If I say “Toschi” what comes to your mind?
If you are from Modena like me it is very probable that the first image you associate with the name “Toschi” is a red and tasty cherry, isn’t t?
Right but not too much!

In the last period I had the opportunity to to know this reality thanks to a visit to their factories and I discovered that in addition to the excellent cherries there is more, much more.

I’ll tell you everything immediately 😊

Before starting, however, let me give you a little introduction.

I have always heard of the Toschi company but it was only when I started writing my guide about Modena that I deepened my research by documenting myself in detail.

And it was precisely then that I discovered that behind this brand with a long tradition there is literally a “world of taste”.

Yes, because cherries in alcohol were just the beginning of this long story!

Toschi Vignola: where the tradition of fruit preserved in alcohol and in syrup was born

We are in Vignola, in the heart of the land of cherries, about 25 km from Modena. Important historical characters were born here, such as Jacopo Barozzi, known as Vignola, and Ludovico Antonio Muratori, and the beautiful medieval fortress is always on display in this beautiful town.

If you come to these parts in spring it is impossible not to be enchanted by the spectacle of the cherry blossoms.

In these lands, infact, cherries, fruits of the Italian tradition, are born from the work of several hundred producers united in the Consortium of Typical Vignola Cherries.

Thus in 1945, the year the company was founded, the famous Ciliegia di Vignola became “Spiritosa” thanks to the idea of ​​Giancarlo and Lanfranco Toschi to preserve and package this fruit to be enjoyed all year round.

In the presence of a particularly abundant year, the two brothers had a brilliant intuition: to start producing industrially what until then had always been a family tradition.

Thus Toschi was born with the first product of a long series known today everywhere with the name of fruit in alcohol.

A beautiful story isn’t it?
And the company is still pervaded by it!

This can be perceived by the fascinating vintage prints hanging on the walls, by the old machinery scattered throughout the factory and by the unique examples of gift boxes, miniature Ferraris of the past, jealously guarded in the offices of the founders.

But it was around the 1960s that some of today’s other leading products began to be produced, such as: syrups and black cherry fruit, Cherry brandy (morette liqueur) and Nocino.

I’m quite sure you can know these… right? 👇🏻

Black cherries are sweet fruits with a slightly sour aftertaste, which tickle the palate with their unmistakable and fresh flavour.

Among the most representative products of the Toschi company, today as in the past only the best cherries are carefully selected, pitted and candied to garnish desserts, cakes and frozen desserts or to enrich ice cream!

I guarantee you that watching part of this production process was exciting!
What a desire to eat them all…

The Nocino of Modena Toschi

Product of the Modenese tradition, Nocino of Modena Toschi is born from the infusion of Italian walnut hull rigorously harvested on June 24, as tradition dictates, when the fruit is not fully ripe and the husk is still green and tender.

The original recipe for Nocino of Modena is made up of just 5 simple ingredients: husk, alcohol, sugar, cinnamon and cloves.

After a 9-month infusion together with the spices, the husks are pressed to extract their essence. A portion of sugar and water is then added to this infusion to obtain the alcohol content and the characteristic roundness of taste.

Produced without dyes and aged for at least 2 years, Toschi Nocino di Modena follows and complies with the production regulations of the “Tradizione e Sapori di Modena” brand, which I had already told you about in the article I dedicated to Modena’s excellence.

During my visit to the plant they were actually bottling this product and seeing the production of such an excellence always has a certain charm!

Toschi produces 2 versions of Nocino: the Classico and the Riserva, aged over 5 years.

Finding yourself face to face with these wooden giants who guard this precious nectar must be immortalized because it is not an every day experience! 😉

Toschi Balsamic Vinegar

And if we talk about excellence and traditions, the Balsamic Vinegar of Modena IGP and Traditional DOP certainly cannot be missing!

Gino Toschi IGP Balsamic Vinegars of Modena are the result of skilfull processing in compliance with the production regulations with the know-how of a historic vinegar factory made up of small secrets and ancient gestures.

A slight variation in the percentage of cooked must or in the length of aging creates more or less dense vinegars with different nuances of taste.

Every time I find myself strolling through the rooms of the Balsamic Vinegar aging barrels I am inebriated by the scents and fascinated by the batteries, especially those of the DOP, witnesses of a unique tradition in the world and of an incredible workmanship that tastes home.

Each reality that produces Balsamic Vinegar offers its own show because it preserves its own stories and memories, handed down from generation to generation.

Do you know that tradition has it that when a new born arrives in the family, a battery of barrels is started in his honor with his name?

And it is only after 12 years of unconditional love and dedication that Traditional Balsamic Vinegar is obtained, while you have to wait 25 to extract the Extra Vecchio.

So after this pleasant visit to Toschi, I was able to see first-hand how long and rich the road traveled by this company since 1945 has been.

The products offered today are varied: ranging from the classic ones, which include fruit in alcohol, fruit liqueurs and syrups, to those designed for ice cream, sour cherries and various garnishes, up to Nocino and Balsamic Vinegar .

A world of taste as I told you, rightly so, at the beginning of this story 😊
A world to discover and savor specialty after specialty.