Playing the field
When not in the restaurant, I'll start my day by heading for the fields at 8-8.30am with a classic Italian mocha, home-made cigarette and a salami sandwich. I came to London four years ago from a village near Venice, attracted by the UK capital's reputation as the centre of culinary expertise in Europe.
I was keen to develop my knowledge of herbs, and with such a long and rich history of use in dishes it seemed the ideal place to form my business, Luppolo [Italian for hops].
When I arrived in this country I took a course on the history of UK herbs at Kew Gardens, and chose to pursue my passion for hops. The Soil Association put me in touch with Peter Hall, a farmer in Marden, Kent, who had also tried to cultivate hops. He had a small patch of surplus land, so he lent my venture his support.
Part of the reason for choosing Kent was that the journey there takes me only an hour-and-a-half. The train company is also one of the few that still makes provision for bikes.
I love to cycle and will head out to Charing Cross, making use of Hyde Park, before catching the 9.30am train to Kent. I usually arrive in Marden by late morning and cycle through the village, enjoying the countryside on the way to my 30-hectare plot.
I use hired help during the busy harvest season, which peaks in March, and I try to pick 5-10kg of produce a day to meet my London customers' demands.
I also grow wild herbs and chicory, which the local rabbits love. I have nets in place to keep them off but am happy to accept the problem as the way of the countryside - I couldn't bear to shoot them.
If there's time, I'll settle down for a lunch of cheese, which often contains some of my freshly picked crops. If I have an early delivery in London, I'll work straight through.
After changing in my shed, I head back to London by 2.30pm, in time to make deliveries just after 4pm. As the orders are quite small, I take them to customers in a basket on my bike before heading home at 6pm.
The evening is given over to book-keeping, which is not too bad as my girlfriend works as a legal secretary and can help out.
I don't want to grow the business much more, because the quality of my plants might suffer. The seasonality also limits me, but I firmly believe that if you respect your environment it will pay you back.
My autumns are often spent in Tuscany at a local cookery school, educating students on herb usage before I return to London in the winter to prepare for spring.
Interview by Chris Druce
Just a minute…
What's been the hardest part of living in the UK?
The language. I'm not a youngster, at nearly 40, so juggling work with lessons at Westminster College over the past three years has been hard.
What do you miss most about home?
My animals. Back home I have three cows, two dogs and four cats. I also miss my river and the trees.
Luppolo
Tel: 07931 100150
E-mail:luppolo@tiscali.co.uk
The company is certified by the Soil Association as a grower of wild herbs, and Bincoletto is a member of the British Herb Association. The company supplied 15 London restaurants last year, including Carluccio's in Covent Garden; and Knightsbridge-based restaurant Isola, headed by Graziano Bonacino, tried out a popular menu based on herbs and wild flowers last October.
As he has just received a professional trainer certificate, Bincoletto is planning to take people out into the Kent countryside and London's parks this spring to discover flowers, plants and edible weeds. Cookery lessons and education on historical usage will follow.
