Instead of flash drying in ovens, the artisans of Montebello dry their prized pasta slowly in traditional drying rooms. These Old World practices produce a delicious hand crafted pasta with a unique porous texture that cooks evenly and holds sauces beautifully. Enjoy Montebello knowing that it is the finest pasta available. Buon Appetito!

During the winter of 1947, Gerardo Nieves, from the Borjas Blancas region of northern Spain, left by boat to explore the frontier of Argentina. Gerardo had a dream of moving to this new land to grow olives for the growing numbers of Italian and Spanish immigrants that arrived in Argentina during and after the war.

Since his family had been involved in the farming and production of table olives and olive oil since the late 1800's, Gerardo had considerable experience under his belt before his departure. His goal was to find the ideal location and climate to produce a world class product.

After 2 years of travel and research, he chose a beautiful valley in Cordoba in central Argentina for the family's future plantation for 2 reasons: 1) At 2600' elevation at this parallel, weather conditions were perfect for olive production. 2) The Sierra de Cordoba mountains to the west provided pure mountain water for irrigation.

Methodically, over a period of 10 years, using cuttings from his family's farm in northern Spain, he planted 750 acres of olives. Today, certain varieties of these olives—Nevadilla, Arauco and Manzanilla—are naturally brined to be sold for table olives. Other varieties—Arbequina and Frantoio—are used for olive oil production.

From the onset, Gerardo and his family have been dedicated to preserving the natural ecological balance on the land and never applied pesticides and herbicides. Since they are the first farm to receive water from the mountains to the west, there is no possibility for contamination of this valuable irrigation source.

Today, Garardo's son, Rodolfo, and his family operate the plantation and crushing facilities. The family's passionate care results in outstanding quality estate produced olive oil and olives.

In 1997, Rodolfo entered this estate produced oil in professional blind taste competition in Umbria, Italy with 17 other organic extra virgins from Italy, Greece and Spain. Rodolfo and his family walked away with the Grand Prize for flavor and quality. Enjoy Rodolfo's Villa Flor Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil knowing that it is some of the finest available.

Lapas Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Organic Kalamata Olives, Organic Capers and Red Peppers from Greece

Olive oil is produced in many countries—Spain, France, Italy and Greece are the best known. One of the select regions is the southern part of the Peloponnese in the Mani region of Greece. Lapas Organic Extra Virgin is produced in the green hills of the Mani. Here, spring and autumn rains combine with summer drought and rich, red, volcanic soil to produce a unique combination of growing conditions allowing the local "Koroneïke" olives to flourish and "breathe."

Since 1795, the Nunez de Prado family has produced this prized extra virgin olive oil in the heart of Baena, Andalucia. At their Santa Lucia mill, after hand harvesting, three varieties of organically grown olives-Picual, Hojiblanca and Picudo-are traditionally stone crushed and blended.

Paco Nunez de Prado, Director of the family's operations, takes great pride in producing a Denomination of Origin oil that exhibits exceptional fruity flavors of melons, apples, lemons and bananas with a slight finish of pepper. Rated as excellent by leading connoisseurs, Nunez de Prado is a must have for your kitchen.

Lino Lorenzi planted every vine on his 23 acre estate himself. Where traditional balsamico relies on the trebbiano grape, Lino also grows pinot bianco, pinot chardonnay and pinot grigio grapes, which make for a more delicate and aromatic vinegar.

The grapes are picked over a few weeks to make sure each bunch is perfectly ripe, then pressed to obtain the juice ("must"). Lino ages the must in French oak barrels that were used previously to make Burgundy and Bordeaux wines. The barrels give his vinegar depth and flavor nuances. Most important, Lino expertly blends vinegars, combining vinegar from older and newer lots, to obtain the perfect taste profile. These traditional methods result in an intensely flavored vinegar that delights the palate.

Acquerello Organic Carnaroli Rice from Italy

For generations, the Rondolino family has been growing their Acquerello carnaroli rice in the Po River Valley of northern Italy. This special estate produced rice is considered the best for the preparation of risotto.

The Rondolinos cultivate their entire farm using only approved organic farming methods. The family harvests their rice each October and ages it in temperature controlled storerooms for a minimum of one year before milling. This unique aging process reduces the moisture content of each grain of rice which allows for a more consistent, firm texture of risotto that more readily absorbs flavors. Vacuum packed for maximum freshness in their innovative state-of-the-art resealable tin, Acquerello is indeed the ultimate rice for risotto.

© 2006 Spruce Foods, Inc.