Tucci in Italy (2025) s02e04 Episode Script
Sardinia
1
[ominous music playing]
-[metallic clanging]
-[whining]
[grunting]
[clanging]
[grunting and bellowing]
♪♪
I'm in Sardinia.
[grunting and bellowing continue]
Would you have guessed that?
[low growling]
♪♪
Sardinia, an island untamed and isolated.
A jagged outcrop,
marooned in the Mediterranean.
It's a wild place.
A land of folklore and fairy tales
where people march
to the beat of their own drum.
But how has isolation shaped
Sardinia's remarkable cuisine?
Sardinia sits 120 miles
from both Northern Africa
and mainland Italy.
My first stop is the city of Sassari.
[march music playing]
[applause]
I've arrived during the Cavalcata Sarda,
a folkloric parade
that's been celebrated here
since the 1700s.
You will see different colors,
different, uh, attire, different jewels.
Right.
Sardinian travel writer Claudia Tavani
has been a regular attendee
for many years.
So they all come from different villages?
Every year, 60 villages
are selected to participate.
-Sixty?
-Sixty, yes.
Sixty small towns and villages
and they all wear a different costume,
which represents their heritage,
their traditions, you know.
Uh, you see how the women
cover their head?
-Yeah?
-That is a tradition
that was probably brought
from the Moors
-Oh, okay. Right.
-when they came to Sardinia.
And it's interesting
to know that even in, uh,
in villages even now,
Sardinian women still wear
the, the, the handkerchief on their head.
It's very traditional.
[Stanley] Right.
The Cavalcata is a celebration
of Sardinian pride and identity.
But its vibrant costumes are a testament
to a history of invasions,
from Romans to Phoenicians,
Arabs, and Spanish.
Some even say that the last
160 years of Italian rule
is just the latest failed attempt
to conquer the island.
This is all the pecorino?
[Claudia Tavani] This is all pecorino.
[Stanley] But the Cavalcata is
about more than just costumes.
The celebration brings in
some of the best street food
from all over the island.
A veritable spread of
wonderful grilled delicacies.
[Claudia] This is interesting.
They are cooking
a Sardinian prime specialty.
Maialetto in Italian.
Porceddu in one of
the dialects of Sardinian.
-[gasps] What's that?
-This is Sardinian sausage.
Susattizu.
It has fennel inside, usually,
a lot of, a big component of fat.
That's what gives it the flavor, really.
-Yes, you have to have the fat.
-You have to have the fat.
-It stays so moist.
-Oh, I love that. I love it.
It's, it's delicious.
[Stanley]
Alright, I'm gonna get that sausage.
-Good morning.
-Tell me.
I'll have a panino with sausage
and one with pork.
[Claudia] Have you noticed
how a lot of it is meat?
Pork, lamb and very little is
actually fish and seafood?
[Stanley] I know that. I know.
-Onion?
-Yes, onion.
[Claudia] You know, through time,
we were invaded by the Romans,
by the Phoenicians,
and so population started moving inland
and so the culinary tradition changed.
[Stanley] Right. Grazie.
[Claudia] Mm.
Is it good? Mm.
How's that? Good?
-Delicious.
-Moist?
[Claudia] Mm.
-[Stanley] This is really good.
-[Claudia] Is it?
-[Stanley] And the onions are really good.
-[Claudia] Mm.
-[Stanley] Let's go to the parade.
-[Claudia] Yeah.
♪♪
[Stanley] The climax of this festival
is a violent dance
between two figures
of Sardinia's pagan past.
These are the Boes and Merdules.
The Boes are the ones wearing the bells,
and the Merdules are the ones
that have everyone else on a rope.
[Stanley] So it's about taming,
it's about taming the animals?
It's about taming
the animals, taming nature.
♪♪
[Stanley] This primal dance
recalls the ancient struggle
to survive in Sardinia's rugged terrain.
But to experience that terrain,
you've got to get out of the city.
I'm leaving Sassari and heading
to a farm near Gonnostramatza.
♪♪
This is shepherd country.
Up here, herding sheep for milk and wool
became first, a tool for survival,
and for centuries
this island's primary economy.
There's a moving obstacle up ahead.
Obstacles.
[bleating]
But these are not your average sheep.
The Pecora Sarda
is a hardy, indigenous breed,
with a high milk yield,
able to walk great distances
over rocky terrain.
Unless of course, they're being sheared.
[trimmers whirring]
These are Sardinian sheep
-they're a free-roaming animal.
-Yes.
Michele Cuscusa's family
have been shepherds
and pecorino producers for 300 years.
In Sardinia there are 3.5 million sheep
and only 1.5 million people.
Each person could adopt three sheep.
[laughter]
[Stanley] Math might not be
Michele's strong suit,
but along with his business partner
Jon Brownstein,
he exports many of his cheeses to the US.
Ecco.
Today, they're going to cook
one of the island's oldest recipes,
one which is curiously lamb-free.
Suckling pig, cooked underground.
So, suckling pig
is always done for festivals,
for all of the festivals in Sardinia.
Sì.
So, one of most beautiful things
about this is
when we talk about "typical."
Yeah.
You can't get any more typical.
This way of preparing suckling pig
is really hard, it's a lot of work.
In earlier times,
when my dad was young,
people used to steal suckling pigs --
those who didn't have them.
So in order to hide from others
that they were cooking a suckling pig
they would hide them underground.
Is that true? It's not a
No, it's not a legend, it's true.
Really?
First you would make the fire,
then you'd put the suckling pig in
so when you came back from herding
the suckling pig was ready.
There was no need to
watch over it, it was easy.
[Stanley]
For centuries, Sardinian shepherds
did not own land,
and instead fended for themselves
against the elements,
and other shepherds.
So cooking the suckling pig
in subterranean pits
was a useful technique
to protect what was theirs.
Because cooked in the soil,
the pig would absorb
the surrounding flavors.
-Sage?
-Sage.
Oregano.
Rosemary?
Rosemary.
What's this, myrtle?
It's myrtle.
You're gonna taste all of these herbs,
all together,
and it's like an aphrodisiac.
Okay. I-I'll do that.
-[Jon laughs]
-If you insist. Yeah.
So, now
There's an underground fire.
After lighting the charcoal,
we put this on top.
We seal it with more charcoal
put the soil on top,
then fire on top.
-[Michele Cuscusa] Okay?
-[Stanley] Okay.
The pig will cook
for 12 hours underground.
So
Luckily though,
I'm getting to taste one
that Michele's been
roasting all night.
Imagine if all we find
is only the embers!
[laughter]
We're looking for treasure.
[Jon Brownstein]
Well, it does smell good.
[Stanley] Wow!
Come here, Stanley, come closer.
[Stanley] Oh, wow.
Give it a smell.
Ooh!
Oh, my God.
That's gorgeous.
Here we eat like
people ate in the past.
He's the boss.
Thanks.
Let's do this.
[Jon] Mm.
♪♪
Mm.
-Wow.
-[Stanley] Look at that fat.
Well done, Michele.
-[Stanley] That's so good.
-[Jon] Mm!
You're really tasting the meat,
like, it's not adulterated
with anything except--
Here's some clean stuff.
Grazie. Except the herbs.
It's like pure, it's like purity.
-Yeah.
-From the earth.
[Stanley] Mm.
For shepherds living alone
on this frontier landscape,
the earthy taste of suckling pig
is a reminder of
what it means to survive here.
Living in isolation taught Sardinians
to do things their own way,
and it also shaped the island's
unusual set of beliefs.
♪♪
Is this an archaeological park?
One of the best and most beautiful
ones in Sardinia.
