White, green, purple or wild: with its nuances the asparagus is a real protagonist in the kitchen

According to an article of verduredistagione.it, the asparagus has been cultivated since ancient times in the land between Tigris river and Euphrates river and it seems that have been the ancient Romans - others say the Greeks - to give the name to this vegetable.

Following a chromatic scale, we can distinguish four types of asparagus:

White: it is pure white because cultivated underground, without light.
Green: it sprouts in the open air, obtaining the colour of the chlorophyll.
Purple: it is originally white but its extremities are exposed at the sunlight so it colours while growing.
Wild: thin and green in colour, it grows naturally.

Starting from this classification we can describe even the taste: white asparagus are the most delicate, the green ones have a more intense aroma and, finally, the purple and the wild ones are slightly bitter.

Here our pairings suggestions:

The white Asparagus is sweet and delicate, with sulphurous notes. It matches perfectly with tasty charcuteries which present fatty sensations like Prosciutto Grigio Del Casentino Slow Food, Speck Bernardi and Pancetta Campagnola.

The green Asparagus is intense with herbal sensation and notes of toasted. We suggest to taste it with savory cheeses with notes of cooked butter and milk like Pecorino di Pienza, Castelrosso, Brie de Meaux AOC Donge.