Primo grano meaning “first grain” in Italian, was the idea of pastamaker Gianluigi Peduzzi, who wanted to bring back the flavors of authentic pasta made with 100% Abruzzo-grown wheat like those that his grandfather, Gaetano Sergiacomo, made at his mill in the town of Penne at the turn of the last century.
Through a research study sponsored by Rustichella d’Abruzzo, the Istituto dei Cereali di Foggia identified local heritage wheat varieties includingSan Carolo,Varano, andMongibello, which proved ideal for pasta making. Every year, Rustichella d’Abruzzo and a small group of farmers from the surrounding hills of Pianella do a special planting of these selected varieties. After the June harvest, the wheat is trucked immediately to a state-of-the-art mill in Puglia to be ground into semolina. The soft and fragrant semolina is used to make some of the traditional shapes made by Gaetano Sergiacomo, such as Sagne a Pezzi and Penne Rustiche.