[Stanley] Ah.
♪♪
Before the Romans discovered it,
Sardinia was home
to an advanced Bronze Age civilization.
Though they left no written texts behind,
the island is dotted
with some 7,000
mysterious stone structures,
which hold special meaning
for many Sardinians.
But when were they built?
It's very ancient.
We are in a historical
and powerful place.
[Stanley] Sì.
Food writer Claudia Zedda
is showing me around Montessu Necropolis,
an archaeological site that
predates the Egyptian pyramids.
And these were tombs?
These were tombs, essentially tombs.
And then over time they were reused,
for various purposes.
In some cases, they became churches.
Whose churches were they?
Before the Medieval period
they were used as Christian churches.
[Stanley] Wow.
Here we are.
It's beautiful.
-This place
-These look modern.
They are so pretty.
Moreover, they closely resemble
the maternal womb.
[Stanley] Sì.
One of the most interesting things
about these caves, or Domus,
is that they are linked
to the myth of the Janas.
Like a fairy?
Exactly that, yes.
Right.
In Sardinian mythology,
Janas were benevolent magical pixies
who guarded these rocky burial sites.
Their presence was so strongly felt
that these prehistoric tombs
became known as
Domus de Janas, or Fairy Houses.
And these Janas, why "Janas"?
Why fairies?
Well, when we researched the myth
we found that these were women,
living as a community of women.
And on top of that,
they had special skills.
Some, for example, wove,
others baked and cooked.
Over time they were
probably mythologized.
And from "wise women"
they became "fairies."
Oh, yes, yes.
♪♪
At its core, the myth of the Janas
reflects the belief that
the island's most revered trades,
like basket-making,
costume design and wool-weaving,
were gifts handed down from the gods.
While in reality, it was
the deft and tireless hands
of Sardinia's women
that created these exquisite crafts.
And Claudia believes
that something of this magic
still exists in Sardinia's
most distinctive pasta.
-Welcome home.
-Thanks.
We are here to show you, to teach you,
how to make culurgiones.
-What does it mean?
-The origin of the name is unknown.
It probably means "cradle."
Because it cradles the filling.
-Not butt?
-No, "culla."
Cradle, OK.
We use a dough made of
semolina flour, water and salt.
Quite simple.
The filling is made
with potatoes, cheese,
and mint.
Oh, mint?
And the cheese is pecorino?
Yes, sheep's cheese.
This is the idea, take the filling,
make a ball
♪♪
Take more than you need.
It's a laborious process.
It's a Jana's job.
You pinch it, and then you roll it back
[Stanley] I love how you
just push it out at one end.
I love that, it's funny.
until the raviolo is closed.
Wow.
Beautiful.
Shaped like an ear of wheat,
traditionally Culurgiones
were only eaten on the Day of the Dead,
when they were thought to act
as protective amulets
to ward off evil spirits.
How long do you boil them for?
Normally, it's a couple of minutes.
When they float, I'll know they're ready.
Oh, like gnocchi.
OK, thank you.
Here you go.
OK, now the sauce.
-Should I bring it here?
-Yes, yes.
Claudia serves them
in a simple tomato sauce,
topped, of course, with more cheese.
-[Claudia Zedda] Okay.
-Wow. Okay.
-And that tomato smells so good.
-Go.
Together.
[Stanley] Mm. Mm!
Yeah!
Good?
[Claudia chuckles]
-Oh, this is mint.
-Mint.
I love that. Mm! Uh
And also the taste comes in waves.
-Yeah, yeah. Yeah.
-Sì.
-Sì, sì, sì.
-Mm-hmm.
[Stanley] Oh, yeah, I love that.
It's like pasta and gnocchi together.
Yes, yes, you're right.
It's a dish that I adore.
-[Stanley] Mm!
-[Claudia] Mm.
Not great for the swimsuit, but so good!
[laughter]
♪♪
[Stanley] These delicious dumplings
still hold special meaning
to many Sardinians,
a link back to their mythical ancestry.
But isolation hasn't just
shaped the island's history.
It still continues to shape
its unique way of life.
♪♪
[Stanley]
The heart of Sardinia, the Barbagia,
is one of the most remote
and least populated areas in Europe.
Here, time seems to stand still.
Not that anyone's complaining.
In fact, the longer lives
of Barbagia's population
became the basis of
a famed study into blue zones.
I'm in Seulo, a small town
which at one time housed
more centenarians per capita
than anywhere else in the world.
[bell tolling in distance]
This place is we can say, magical
because food is very important here
[Stanley] Hmm.
which helps people live
until they're 100.
[Stanley] Acclaimed Sardinian chef
Maria Carta grew up in Seulo
and makes a point of returning here
to spend time with the village elders.
The old people that you've seen today
[Stanley] Mm-hmm.
live calm lives
in harmony with nature.
If you come here in the afternoon
it's just silence, you know?
Hi, Aunt Irma! How are you?
Can we say hi to her?
Yes.
It's Maria, Giovanna's daughter.
How are you?
Proceeding as usual.
Are you okay?
Can I introduce you to Stanley?
He is an actor and director.
-Yes.
-But he's our friend too.
Nice to meet you.
How old are you, Aunt Irma?
I'm 91.
She's 91.
Do you walk to the shops?
Yes, when I go I don't take a trolley.
I carry the bags myself.
I always have lots of them.
That's how she stays young.
-Oh, that's what it is.
-What are you doing?
We are making a documentary.
To sort out the town?
Because it's a mess.
We have a mayor, who is
my relative, and yours too.
-He hasn't done a thing.
-He hasn't done anything?
-They just want the paycheck.
-She's angry with the mayor.
-Really?
-The mayor is my nephew.
[laughter]
-Alright.
-Thank you. It was a pleasure.
Good bye.
-Ciao, zia Irma.
-Ciao.
♪♪
[Stanley] Though some of the data
behind blue zones has been debunked,
Maria believes that something
in Barbagia's culinary traditions
plays a role in preserving
the high quality of life
necessary to live to be a hundred.
Today, alongside her extended family,
Maria's organizing
a traditional Sunday lunch
for some older relatives.
Let's start with whatever we want.
Can you give me this one?
-This one?
-Yes. Cabbage is very important.
[Stanley] Okay.
-And for the main
-Prego.
[Stanley] she's showing me
her family's recipe
for vegetable minestrone.
-Okay.
-Ecco.
There you are. Now the cauliflower
which is just as important.
Have you ever cooked in the woods?
-Yes!
-Me too.
Yes. I like it.
All the flavors are better.
I don't know why.
That's true.
One onion for you
and one onion for me.
[Stanley] Every Sardinian family
has their own recipe for minestrone,
which changes with the seasons.
[Stanley] Mm. These are beautiful.
Maria's relatives eat it every day.
This is the wild chard.
[Stanley] Okay.
-Is it a little dirty?
-Just a little.
[laughter]
It's all natural here!
When you were young
[Maria Carta] Mm-hmm?
did you cook with your mum
or with your grandparents?
I want to tell you something.
When I was 14,
I failed my exams at school,
so my father kept me home
from school for a year
and told me that my punishment
was to cook for the whole family.
He gave me a vegetable garden
and a kitchen.
He said, "Now, learn to cook
for the whole family."
-Do you understand?
-No!
That's how all this started, you see?
It was a gift.
In the end, it was a gift.
It was punishment
but it turned out to be a gift.
[Stanley] Oh, my God. [laughs]
So the carrots are in
and the courgettes are in.
[Stanley] Mm-hmm.
What do we do now?
We've finished this part now.
The last thing to put in is the cheese.
You put it in like this.
