No doubt you know that I write this blog in three languages, including Italian. And that means it is also read by Italians. An Italy blog written in Italian by una straniera, a foreigner, makes it different from many others, so I often hear. But can this really be called an Italy-blog?
All the more I love it when Italians tell me how aptly I describe life in Rome and how I pick up on the most subtle unwritten rules and habits that hardly seem worth mentioning but yet tell so much. The Italy between the Vespas, “picturesque streets”, “colourful villages” and “authentic life”
Although each blogpost has a link to Italy, the stories are actually more about me and how I experience my new homeland. My blogs are my own observations, all from my point of view. They’re about the many encounters I have, the conversations I pick up, the articles I read in the local news and how all of this coincides and shapes my colourful daily life in Italy. Hence, all the more I love it when Italians tell me how aptly I describe life in Rome and how I pick up on the most subtle unwritten rules and habits that hardly seem worth mentioning but yet tell so much. The Italy between the lines. The Italy between the Vespas, “picturesque streets”, “colourful villages” and “authentic life”. And so, I received a very nice message a few days ago. An Italian had read my blog post from last week. It was the first blog he had read of mine, but immediately he wrote, not able to contain his enthusiasm, “Ma sei una romana DOC!”, or in other words, “you are a Roman DOC”. I couldn’t help but smiling, because that is probably the biggest compliment I have received so far.
An Italian calling me a real romana DOC is quite a compliment
But what does ‘a Roman DOC’ mean? In fact, it was a witty word joke of his that immediately inspired me to write this blog. On a side note, that’s what I like best; hearing three words, or even a single statement in my coffee bar, that immediately inspires me for a whole blog. DOC is a quality mark for Italian wine. It stands for Denominazione di origine controllata, or: Denomination of controlled origin. A wine with the DOC quality mark is therefore a guarantee of wine made from exactly the right grapes and maintaining exactly the right production process. In other words: its origins are controlled. It is a quality mark that was created in order to combat the unfair competition of many other wines that unjustly take advantage of the good reputation of the genuine products. So, an Italian calling me a real romana DOC is quite a compliment. Not only did he see a romana in me, a real Roman, but a romana DOC. A romana with a quality label.
The DOC label may have eliminated mainly foreign competition, but with 330 Italian wines now holding the DOC quality mark, it is no longer a label the crème de la crème of Italian wineries can use to distinguish themselves
However, it is the same with labels as it is with titles and star ratings of hotels. If they are awarded a little too generously, it loses its value after a while. And that was exactly what happened with the DOC label, according to high-quality and renowned Italian wine producers. The DOC label may have eliminated mainly foreign competition, but with 330 Italian wines now holding the DOC quality mark, it is no longer a label the crème de la crème of Italian wineries can use to distinguish themselves.
Italy would not be Italy – with its thousands of rules, criteria, maximum percentages, minimum requirements, quality controls and the bureaucratic circus that logically arises as a result of all this – if an additional quality mark were not created
But of course, a solution was soon found. After all, Italy would not be Italy – with its thousands of rules, criteria, maximum percentages, minimum requirements, quality controls and the bureaucratic circus that logically arises as a result of all this – if an additional quality mark were not created. Since 1980, wines in Italy can obtain the DOCG label: Denominazione di origine controllata e garantita, or: Denomination of controlled and guaranteed origin. In order to obtain this ‘guarantee’ qualification, a DOC wine must, among other things, pass a blind tasting test conducted by government officials (imagine tasting wine as your fulltime job being a civil servant. A dream job, right?). Also, the DOCG label may only be officially awarded after five years of learning.
Being called a romana DOC is a fantastic beginning and a great compliment for my blog, whether it is and will remain exclusively a blog on Italy or not. Because one thing’s for sure: things are going to change
So, a romana DOC is not yet a romana DOCG, despite the fact that it already has been over five years ago that my friends unofficially renamed me from Anne to Annaaa (indeed, preferably with three A’s at the end). However, being called a romana DOC is a fantastic beginning and a great compliment for my blog, whether it is and will remain exclusively a blog on Italy or not. Because one thing’s for sure: things are going to change. Lately, I have been thinking a lot about what I want to do with this blog. It has been kind of a voyage of discovery in search of the new road I am going to take (of course, I could make the cliché joke now that all roads always lead to Rome, but I will spare you). But it was certainly thanks to the comment of the Italian that I now have a clearer idea of what exactly I want. Call it a vision. A DOC-blog, which eventually might become a DOCG-blog. Anne che ama DOC. I already love it.