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WEST VIRGINIA BATTLES FOR PIZZA TITLE
Bolla Wines Launches Regional Pizza Battle
Who says New York and Chicago should reign supreme in the pizza world? As part of its 125th anniversary Bolla Wines, “The Official Wine of Pizza” is inviting all West Virginians to battle it out in the Taste of Your Town Pizza Contest. To take part in the battle consumers must submit a pizza recipe that best reflects West Virginia – whether it incorporates locally-produced ingredients or the state’s signature dish (think of a pizza made with a buckwheat crust and topped with Golden Delicious apples). And, because wine and pizza is the perfect pair, entries will need to include a Bolla varietal to go with the submitted recipe.
Participants have from February 1 to August 31, 2008, to submit recipes for their region. Competing regions include: Midwest, Northeast, Southeast, Southwest and Far West. Regional winners will receive a pizza oven and other Bolla prizes. The grand-prize winner will win bragging rights for his or her region and a trip to Europe to visit Bolla’s winery in Verona, Italy, and attend the 2009 World Pizza Championships.
“At Bolla we use the best of Italy’s wine regions to create different varietals – the Tuscan soil rich in marine fossils is perfect for our Chianti, where the warm climate of Romagna makes an excellent Sangiovese, ” said Don Freytag, brand director for Bolla Wines. “We believe this same line of thinking can be applied to cooking.”
To enter a recipe and wine pairing, pizza lovers 21 years of age and older can log on to www.bolla.com/taste. Contestants are encouraged to use local ingredients in the crust, sauce and topping. Entries will be judged on creativity, taste, and their ability to pair well with a Bolla varietal. The best of each region will be announced at the end of September and the grand-prize winner will be decided via an online vote in October, National Pizza Month. Full details are available at www.bolla.com/taste.
Some tips and suggestions for the ultimate West Virginia pizza:
- The first Golden Delicious apple tree was found in Clay County, W.Va. This apple also serves as the state’s fruit.
- Buckwheat was a staple in early West Virginia life and today, buckwheat is one of West Virginia’s chief agricultural products. There is a buckwheat festival held in Preston County every year, where a Royal Buckwheat Court is selected.
- Not only does West Virginia produce a sweet apple, the state pumped out 4,000 tons of peaches in 2007 and ranked 13th in peach production in the nation.
About Bolla
- Bolla, the “Official Wine of Pizza” and a sponsor of the U.S. Pizza Team was introduced in the U.S. after GI’s returned from World War II, the same time pizza went mainstream.
- Bolla’s roots lay in the hillside of the acclaimed Veneto region in Northern Italy where Abele Bolla started handcrafting his wines at his small winery in 1883. Today, Bolla’s winemakers hand harvest grapes from five regions in Italy: Veneto, Lombardia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Tuscany and Romagna.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org.
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