-And that's it?
-We've finished this.
♪♪
[Stanley] It's easy to see the benefits
of a life spent outdoors,
eating a healthy diet.
On the fire.
Just ask Maria's uncle, Giovanni,
a retired shepherd who celebrated
his 90th birthday this year.
Mm.
Bello.
[indistinct chatter in Italian]
Hi, Aunt Irma!
You look so beautiful.
[chuckles]
[Stanley] As the guests
gather round the table,
Maria adds the final ingredient,
an ancient handmade pasta
called su filindeu.
♪♪
This is the longevity minestrone.
[Stanley] Sì.
It will help you live to 100.
-[Stanley] Hmm.
-[Maria] Sì.
First, we serve the old folks.
And you're in that age bracket now.
Yes.
No, I am old.
[Maria laughs]
[Stanley] Mm.
It's excellent.
Is it good?
-It's so good.
-Do you like it?
[Stanley] Ah, it's so beautiful.
You have to take it like this.
[Stanley] Oh, my God.
It's gorgeous, gorgeous.
You can accompany it
with chestnut honey
or thyme honey.
And there's something else.
If you want to enjoy meat more,
you have to be hungry.
[laughter]
Was it like that
when you were young?
I don't remember hunger here.
When I was little, my mum made bread
and I would share it with the neighbors.
Then when they made it,
they gave us some.
-It was a loan.
-The neighborhood was family.
[indistinct chatter]
[Stanley] Besides eating
this incredibly healthy food,
perhaps the secret
to this area's longevity
lies in the sense of community
and the responsibility each village feels
to take care of its elders.
What do you think
in 50 years?
This village
There will be no one left.
-No?
-[scoffs]
Because we're not growing,
but we're dying, we're aging.
There are no births.
We know that there are
two or three births a year, and that's it.
No one gets married.
[Stanley] Sì.
I am 53 years and,
in 50 years, I'll be 103.
Sì.
And you
Sì.
Though it's unclear
whether anyone will be around
to take care of Maria's generation,
she has no intention
of stopping this tradition.
-So
-To your good health!
-One hundred years.
-One hundred years.
Thank you.
Come back when you've reached 100.
I want to see you again.
[laughter]
♪♪
[inaudible]
But while the clock may be ticking
on Sardinia's centenarian villagers
there's something about Maria's family
that makes me think
they'll outlive us all.
[bell tolling in distance]
♪♪
[Stanley]
The rocky spine of Sardinia
is an ancient chain of granite mountains
that divides the island.
Very little grows
in this arid landscape
but there is one plant
that thrives, cannabis.
♪♪
It's quite interesting.
It used to be a big industry
here for ropes,
and then once it became like a drug,
the whole thing just kinda shut down.
Though its recreational use
is still illegal in Italy,
in 2022, Sardinia began allowing
the farming of non-psychoactive
low-THC cannabis,
taking advantage
of its political autonomy.
I've come to a restaurant
in the town of Guspini,
where they've taken that idea
one step further.
Hello.
Where's my pasta?
Here it is, Stan, it's ready!
Hi. Hi, hi, hi.
[laughs]
Best friends and pot aficionados
Andrea Pani and Roberto Piseddu
believe that cannabis has a place
in the Sardinian pantry.
What do you call these?
Tortelli.
[Stanley] They have
worked on these recipes
for eight years.
Wow.
And I'm excited to try them.
It's mixed with standard flour,
because it has a lot of fiber,
but no gluten.
-Ah, yes.
-OK?
And gluten makes it stick.
So, on its own, it wouldn't
be possible to make tortelli.
So
So, it's a bit mixed
Durum wheat
and hemp.
-In small percentage.
-Yes.
The taste is very strong.
Because it's a bit bitter.
-Bitter.
-The aftertaste.
So, what's inside?
The filling is made of potato,
lime, and red prawn.
The dough is bitter,
the filling is sweet.
-Okay?
-Alright.
Besides using hemp seeds
in the pasta dough,
Andrea's also making a vegetable stock
with onions, carrots, and cannabis leaves.
[Andrea Pani] Okay.
[Stanley] That is, if he can
remember to turn on the stove.
Is the flame on?
-[Andrea] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
-[Stanley] Yeah?
[Andrea] No, I'm sorry. No.
-[bleep]
-[laughter]
Okay, now, yes. [laughs]
-Okay.
-[Stanley] Okay.
-Let's go!
-The pasta, yes.
Okay.
OK, Stanley, this is
In Sardinia,
it's called "casu axedu."
Acidic cheese.
In antiquity, the shepherds had this
for breakfast.
And it comes from cows? No.
From sheep.
So we have bitterness from hemp
and from the broth,
the sweet from the filling,
and a bit of acidity given by this.
-That's your recipe?
-It's my recipe.
Genius!
[Stanley] See that's
what I need in my house.
Ugh.
[Andrea] Perfect.
Okay.
Finally, let's try the broth.
Whoa!
It's got a different and intense smell.
And in this, there isn't
How do you say it?
THC?
No, unfortunately not.
Unfortunately
Wow.
Tortelli with hemp
OK, we can try it.
[laughter]
Okay, okay.
Bon appétit.
Surprise, surprise. [chuckles]
Let's see if we did a good job.
[Stanley] Chef [slams table]
That's good.
You can taste the lime.
Oh, lime! That's what it is.
There are a thousand flavors
[Stanley] Mm. Yes.
-Fantastic.
-And the pasta
Delicate.
Amazing!
You can taste the cannabis seeds.
Okay.
Cannabis - why?
Because I've always liked it.
Right.
And because
I don't want it to remain a taboo.
Cannabis has a load of properties.
How do you get rid of a taboo in Italy?
[Stanley] Hmm.
Through food.
[Stanley] Ah.
Obviously.
Yeah. Okay.
What did you do before?
Prison?
No! Not yet!
I'm working on it.
Won't be long.
[laughter]
You're killing me.
[Stanley] Sorry, sorry.
You've made me laugh.
No, before, what did you do?
I worked in IT.
But cannabis has always been
with me,
on my journey.
[Stanley] Sì.
Though Sardinian producers are pushing
to legalize hemp farming,
mainland Italy has recently
clamped down on it.
While they await a clear ruling
from the European courts,
Andrea and Roberto
are continuing to create new recipes.
Wow, that's quick!
Very quick.
[Stanley] Like today's main,
flank steak, cooked sous vide,
topped with puffed hemp seeds.
Oh, look at that.
♪♪
And it's accompanied by a rich beef stock
that's been simmered for two days.
-Oh!
-[Roberto Piseddu] Voila.
-[Stanley] Grazie, chef.
-[Andrea] You're welcome.
-[Andrea laughs]
-[Stanley] Thank you. Okay.
It's amazing.
Smooth, right?
[chuckles]
-Chef! Chef!
-Bravo.
-[laughs]
-Bravo.
[Stanley] Come on!
It's sweet, bitter, strong
Intense
Intense but it's
How do you say it, delicate?
Balanced.
I love this.
-Crunch.
-Yeah, the crunch of it.
Oh, my God, it's so good.
-Nice one, Roby.
-Thanks!
Nice one, chef.
Amazing.
[laughter]
Whether cannabis
should be legalized or not,
and to what extent,
is a question for another time.
Thank you so much. Thank you, chef.
However, these young men
should be applauded
for their passion and commitment.
Despite its traditionalism,
Sardinia is an island
that prides itself on accepting
alternative views.
Perhaps though, that's putting it mildly.
♪♪
[Stanley] Despite being Italian for
the better part of 200 years,
Sardinians have always maintained
a strong separatist identity.
