Via Venafrana, km3+800.
Presenzano
Phone +39 0823 989243
www.calenna.it

The “annurche” apples are exposed to sunlight for at least eight days on a side, and for further eight days on the other side. Many hectares are covered with black lengths of material to avoid to burn them because they are very delicate, worse still, in order not to make them ruined by a hailstorm. These are the origins of the small, great apple from Southern Italy which dominates a large part of Campania, in some areas it cohabits with the “limoncella” and is widespread above all in Valle di Maddaloni, between the province of Caserta and the one of Benevento. It is the result of a job which requires a great deal of patience, each fruit is turned by hand as it was a champagne bottle. Acidity and a sweet taste counterbalance each other very well in your mouth. They can be preserved in an airy room for many months becoming an inexhaustible mine of fruit in cuisine. They can be used to prepare desserts, of course, but also some magic cough potions (as when cooked apples were prepared at home) or can be cooked in the oven with a sour black cherry.

The inhabitants of Campania can easily find them, all the greengrocers sell them at fair prices. They can also be bought at supermarkets, even out of Campania. Three-thousand tons are stocked whereas every hour ten-thousand tons are packed. A sound landmark for “annurca” apple lovers is the Calenna Cooperative presided over by Pasquale Savanelli in Presenzano, in the province of Caserta. This is a modern factory where the fruits of about 700 well-cultivated hectares are processed. They will process at least further 150 fruits. This cooperative is a member of the Annurca Apple IGP Association and the Annurca Alto Casertano Association, has the Iso 9001 and Eurep Gap certifications, and is characterized by a modern production line with a water immersion system which is unique in Southern Italy. This cooperative has a long family tradition, produces thirty-thousand tons a year, it is the biggest producer of “annurche” apples and has three branches: Garigliano and San Castrese in Sessa Aurunca and Mignano. Besides the “annurche” apples they cultivate kiwis, apricots, plums, yellow and white peaches and “percoche”. This is a fine reality.

How to arrive: this is a place to be visited by those who are often on the Rome-Naples motorway or go to Roccaraso. It is five kilometres away from the Caianello exit.