"Because my dad worked with a Sicilian (Angelo the Other Welder and our families got on so well, I’ve been eating authentic Italian food since I was ten. Pizza at the forefront, of course: all around Italy and Sicily, naturally; plus Greece, the US and elsewhere (Wolverhampton, mainly . So I think I’ve earned my place on the judging panel over 5 decades or so and with a lot of ppa (pizza per annum to, er, show for it. Now, in breaking news, I’ve finally discovered, against strong international competition, the best pizza yet. And I’m not exaggerating. And it’s in Cockermouth! Lasciatemi spiegare, as Wordsworth never said… A recent visit to our dearest friends in the Lakes coincided with Sarah’s birthday. Our hosts, Graham and Phil, let us know that we’d be going out for a special treat. This was the background against which the four of us arrived at Fermento, expectations already high from a browse on Fermento’s website before hitting the M6. I can’t tell you how far those expectations were exceeded! Impeccable hosting and chefing from Carla and Alessandro respectively, a delightful setting and, above all… the food! After a delicious, fresh antipasti sharing platter, we agreed that, given the choice on the menu, we’d all like to try a variety of Fermento’s versions of favourites based on Sarah’s (and my long commitment to Italian delights. The plan was to have four large pizzas, one at a time, between us and in a flavour sequence of Alessandro’s recommendation. I love it when a plan comes together. The bases were the first revelation. Supremely fresh, crispy, tasty, light and digestible – which is what you get when you combine a 48-hour prove of the dough with native expertise on the stretching and baking – each pizza’s particular topping basking on a consistently perfect crust. And what toppings! We had, in order, the CARCIOFFOLA (Mozzarella, Smoked Pancetta, Grilled Smoked Scamorza Cheese and, of course, the eponymous grilled Artichokes – a true Italian favourite ; the MEAT FEAST (Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Spianata Calabra (Spicy Salame , Smoked Pancetta and Italian Sausage – divine ; the PUTTANESCA (Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Olives, Capers, Oregano and the flavour orgasm of Anchovies ; and, to complete the symphony, the EMER (Mozzarella, Sundried Tomatoes, Smoked Pancetta, Parmesan Shavings – and a taste I last swooned over in Venice, Gorgonzola and Fresh Rocket! . Quite the banquet! And, because it was so well-paced (and accompanied by delicious wines , we even had room for the beautiful MASCARPONE MOUSSE to finish (choice of toppings – dark chocolate shavings, Fabbri sour cherries or Amaretti biscuits . It was a perfect Italian evening and well worth the trip to The Lakes! Carla told us that they came from Modena, famous for balsamic vinegar, opera heritage, Ferrari and Lamborghini, to set up in Cockermouth. We’re so glad they did! PS: Just note that Fermento offers the real deal when it comes to authenticity. They do lasagne the proper way, for instance: more pasta layers and less of the gunk that often passes for ragu over here. And please remember that the traditional Italian meal has a sequence designed for extended enjoyment and the inclusion of conversation, alcohol and yummy noises. Antipasti – the actual “starter” (a platter of fish and or hams, salami, olives, cheese, bread etc ; Primo – the proper “first course”, often pasta; Secondo – the course after that (duuh , often meat plus veg and or salad (Contorni Insalata ; and Dolce – sweet. A lovely element of the Fermento experience is that those “first and second” courses can be occupied by pizza: the perfect excuse for sharing a variety of toppings, as above and, if we’re lucky, soon to be repeated."