But there's a little corner of this region
where that mindset
might be taken to its limits.
I'm headed towards Tavolara,
off the coast of Sardinia,
a little island that supposedly
is the smallest kingdom in the world.
I'm going to meet the king
who has a restaurant.
♪♪
Named for its distinctive
table-shaped mountain,
Tavolara is only a quarter of a mile wide,
and less than three miles from the coast.
Today, it's home to only 11 residents
and a seafront restaurant,
run by its most illustrious inhabitant.
Tonino.
-Hi.
-Hello.
So
[Stanley] Ninety-two-year-old
Tonino Bertoleoni
is the King of Tavolara.
[conversing in Italian]
Sì!
Today is a perfect day.
Yes.
Luckily.
[Stanley] His family have
laid claim to this tiny island
since his great-great-grandfather
took the reins in 1836.
So, it was Giuseppe Bertoleoni,
my ancestor of Genoese origin,
and one day he decided
to come to Sardinia
with his boat
He saw this mountain here
and settled in
this island of Tavolara.
Ah.
-Once
-Were there
people here
-before him?
-Nobody, indeed.
-Never?
-Never.
[Stanley] Though no official records exist
of Giuseppe's arrival on the island,
his storied reign began
after an improbable encounter
with the King of Sardinia,
Charles Albert of Savoy.
The Savoys
heard about this Bertoleoni
who had taken these islands,
and wanted to get to know
this Giuseppe Bertoleoni.
They met -- he had invited him,
Giuseppe Bertoleoni to the king,
to come here to Tavolara
for a hunting trip.
Uh-huh.
And on this hunting trip
Giuseppe Bertoleoni
told King Charles Albert,
he told him, "You are the king
of Piedmont and Sardinia,
but I am the king of Tavolara."
This joke.
And King Charles Albert,
when he heard this,
that he said this joke,
he said: "Well, I will name him
King of Tavolara for real."
[laughs]
He took pen and paper and wrote,
"Giuseppe Bertoleoni, born"
and so on, "King of Tavolara."
♪♪
[Stanley] What might have just been
an amusing family story,
became the basis for
the Bertoleoni's claim to the throne.
And here, this is the
Please.
-Cemetery?
-Yes.
These are our relatives.
And these are
That one, there
is Paolo Bertoleoni.
Paolo the First.
The first one?
The son of Giuseppe Bertoleoni.
That crown is
over two centuries old.
Over there.
[Stanley] Sì.
And we are the heirs.
Ah, sì, sì.
So, we are the descendants of Paolo
the First.
This is my mom.
Indeed, the text says,
"Queen of Tavolara."
And my father.
-Paolo II.
-Paolo II.
King of Tavolara.
My brother Carlo.
[Stanley] Uh-huh.
Then, there is my wife there.
I put an inscription,
"Queen of Tavolara."
Yes. Beautiful.
♪♪
[Stanley] In the 1860s,
during the Italian Unification,
Sardinia was absorbed
into the Kingdom of Italy,
but Tavolara maintained its independence,
producing another
five kings and two queens.
Today, Tonino is the living legacy
of this 200-year-old fairy tale.
I always come to visit them,
I come often.
[Stanley] But to find out how this kingdom
has managed to stay sovereign,
I'm going to meet the rest of the family
at a royal banquet, of sorts.
We're off to the kitchen.
What are we eating?
Whatever there is.
[Stanley] The crown jewel of the kingdom
is the family restaurant, Da Tonino.
They serve whatever
they can get their hands on,
meaning seafood.
-Et voilà.
-Sì.
-So
-Let's start with oil and garlic
together.
[Stanley] Tonino's son Giuseppe
is the next heir to the throne.
Then, some extra virgin oil.
[Stanley]
He also happens to run the kitchen.
I do this at home.
-Mixing the oils.
-It's better.
It is better.
Then we add
squid and cuttlefish.
[Stanley] Oh!
Oh, my God, look at those.
Crab.
[Stanley] Oh, yeah!
Then, let's add
some cherry tomatoes.
Okay.
Now we will let it brown a bit.
-Do you live here?
-Yes.
-And you work here.
-And we work here.
When you were young
-Always here.
-Always here.
[Stanley] Okay.
So
And where are they from?
-So, these fish are
-Dad?
Back when, dad also used to go fishing.
Not anymore,
he has kind of stopped.
My nephew, Antonio.
Then, in the end, just when it's ready,
you add mussels and clams.
By the time they open,
the dish is ready.
-Sì. Sì.
-Perfect.
While the fish stew stews,
Giuseppe and I join the rest of the royals
for appetizers and formal introductions.
-Chin, chin.
-[all] Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
♪♪
We're starting with spaghetti
with clams and bottarga,
which is dried Sardinian mullet roe.
You are the king.
Yes.
-He is
-The prince.
[Stanley] Sì.
-Paola.
-Princess?
Yes. My daughter.
-My daughter.
-Princess?
-Loredana.
-Yes. Loredana.
My granddaughter. Elisa.
-I am Alessandro.
-Loredana's son.
The whole family.
Perfect. So
Enjoy the meal.
[Stanley] Grazie. Buon appetito.
And do you also
work in the kitchen?
No, I am at the cash desk.
-The cash desk?
-I am the cashier.
Money.
Yes, I collect.
-[Stanley] Sì.
-[laughter]
And they?
Do they also work here?
Yes. Everyone.
-Yes?
-Yes.
What do you do here?
She welcomes the customers
-at the entrance.
-At the restaurant.
At the restaurant.
I work on the ferry
that brings people to the restaurant.
-Sì?
-Sì.
And I work as a king.
[laughter]
And he does nothing.
I was about to ask.
Is it good?
Delicious.
I love bottarga.
-[Loredana] Hmm.
-Ah, sì?
[Stanley] Mm.
This is really good.
This is my grandfather.
Grandfather.
Brothers,
wife and grandchildren.
This photograph
Queen Victoria
had it in Buckingham Palace,
and it has written on it,
"The smallest kingdom in the world,
Tavolara island."
[Stanley] This black and white portrait
is the family's most prized possession.
-Amazing. I love that.
-No [speaking Italian]
[Stanley] Proof that their royal lineage
was once respected around the world.
♪♪
[laughter]
Oh, my
Gorgeous. Gorgeous.
Oh, God. Thank you.
[laughter]
Dad.
-Just a bit.
-What can I give you?
OK, that is enough.
[Giuseppe Bertoleoni] Okay.
Delizioso.
-Anyway, it is good, isn't it?
-Delicious.
So, you are a king.
But kings are rich
I am a poor king.
[laughter]
What about the laws?
What do they say
about the government, that this is a
-A kingdom.
-A kingdom or not?
[Tonino Bertoleoni] No.
Why?
Because
it did not continue as a
as a kingdom, so it lost
everything.
So, currently
it has remained symbolic.
It is symbolic.
It is not a real kingdom.
Ahh.
In 1946, Italy voted
to abolish its monarchy
and deposed the King of Savoy,
rendering Tavolara's
royal recognition meaningless,
which put an end
to the island's independence.
To me, this is a kingdom.
Of course.
Sì, sì, sì, sì.
[Stanley] Yeah.
-Thank you.
-Thank you.
-Thank you.
-King!
[Stanley] Grazie. Grazie.
Kingdom or no Kingdom,
Tonino is still the beloved ruler
of this little paradise.
Just ask his royal subjects.
A Sardinian writer once said,
"If Sardinia is an island,
then every Sardinian
is an island unto themselves."
Its isolation has given traditions
both weird and wonderful,
and some might say,
it's even made fairy tales come true.
