As would be expected, the Vatican City draws several thousand visitors each day. In fact I just googled it to see what a more exact figure would be and my friends at wiki told me that in 2007, they had 4.3 million visitors to the Vatican Museum of Rome.
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| St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City and the daily long line to get in if you don't go early. |
And where there's a ton of people, there's a ton of opportunity for enterprising young lads and lasses to sell trinkets, goods and Vatican-related paraphernalia and make a little coin from it.
Though I love to people-watch, and massive crowds at the Vatican easily satisfy those desires, it was great to be at a place a little removed from such heavily walked paths.
If a map gives you a better idea, it's right here:
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I find Sorpasso Vin Cafe' E Cucina extremely VASGO-worthy because of the outstanding drinks the bartender there made for us. Not only were they tasty, but this guy knew how to carve his fruits. One of my friends had an apple cinnamon martini. Tasted like a delicious pie, and along the rim of the glass were the thinnest slices of apple shaped into a fan. So pretty.
Someone else had one of his specialties, a Moscow Mule. Different because it was served in a tall mug made of stainless steel, I could see the foliage of what I assumed to be vegetables coming out of the rim because a fountain of green leaves seemed to be exploding from it. I'm pretty sure I also spotted a torpedo-shaped piece of ginger at the bottom of the mug when I was given a sip. And of course, the vodka, lime and ginger beer mixture was delightful and refreshing.
My drink, well, I like to try new things. I also like to see what a mixologist has up his or sleeves, to put them to the test. So I laid the menu down on the bar top and I said, "I like everything. What can you make for me that is spicy?"
"Piccante?"
"Si."
"Do you like ginger?"
"Si."
"Ok."
And that's all it took to order the Veritable VASGO Libation (genuine VASGO drink).
I saw intense slicing behind the bar. Yum. He had a chili pepper in his hand. Now that's the type of spicy I'm talking about. I saw him holding ginger. He added a little this in the shaker, add a little of that. Was that gin he just put in there? What was that other bottle? My excitement was building. I couldn't wait much longer to see what it turned out to be. The sound of ice cubes smashed against the stainless steel shaker and then he poured the concoction through a strainer into the empty martini glass.
I thought it was ready, until he added a creative chili pepper and ginger toothpick design into the glass, which brought imagery of a Samurai Sashimono War Flag in mind.
The taste: Outstanding! Big and bold ginger hit the palate first cleansing even the back of the thoat as it went down. Then it transitioned into a spiciness which I love but is not for everyone. I noticed that my lips were tingling a little and that's when I realized the expert mixologist cut open the chili pepper and ran its open flesh along the rim. I know I saw him use gin but it's taste wasn't very noticeable because the ginger overpowered and only the master knew what else was in there.
With a complementary plate of fresh focaccia bread slices and chunks of hard, salty italian sheep's milk cheese, the drink went down easy.
Other than the free plates that come with buying a drink, I still haven't tried the food at Sorpasso Vin Cafe' E Cucina. However, the menu looks very good, fair priced, and some day I'll be back to enjoy one of their beverages with a great meal.
Have a great dinner and weekend everybody! Buon Appetito!
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| The Master, in action. |
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