveil our new pasta range from Pastificio Carmiano who reside in the Gragnano region of Campania, who position themselves as jealous guardians of the secrets of artisanal pasta making, handed down from generation to generation, for over 500 years of Gragnano’s history pasta making art.
At the heart of Pastificio Carmiano’s craft lies their meticulous attention to detail. Utilising bronze dies for the pasta shaping and the drying process takes place in static cells at a moderate and controlled temperature for a period of up to 60 hours.
The kneading takes place under the strict supervision of the head pasta maker who regulates the basic ingredients: the water from the springs of Gragnano and the selected semolina, making sure the dough is the perfect combination of elasticity and compactness, ready for the “putting into shape” of the pasta.
The distinctive roughness or “arrabbiatura”, and refined irregularity characteristic of artisanal pasta are achieved through the bronze drawing process, ensuring an ideal marriage between pasta shape and sauce.
The manual spreading of the product is carried out by rolling out the dough on special steel rods, for long pasta, or on wooden frames, for short pasta. The pasta maker, an expert in their craft, will perform unique and precise movements, taking care to place the threads or the different formats of pasta next to each other, avoiding the risk of sticking during the drying phase.
Historically, when drying pasta it was regulated by opening windows or by controlling the exposure to the sun, to find the right temperature balance and humidity. Today it is left to the task of modern static cells. The temperature in the static cells is between 40° and 60°c and the process takes between 18 – 60 hours, depending on the pasta shapes.
The blend of modern technology and traditional techniques is what makes pasta from Pastificio Carmiano so special. Daily production at Pastificio Carmiano’s facility is approximately 800kg, a quantity that allows them to preserve their excellent and unique product, whilst ensuring they remain artisan producers.
When we at Campania Wines were able to select the pasta shapes, we looked at selecting the shapes that are often hard to come by in post Brexit Britain. Yes, we have the usual suspects: Penne, Spaghetti, Linguine, but we selected different shapes that are now hard to come by, such as casarecce, pappardelle and mafalde to name but a few.
When you next make a pasta purchase from our website, be a little adventurous, as each pasta shape has a story to tell, and its shape is made with a special sauce in mind.
Buon appetito!
Carmiano Casarecce IGP Pasta di Gragnano
From the word ‘casareccio’, which translates to ‘homemade’, this shape originated in Sicily, and are short twists of pasta which are rolled. This type of pasta is best used when accompanied by a chunky sauce or is used in meaty casserole dishes.
Carmiano Bucatini IGP Pasta di Gragnano
Bucatini is a thick spaghetti shaped pasta with a hole running down its centre. Buco, means ‘hole’ in Italian and is very popular in Rome where it is served with buttery sauces, pancetta or guanciale, cheese and egg sauces.
Carmiano Penne Rigate IGP Pasta di Gragnano
A cylinder-shaped pasta, penne is the plural of penna, which means pen, feather or quill. When this shape was first invented in the 19th Century, it was based on the quill of a fountain pen. Rigate means ridged, and the ridges help the pasta sauce attach itself to the pasta. Ideal accompaniments would be chunky meaty or vegetable tomato sauces. Penne rigate are also an ideal shape when baking pasta. Try them with a porcini mushroom and sausage sauce, or in a summery dish, with prawns and courgettes.
Carmiano Spaghetti Chitarra IGP Pasta di Gragnano
A spaghetto is a long thick cylindrical pasta shape, whereas spaghetti chitarra is a ‘guitar string’ shaped pasta, slightly thinner than the normal spaghetti, but thicker than Angel hair pasta. Its length shortened throughout the 20th Century and with it, its popularity grew so much that the Brits invented Spaghetti Bolognaise, which is now more popular than the Sunday Roast. Frequently served with tomato, meat or vegetable sauces.
Carmiano Pappardelle IGP Pasta di Gragnano
This pasta shape is wide and long, similar in shape to fettucine, and its name comes from the word ‘pappare’, to ‘gobble’ up. Originally from Tuscany, pappardelle shape is ideal with a meaty ragu sauce.
Carmiano Rigatoni IGP Pasta di Gragnano
A ridged slightly curved tube-shaped pasta, larger than penne and ziti, rigato means ridged or lined. Popular in southern Italy and Sicily, the rigatoni ridged surface helps the sauce or toppings such as grated cheese, stick to the pasta, making it ideal for baked pasta dish.
Carmiano Mafalde IGP Pasta di Gragnano
Also known as reginette or little queens is a ribbon shaped pasta named after Princess Mafalda of Savoy, who had long wavy hair. Flat and wide with wavy edges on either side, lighter, delicate sauces would be the perfect match for this pasta. Try them with a slow-braised rich ragu, or with pan-fried wild mushrooms and cream.
Carmiano Paccheri IGP Pasta di Gragnano
Paccheri are a large tube pasta which really picks up sauces and ragu’. Paccheri pasta was created in Gragnano and its name means ‘little slaps’ and is the regions most recognised shape. It was once known as the pasta of the poor, as only a few large paccheri were needed to fill up a plate. Serve with a rich tomato sauce or a meat ragu.
Carmiano Linguine IGP Pasta di Gragnano
Translated into English, linguine means ‘little tongues’ is the ideal partner to seafood such as clams, with pesto or red sauces. Originating in the Liguria region in the north west of the country, the linguine’s shape is not flat like pappardelle or round like spaghetti but rather oval shaped like a tongue.
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