♪♪
[ominous music playing]
-[metallic clanging]
-[whining]
[grunting]
[clanging]
[grunting and bellowing]
♪♪
I'm in Sardinia.
[grunting and bellowing continue]
Would you have guessed that?
[low growling]
♪♪
Sardinia, an island untamed and isolated.
A jagged outcrop,
marooned in the Mediterranean.
It's a wild place.
A land of folklore and fairy tales
where people march
to the beat of their own drum.
But how has isolation shaped
Sardinia's remarkable cuisine?
Sardinia sits 120 miles
from both Northern Africa
and mainland Italy.
My first stop is the city of Sassari.
[march music playing]
[applause]
I've arrived during the Cavalcata Sarda,
a folkloric parade
that's been celebrated here
since the 1700s.
You will see different colors,
different, uh, attire, different jewels.
Right.
Sardinian travel writer Claudia Tavani
has been a regular attendee
for many years.
So they all come from different villages?
Every year, 60 villages
are selected to participate.
-Sixty?
-Sixty, yes.
Sixty small towns and villages
and they all wear a different costume,
which represents their heritage,
their traditions, you know.
Uh, you see how the women
cover their head?
-Yeah?
-That is a tradition
that was probably brought
from the Moors
-Oh, okay. Right.
-when they came to Sardinia.
And it's interesting
to know that even in, uh,
in villages even now,
Sardinian women still wear
the, the, the handkerchief on their head.
It's very traditional.
[Stanley] Right.
The Cavalcata is a celebration
of Sardinian pride and identity.
But its vibrant costumes are a testament
to a history of invasions,
from Romans to Phoenicians,
Arabs, and Spanish.
Some even say that the last
160 years of Italian rule
is just the latest failed attempt
to conquer the island.
This is all the pecorino?
[Claudia Tavani] This is all pecorino.
[Stanley] But the Cavalcata is
about more than just costumes.
The celebration brings in
some of the best street food
from all over the island.
A veritable spread of
wonderful grilled delicacies.
[Claudia] This is interesting.
They are cooking
a Sardinian prime specialty.
Maialetto in Italian.
Porceddu in one of
the dialects of Sardinian.
-[gasps] What's that?
-This is Sardinian sausage.
Susattizu.
It has fennel inside, usually,
a lot of, a big component of fat.
That's what gives it the flavor, really.
-Yes, you have to have the fat.
-You have to have the fat.
-It stays so moist.
-Oh, I love that. I love it.
It's, it's delicious.
[Stanley]
Alright, I'm gonna get that sausage.
-Good morning.
-Tell me.
I'll have a panino with sausage
and one with pork.
[Claudia] Have you noticed
how a lot of it is meat?
Pork, lamb and very little is
actually fish and seafood?
[Stanley] I know that. I know.
-Onion?
-Yes, onion.
[Claudia] You know, through time,
we were invaded by the Romans,
by the Phoenicians,
and so population started moving inland
and so the culinary tradition changed.
[Stanley] Right. Grazie.
[Claudia] Mm.
Is it good? Mm.
How's that? Good?
-Delicious.
-Moist?
[Claudia] Mm.
-[Stanley] This is really good.
-[Claudia] Is it?
-[Stanley] And the onions are really good.
-[Claudia] Mm.
-[Stanley] Let's go to the parade.
-[Claudia] Yeah.
♪♪
[Stanley] The climax of this festival
is a violent dance
between two figures
of Sardinia's pagan past.
These are the Boes and Merdules.
The Boes are the ones wearing the bells,
and the Merdules are the ones
that have everyone else on a rope.
[Stanley] So it's about taming,
it's about taming the animals?
It's about taming
the animals, taming nature.
♪♪
[Stanley] This primal dance
recalls the ancient struggle
to survive in Sardinia's rugged terrain.
But to experience that terrain,
you've got to get out of the city.
I'm leaving Sassari and heading
to a farm near Gonnostramatza.
♪♪
This is shepherd country.
Up here, herding sheep for milk and wool
became first, a tool for survival,
and for centuries
this island's primary economy.
There's a moving obstacle up ahead.
Obstacles.
[bleating]
But these are not your average sheep.
The Pecora Sarda
is a hardy, indigenous breed,
with a high milk yield,
able to walk great distances
over rocky terrain.
Unless of course, they're being sheared.
[trimmers whirring]
These are Sardinian sheep
-they're a free-roaming animal.
-Yes.
Michele Cuscusa's family
have been shepherds
and pecorino producers for 300 years.
In Sardinia there are 3.5 million sheep
and only 1.5 million people.
Each person could adopt three sheep.
[laughter]
[Stanley] Math might not be
Michele's strong suit,
but along with his business partner
Jon Brownstein,
he exports many of his cheeses to the US.
Ecco.
Today, they're going to cook
one of the island's oldest recipes,
one which is curiously lamb-free.
Suckling pig, cooked underground.
So, suckling pig
is always done for festivals,
for all of the festivals in Sardinia.
Sì.
So, one of most beautiful things
about this is
when we talk about "typical."
Yeah.
You can't get any more typical.
This way of preparing suckling pig
is really hard, it's a lot of work.
In earlier times,
when my dad was young,
people used to steal suckling pigs --
those who didn't have them.
So in order to hide from others
that they were cooking a suckling pig
they would hide them underground.
Is that true? It's not a
No, it's not a legend, it's true.
Really?
First you would make the fire,
then you'd put the suckling pig in
so when you came back from herding
the suckling pig was ready.
There was no need to
watch over it, it was easy.
[Stanley]
For centuries, Sardinian shepherds
did not own land,
and instead fended for themselves
against the elements,
and other shepherds.
So cooking the suckling pig
in subterranean pits
was a useful technique
to protect what was theirs.
Because cooked in the soil,
the pig would absorb
the surrounding flavors.
-Sage?
-Sage.
Oregano.
Rosemary?
Rosemary.
What's this, myrtle?
It's myrtle.
You're gonna taste all of these herbs,
all together,
and it's like an aphrodisiac.
Okay. I-I'll do that.
-[Jon laughs]
-If you insist. Yeah.
So, now
There's an underground fire.
After lighting the charcoal,
we put this on top.
We seal it with more charcoal
put the soil on top,
then fire on top.
-[Michele Cuscusa] Okay?
-[Stanley] Okay.
The pig will cook
for 12 hours underground.
So
Luckily though,
I'm getting to taste one
that Michele's been
roasting all night.
Imagine if all we find
is only the embers!
[laughter]
We're looking for treasure.
[Jon Brownstein]
Well, it does smell good.
[Stanley] Wow!
Come here, Stanley, come closer.
[Stanley] Oh, wow.
Give it a smell.
Ooh!
Oh, my God.
That's gorgeous.
Here we eat like
people ate in the past.
He's the boss.
Thanks.
Let's do this.
[Jon] Mm.
♪♪
Mm.
-Wow.
-[Stanley] Look at that fat.
Well done, Michele.
-[Stanley] That's so good.
-[Jon] Mm!
You're really tasting the meat,
like, it's not adulterated
with anything except--
Here's some clean stuff.
Grazie. Except the herbs.
It's like pure, it's like purity.
-Yeah.
-From the earth.
[Stanley] Mm.
For shepherds living alone
on this frontier landscape,
the earthy taste of suckling pig
is a reminder of
what it means to survive here.
Living in isolation taught Sardinians
to do things their own way,
and it also shaped the island's
unusual set of beliefs.
♪♪
Is this an archaeological park?
One of the best and most beautiful
ones in Sardinia.
[Stanley] Ah.
