Capers from Salina are the best in the world….so I have been told. While I think that may be true, I can not say for certain because I have never tried capers from anywhere else. I had never known capers until I met my hubby who has been visiting Salina since he was a child. And even then, I never knew how a caper plant looked like until I went to Salina myself. The taste of capers is refreshingly unique. I must admit that it took me a while to appreciate them cause they are a little bitter. Still, the flavour reminds me of long hot summer days and for some reason, the sea, even though the plant does not grow anywhere near the sea.
On Salina, the caper bush (Capparis spinosa) grows all over the island…almost like a weed. While the island looks like a dessert in the summer, the caper bush still has its lush green leaves and thrives in the heat and dry soil. The flower buds (capers) and fruits (caper berries) are harvested by hand and only the capers are sometimes machine sorted by size. On this trip to Salina, we were able to get a glimpse into a small family-run business, Sapori Eoliani situated in Pollara. The ‘shop’ does not look like a shop at all. In fact, it is in a house well hidden in a residential area. Despite this, it was not difficult to find as there are many well located “Sapori Eoliani” signs placed from the main road to its doorstep. In the house, a little old lady greeted us and was happy to show us around including the area where they prepare the capers.
The capers and caper berries are collected from all over the island and salted. Even the ones that are soaked in olive oil are first salted, then pre-soaked in water before preserving in oil. Capers and caper berries are treated similarily; they are salted in huge 200 liter (at least) buckets and takes 3 months with regular addition of new dry salt. For some reason, small capers are more expensive than the larger ones so its a good thing we prefer the large ones. While capers and caper berries are its speciality, Sapori Eoliani does prepare other produce including sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil, zucchini in olive oil and antipasti. If the other produce are prepared to the same quality as their capers, I am sure they will be worth the try. Perhaps I will be able to convince hubby to try a bottle or two the next time we are there! 🙂
Sapori Eoliani Azienda Agricola di Roberto Rossello
via Leni, 20 – 98050 Pollara -Malfa (ME), Isole Eolie, Italy
Disclaimer: Our visit to Sapori Eoliani was done of our own accord without an invitation. We were buying capers for our own personal consumption. I am not financially compensated for this post.
Belosophy 
I love capers and am trying to grow them at our house in Italy. I love the caper plants and the way they grow out of rock walls.
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Agreed!! I had never imagined the bush to be such a welcoming sight! Even without the flowers, the plant with its round leaves are lovely! Good luck with growing them! I hope you’re successful!!
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