Welcome to Book Club and Episode 2739 of the Italian Wine Podcast with Richard Hough. In this episode, Richard is in conversation with professor of Italian wine and culture, Dr Danielle Callegari, author of (amongst other things) “A Bite-Sized History of Italy: Tales of the Roman Empire, Renaissance, and Republic.”
This conversation explores Danielle’s Italian ancestry, her career as an academic, the importance of Dante to Italy’s linguistic identity, the role of food and wine in shaping Italy’s cultural identity, the beer before bread hypothesis, “carbonaragate” and other Italian food controversies, and Italy’s evolving culinary habits.
Further reading and other resources mentioned in the conversation:
• “Dante’s Gluttons: Food and Society in Medieval Italian Literature” by Dr Danielle Callegari
• “Drunk” by Dr Edward Slingerland
• “Tracing one delicious snack around the Mediterranean showed me that modern borders are absurd” by Federico De Blasi, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jun/26/chickpea-snacks-mediterranean-migration-cultural-exchange-europe-africa
• The Gola Podcast, https://www.golapodcast.com/
• Cabinet Travel, https://www.cabinettravel.com/
• “This Italian Wine Paradise Is More Than Just a Pretty Coastline” by Danielle Callegari, https://www.wineenthusiast.com/culture/travel/sardinia-food-wine-culture/
The Book Review by Richard Hough:
Dr Danielle Callegari is a renowned academic in the field of medieval Italian literature, which explains the intellectual depth and rigour that underpins “A Bite-Sized History of Italy: Tales of the Roman Empire, Renaissance, and Republic.” Callegari takes us on a fascinating historical journey to explain how food became the defining characteristic of Italian national identity, tackling the many myths, legends and (culinary) obscenities along the way. From The Iliad and the Odyssey to pineapple on pizza, A Bite-Sized History of Italy is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the past, present and future of Italy’s remarkable relationship with its food and wine.
About today’s guest:
Danielle Callegari (Ph.D., New York University) is Associate Professor in the Department of French and Italian at Dartmouth College and Communications Director for the Dante Society of America. Danielle Callegari reviews the wines of Italy for Wine Enthusiast, including Tuscany, Lazio, Abruzzo, Campania, Basilicata, Molise, Puglia, Calabria, Sardinia and Sicily. She is also the co-host of Gola, a podcast on Italian food and beverage culture.
Connect:
Website: https://faculty-directory.dartmouth.edu/danielle-callegari
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drcallegariscabinet/reels/
More about the host:
Richard Hough is the editor, translator and project curator behind The Art of Wine Storytelling, Wine Democracy and Vine and Prejudice. He has also published several books about life in Verona, chronicling the city’s history, culture and daily life, not forgetting, of course, its wine, including Verona Campione, published in May 2025. With a long-standing passion for whisky and beer, he’s a relative newcomer to the world of wine and is now desperately trying to make up for lost time! He is the host of Book Club on the Italian Wine Podcast.
Connect:
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/rickhough.bsky.social
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/verona_campione
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickhough/
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