♪♪
Before the Romans discovered it,
Sardinia was home
to an advanced Bronze Age civilization.
Though they left no written texts behind,
the island is dotted
with some 7,000
mysterious stone structures,
which hold special meaning
for many Sardinians.
But when were they built?
It's very ancient.
We are in a historical
and powerful place.
[Stanley] Sì.
Food writer Claudia Zedda
is showing me around Montessu Necropolis,
an archaeological site that
predates the Egyptian pyramids.
And these were tombs?
These were tombs, essentially tombs.
And then over time they were reused,
for various purposes.
In some cases, they became churches.
Whose churches were they?
Before the Medieval period
they were used as Christian churches.
[Stanley] Wow.
Here we are.
It's beautiful.
-This place
-These look modern.
They are so pretty.
Moreover, they closely resemble
the maternal womb.
[Stanley] Sì.
One of the most interesting things
about these caves, or Domus,
is that they are linked
to the myth of the Janas.
Like a fairy?
Exactly that, yes.
Right.
In Sardinian mythology,
Janas were benevolent magical pixies
who guarded these rocky burial sites.
Their presence was so strongly felt
that these prehistoric tombs
became known as
Domus de Janas, or Fairy Houses.
And these Janas, why "Janas"?
Why fairies?
Well, when we researched the myth
we found that these were women,
living as a community of women.
And on top of that,
they had special skills.
Some, for example, wove,
others baked and cooked.
Over time they were
probably mythologized.
And from "wise women"
they became "fairies."
Oh, yes, yes.
♪♪
At its core, the myth of the Janas
reflects the belief that
the island's most revered trades,
like basket-making,
costume design and wool-weaving,
were gifts handed down from the gods.
While in reality, it was
the deft and tireless hands
of Sardinia's women
that created these exquisite crafts.
And Claudia believes
that something of this magic
still exists in Sardinia's
most distinctive pasta.
-Welcome home.
-Thanks.
We are here to show you, to teach you,
how to make culurgiones.
-What does it mean?
-The origin of the name is unknown.
It probably means "cradle."
Because it cradles the filling.
-Not butt?
-No, "culla."
Cradle, OK.
We use a dough made of
semolina flour, water and salt.
Quite simple.
The filling is made
with potatoes, cheese,
and mint.
Oh, mint?
And the cheese is pecorino?
Yes, sheep's cheese.
This is the idea, take the filling,
make a ball
♪♪
Take more than you need.
It's a laborious process.
It's a Jana's job.
You pinch it, and then you roll it back
[Stanley] I love how you
just push it out at one end.
I love that, it's funny.
until the raviolo is closed.
Wow.
Beautiful.
Shaped like an ear of wheat,
traditionally Culurgiones
were only eaten on the Day of the Dead,
when they were thought to act
as protective amulets
to ward off evil spirits.
How long do you boil them for?
Normally, it's a couple of minutes.
When they float, I'll know they're ready.
Oh, like gnocchi.
OK, thank you.
Here you go.
OK, now the sauce.
-Should I bring it here?
-Yes, yes.
Claudia serves them
in a simple tomato sauce,
topped, of course, with more cheese.
-[Claudia Zedda] Okay.
-Wow. Okay.
-And that tomato smells so good.
-Go.
Together.
[Stanley] Mm. Mm!
Yeah!
Good?
[Claudia chuckles]
-Oh, this is mint.
-Mint.
I love that. Mm! Uh
And also the taste comes in waves.
-Yeah, yeah. Yeah.
-Sì.
-Sì, sì, sì.
-Mm-hmm.
[Stanley] Oh, yeah, I love that.
It's like pasta and gnocchi together.
Yes, yes, you're right.
It's a dish that I adore.
-[Stanley] Mm!
-[Claudia] Mm.
Not great for the swimsuit, but so good!
[laughter]
♪♪
[Stanley] These delicious dumplings
still hold special meaning
to many Sardinians,
a link back to their mythical ancestry.
But isolation hasn't just
shaped the island's history.
It still continues to shape
its unique way of life.
♪♪
[Stanley]
The heart of Sardinia, the Barbagia,
is one of the most remote
and least populated areas in Europe.
Here, time seems to stand still.
Not that anyone's complaining.
In fact, the longer lives
of Barbagia's population
became the basis of
a famed study into blue zones.
I'm in Seulo, a small town
which at one time housed
more centenarians per capita
than anywhere else in the world.
[bell tolling in distance]
This place is we can say, magical
because food is very important here
[Stanley] Hmm.
which helps people live
until they're 100.
[Stanley] Acclaimed Sardinian chef
Maria Carta grew up in Seulo
and makes a point of returning here
to spend time with the village elders.
The old people that you've seen today
[Stanley] Mm-hmm.
live calm lives
in harmony with nature.
If you come here in the afternoon
it's just silence, you know?
Hi, Aunt Irma! How are you?
Can we say hi to her?
Yes.
It's Maria, Giovanna's daughter.
How are you?
Proceeding as usual.
Are you okay?
Can I introduce you to Stanley?
He is an actor and director.
-Yes.
-But he's our friend too.
Nice to meet you.
How old are you, Aunt Irma?
I'm 91.
She's 91.
Do you walk to the shops?
Yes, when I go I don't take a trolley.
I carry the bags myself.
I always have lots of them.
That's how she stays young.
-Oh, that's what it is.
-What are you doing?
We are making a documentary.
To sort out the town?
Because it's a mess.
We have a mayor, who is
my relative, and yours too.
-He hasn't done a thing.
-He hasn't done anything?
-They just want the paycheck.
-She's angry with the mayor.
-Really?
-The mayor is my nephew.
[laughter]
-Alright.
-Thank you. It was a pleasure.
Good bye.
-Ciao, zia Irma.
-Ciao.
♪♪
[Stanley] Though some of the data
behind blue zones has been debunked,
Maria believes that something
in Barbagia's culinary traditions
plays a role in preserving
the high quality of life
necessary to live to be a hundred.
Today, alongside her extended family,
Maria's organizing
a traditional Sunday lunch
for some older relatives.
Let's start with whatever we want.
Can you give me this one?
-This one?
-Yes. Cabbage is very important.
[Stanley] Okay.
-And for the main
-Prego.
[Stanley] she's showing me
her family's recipe
for vegetable minestrone.
-Okay.
-Ecco.
There you are. Now the cauliflower
which is just as important.
Have you ever cooked in the woods?
-Yes!
-Me too.
Yes. I like it.
All the flavors are better.
I don't know why.
That's true.
One onion for you
and one onion for me.
[Stanley] Every Sardinian family
has their own recipe for minestrone,
which changes with the seasons.
[Stanley] Mm. These are beautiful.
Maria's relatives eat it every day.
This is the wild chard.
[Stanley] Okay.
-Is it a little dirty?
-Just a little.
[laughter]
It's all natural here!
When you were young
[Maria Carta] Mm-hmm?
did you cook with your mum
or with your grandparents?
I want to tell you something.
When I was 14,
I failed my exams at school,
so my father kept me home
from school for a year
and told me that my punishment
was to cook for the whole family.
He gave me a vegetable garden
and a kitchen.
He said, "Now, learn to cook
for the whole family."
-Do you understand?
-No!
That's how all this started, you see?
It was a gift.
In the end, it was a gift.
It was punishment
but it turned out to be a gift.
[Stanley] Oh, my God. [laughs]
So the carrots are in
and the courgettes are in.
[Stanley] Mm-hmm.
What do we do now?
We've finished this part now.
The last thing to put in is the cheese.
You put it in like this.
-And that's it?
-We've finished this.
