Acquerello Risotto: The Art of Aging
By Brenna Boone
Acquerello is a very special rice from Italy. This rice was developed by the Rondolino family. In 1935 Cesare Rondolino became a rice farmer and bought the Tenuta Torrone della Colombara because of its fertile fields and abundant water; two conditions perfect for growing rice. Many years later, in 1972, his son Piero joined his father as a farmer. Finally in 1992 Piero developed Acquerello. To begin the production of Acquerello rice, the producers begin with extremely high quality Carnaroli Superfine rice. Unlike most rice’s,, Acquerello is aged for one year. While it is aged, it is kept in the hull. This helps with a few things, it enhances the flavor of the rice and it makes the starches more stable, which gives the rice more bite to it when cooked. This is because the grains continue their maturation when the hull is still on the grain. After the 1 year of aging, the hull is removed which also removes the germ from the grain. In most rice products this is removed and not utilized again. However, for Acquerello rice, he germ is ground and mixed in with the rice which both ads flavor and nutritional value. This germ addition gives the rice the nutritional value of a brown rice. We served it at the James Beard Foundation dinner with risotto flavored with Blu del Chianti cheese and topped with toasted hazelnuts. We were fortunate to host Alessandro Bellini, Acquerello’s rep in the USA for product importation, who joined our team at the event to speak to diners about the rice’s unique qualities.