♪♪
[Stanley] It's easy to see the benefits
of a life spent outdoors,
eating a healthy diet.
On the fire.
Just ask Maria's uncle, Giovanni,
a retired shepherd who celebrated
his 90th birthday this year.
Mm.
Bello.
[indistinct chatter in Italian]
Hi, Aunt Irma!
You look so beautiful.
[chuckles]
[Stanley] As the guests
gather round the table,
Maria adds the final ingredient,
an ancient handmade pasta
called su filindeu.
♪♪
This is the longevity minestrone.
[Stanley] Sì.
It will help you live to 100.
-[Stanley] Hmm.
-[Maria] Sì.
First, we serve the old folks.
And you're in that age bracket now.
Yes.
No, I am old.
[Maria laughs]
[Stanley] Mm.
It's excellent.
Is it good?
-It's so good.
-Do you like it?
[Stanley] Ah, it's so beautiful.
You have to take it like this.
[Stanley] Oh, my God.
It's gorgeous, gorgeous.
You can accompany it
with chestnut honey
or thyme honey.
And there's something else.
If you want to enjoy meat more,
you have to be hungry.
[laughter]
Was it like that
when you were young?
I don't remember hunger here.
When I was little, my mum made bread
and I would share it with the neighbors.
Then when they made it,
they gave us some.
-It was a loan.
-The neighborhood was family.
[indistinct chatter]
[Stanley] Besides eating
this incredibly healthy food,
perhaps the secret
to this area's longevity
lies in the sense of community
and the responsibility each village feels
to take care of its elders.
What do you think
in 50 years?
This village
There will be no one left.
-No?
-[scoffs]
Because we're not growing,
but we're dying, we're aging.
There are no births.
We know that there are
two or three births a year, and that's it.
No one gets married.
[Stanley] Sì.
I am 53 years and,
in 50 years, I'll be 103.
Sì.
And you
Sì.
Though it's unclear
whether anyone will be around
to take care of Maria's generation,
she has no intention
of stopping this tradition.
-So
-To your good health!
-One hundred years.
-One hundred years.
Thank you.
Come back when you've reached 100.
I want to see you again.
[laughter]
♪♪
[inaudible]
But while the clock may be ticking
on Sardinia's centenarian villagers
there's something about Maria's family
that makes me think
they'll outlive us all.
[bell tolling in distance]
♪♪
[Stanley]
The rocky spine of Sardinia
is an ancient chain of granite mountains
that divides the island.
Very little grows
in this arid landscape
but there is one plant
that thrives, cannabis.
♪♪
It's quite interesting.
It used to be a big industry
here for ropes,
and then once it became like a drug,
the whole thing just kinda shut down.
Though its recreational use
is still illegal in Italy,
in 2022, Sardinia began allowing
the farming of non-psychoactive
low-THC cannabis,
taking advantage
of its political autonomy.
I've come to a restaurant
in the town of Guspini,
where they've taken that idea
one step further.
Hello.
Where's my pasta?
Here it is, Stan, it's ready!
Hi. Hi, hi, hi.
[laughs]
Best friends and pot aficionados
Andrea Pani and Roberto Piseddu
believe that cannabis has a place
in the Sardinian pantry.
What do you call these?
Tortelli.
[Stanley] They have
worked on these recipes
for eight years.
Wow.
And I'm excited to try them.
It's mixed with standard flour,
because it has a lot of fiber,
but no gluten.
-Ah, yes.
-OK?
And gluten makes it stick.
So, on its own, it wouldn't
be possible to make tortelli.
So
So, it's a bit mixed
Durum wheat
and hemp.
-In small percentage.
-Yes.
The taste is very strong.
Because it's a bit bitter.
-Bitter.
-The aftertaste.
So, what's inside?
The filling is made of potato,
lime, and red prawn.
The dough is bitter,
the filling is sweet.
-Okay?
-Alright.
Besides using hemp seeds
in the pasta dough,
Andrea's also making a vegetable stock
with onions, carrots, and cannabis leaves.
[Andrea Pani] Okay.
[Stanley] That is, if he can
remember to turn on the stove.
Is the flame on?
-[Andrea] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
-[Stanley] Yeah?
[Andrea] No, I'm sorry. No.
-[bleep]
-[laughter]
Okay, now, yes. [laughs]
-Okay.
-[Stanley] Okay.
-Let's go!
-The pasta, yes.
Okay.
OK, Stanley, this is
In Sardinia,
it's called "casu axedu."
Acidic cheese.
In antiquity, the shepherds had this
for breakfast.
And it comes from cows? No.
From sheep.
So we have bitterness from hemp
and from the broth,
the sweet from the filling,
and a bit of acidity given by this.
-That's your recipe?
-It's my recipe.
Genius!
[Stanley] See that's
what I need in my house.
Ugh.
[Andrea] Perfect.
Okay.
Finally, let's try the broth.
Whoa!
It's got a different and intense smell.
And in this, there isn't
How do you say it?
THC?
No, unfortunately not.
Unfortunately
Wow.
Tortelli with hemp
OK, we can try it.
[laughter]
Okay, okay.
Bon appétit.
Surprise, surprise. [chuckles]
Let's see if we did a good job.
[Stanley] Chef [slams table]
That's good.
You can taste the lime.
Oh, lime! That's what it is.
There are a thousand flavors
[Stanley] Mm. Yes.
-Fantastic.
-And the pasta
Delicate.
Amazing!
You can taste the cannabis seeds.
Okay.
Cannabis - why?
Because I've always liked it.
Right.
And because
I don't want it to remain a taboo.
Cannabis has a load of properties.
How do you get rid of a taboo in Italy?
[Stanley] Hmm.
Through food.
[Stanley] Ah.
Obviously.
Yeah. Okay.
What did you do before?
Prison?
No! Not yet!
I'm working on it.
Won't be long.
[laughter]
You're killing me.
[Stanley] Sorry, sorry.
You've made me laugh.
No, before, what did you do?
I worked in IT.
But cannabis has always been
with me,
on my journey.
[Stanley] Sì.
Though Sardinian producers are pushing
to legalize hemp farming,
mainland Italy has recently
clamped down on it.
While they await a clear ruling
from the European courts,
Andrea and Roberto
are continuing to create new recipes.
Wow, that's quick!
Very quick.
[Stanley] Like today's main,
flank steak, cooked sous vide,
topped with puffed hemp seeds.
Oh, look at that.
♪♪
And it's accompanied by a rich beef stock
that's been simmered for two days.
-Oh!
-[Roberto Piseddu] Voila.
-[Stanley] Grazie, chef.
-[Andrea] You're welcome.
-[Andrea laughs]
-[Stanley] Thank you. Okay.
It's amazing.
Smooth, right?
[chuckles]
-Chef! Chef!
-Bravo.
-[laughs]
-Bravo.
[Stanley] Come on!
It's sweet, bitter, strong
Intense
Intense but it's
How do you say it, delicate?
Balanced.
I love this.
-Crunch.
-Yeah, the crunch of it.
Oh, my God, it's so good.
-Nice one, Roby.
-Thanks!
Nice one, chef.
Amazing.
[laughter]
Whether cannabis
should be legalized or not,
and to what extent,
is a question for another time.
Thank you so much. Thank you, chef.
However, these young men
should be applauded
for their passion and commitment.
Despite its traditionalism,
Sardinia is an island
that prides itself on accepting
alternative views.
Perhaps though, that's putting it mildly.
♪♪
[Stanley] Despite being Italian for
the better part of 200 years,
Sardinians have always maintained
a strong separatist identity.
But there's a little corner of this region
where that mindset
might be taken to its limits.
I'm headed towards Tavolara,
off the coast of Sardinia,
a little island that supposedly
is the smallest kingdom in the world.
I'm going to meet the king
who has a restaurant.
♪♪
Named for its distinctive
table-shaped mountain,
Tavolara is only a quarter of a mile wide,
and less than three miles from the coast.
Today, it's home to only 11 residents
and a seafront restaurant,
run by its most illustrious inhabitant.
Tonino.
-Hi.
-Hello.
So
[Stanley] Ninety-two-year-old
Tonino Bertoleoni
is the King of Tavolara.
[conversing in Italian]
Sì!
Today is a perfect day.
Yes.
Luckily.
[Stanley] His family have
laid claim to this tiny island
since his great-great-grandfather
took the reins in 1836.
So, it was Giuseppe Bertoleoni,
my ancestor of Genoese origin,
and one day he decided
to come to Sardinia
with his boat
He saw this mountain here
and settled in
this island of Tavolara.
Ah.
-Once
-Were there
people here
-before him?
-Nobody, indeed.
-Never?
-Never.
[Stanley] Though no official records exist
of Giuseppe's arrival on the island,
his storied reign began
after an improbable encounter
with the King of Sardinia,
Charles Albert of Savoy.
The Savoys
heard about this Bertoleoni
who had taken these islands,
and wanted to get to know
this Giuseppe Bertoleoni.
They met -- he had invited him,
Giuseppe Bertoleoni to the king,
to come here to Tavolara
for a hunting trip.
Uh-huh.
And on this hunting trip
Giuseppe Bertoleoni
told King Charles Albert,
he told him, "You are the king
of Piedmont and Sardinia,
but I am the king of Tavolara."
This joke.
And King Charles Albert,
when he heard this,
that he said this joke,
he said: "Well, I will name him
King of Tavolara for real."
[laughs]
He took pen and paper and wrote,
"Giuseppe Bertoleoni, born"
and so on, "King of Tavolara."
♪♪
[Stanley] What might have just been
an amusing family story,
became the basis for
the Bertoleoni's claim to the throne.
And here, this is the
Please.
-Cemetery?
-Yes.
These are our relatives.
And these are
That one, there
is Paolo Bertoleoni.
Paolo the First.
The first one?
The son of Giuseppe Bertoleoni.
That crown is
over two centuries old.
Over there.
[Stanley] Sì.
And we are the heirs.
Ah, sì, sì.
So, we are the descendants of Paolo
the First.
This is my mom.
Indeed, the text says,
"Queen of Tavolara."
And my father.
-Paolo II.
-Paolo II.
King of Tavolara.
My brother Carlo.
[Stanley] Uh-huh.
Then, there is my wife there.
I put an inscription,
"Queen of Tavolara."
Yes. Beautiful.
♪♪
[Stanley] In the 1860s,
during the Italian Unification,
Sardinia was absorbed
into the Kingdom of Italy,
but Tavolara maintained its independence,
producing another
five kings and two queens.
Today, Tonino is the living legacy
of this 200-year-old fairy tale.
I always come to visit them,
I come often.
[Stanley] But to find out how this kingdom
has managed to stay sovereign,
I'm going to meet the rest of the family
at a royal banquet, of sorts.
We're off to the kitchen.
What are we eating?
Whatever there is.
[Stanley] The crown jewel of the kingdom
is the family restaurant, Da Tonino.
They serve whatever
they can get their hands on,
meaning seafood.
-Et voilà.
-Sì.
-So
-Let's start with oil and garlic
together.
[Stanley] Tonino's son Giuseppe
is the next heir to the throne.
Then, some extra virgin oil.
[Stanley]
He also happens to run the kitchen.
I do this at home.
-Mixing the oils.
-It's better.
It is better.
Then we add
squid and cuttlefish.
[Stanley] Oh!
Oh, my God, look at those.
Crab.
[Stanley] Oh, yeah!
Then, let's add
some cherry tomatoes.
Okay.
Now we will let it brown a bit.
-Do you live here?
-Yes.
-And you work here.
-And we work here.
When you were young
-Always here.
-Always here.
[Stanley] Okay.
So
And where are they from?
-So, these fish are
-Dad?
Back when, dad also used to go fishing.
Not anymore,
he has kind of stopped.
My nephew, Antonio.
Then, in the end, just when it's ready,
you add mussels and clams.
By the time they open,
the dish is ready.
-Sì. Sì.
-Perfect.
While the fish stew stews,
Giuseppe and I join the rest of the royals
for appetizers and formal introductions.
-Chin, chin.
-[all] Chin, chin.
Chin, chin.
♪♪
We're starting with spaghetti
with clams and bottarga,
which is dried Sardinian mullet roe.
You are the king.
Yes.
-He is
-The prince.
[Stanley] Sì.
-Paola.
-Princess?
Yes. My daughter.
-My daughter.
-Princess?
-Loredana.
-Yes. Loredana.
My granddaughter. Elisa.
-I am Alessandro.
-Loredana's son.
The whole family.
Perfect. So
Enjoy the meal.
[Stanley] Grazie. Buon appetito.
And do you also
work in the kitchen?
No, I am at the cash desk.
-The cash desk?
-I am the cashier.
Money.
Yes, I collect.
-[Stanley] Sì.
-[laughter]
And they?
Do they also work here?
Yes. Everyone.
-Yes?
-Yes.
What do you do here?
She welcomes the customers
-at the entrance.
-At the restaurant.
At the restaurant.
I work on the ferry
that brings people to the restaurant.
-Sì?
-Sì.
And I work as a king.
[laughter]
And he does nothing.
I was about to ask.
Is it good?
Delicious.
I love bottarga.
-[Loredana] Hmm.
-Ah, sì?
[Stanley] Mm.
This is really good.
This is my grandfather.
Grandfather.
Brothers,
wife and grandchildren.
This photograph
Queen Victoria
had it in Buckingham Palace,
and it has written on it,
"The smallest kingdom in the world,
Tavolara island."
[Stanley] This black and white portrait
is the family's most prized possession.
-Amazing. I love that.
-No [speaking Italian]
[Stanley] Proof that their royal lineage
was once respected around the world.
♪♪
[laughter]
Oh, my
Gorgeous. Gorgeous.
Oh, God. Thank you.
[laughter]
Dad.
-Just a bit.
-What can I give you?
OK, that is enough.
[Giuseppe Bertoleoni] Okay.
Delizioso.
-Anyway, it is good, isn't it?
-Delicious.
So, you are a king.
But kings are rich
I am a poor king.
[laughter]
What about the laws?
What do they say
about the government, that this is a
-A kingdom.
-A kingdom or not?
[Tonino Bertoleoni] No.
Why?
Because
it did not continue as a
as a kingdom, so it lost
everything.
So, currently
it has remained symbolic.
It is symbolic.
It is not a real kingdom.
Ahh.
In 1946, Italy voted
to abolish its monarchy
and deposed the King of Savoy,
rendering Tavolara's
royal recognition meaningless,
which put an end
to the island's independence.
To me, this is a kingdom.
Of course.
Sì, sì, sì, sì.
[Stanley] Yeah.
-Thank you.
-Thank you.
-Thank you.
-King!
[Stanley] Grazie. Grazie.
Kingdom or no Kingdom,
Tonino is still the beloved ruler
of this little paradise.
Just ask his royal subjects.
A Sardinian writer once said,
"If Sardinia is an island,
then every Sardinian
is an island unto themselves."
Its isolation has given traditions
both weird and wonderful,
and some might say,
it's even made fairy tales come true.
♪♪