Sovrano Limoncello was one of first exhibitor booths to catch our eye – we had seen them at various Food Shows in the past. Limoncello was a favourite after-dinner tipple or pre-dinner aperitif of ours in Italy when we visited some years ago. Even in restaurants they offered a complimentary choice of after-dinner drink in shot-glasses; a 'chupito' could be any number of Licor de Hierbas, brandy, or other local specialties: limoncello was almost always on the list.

Amalfi coast... idyllic life – on our Italy tour, we frequently stopped at places like Pompeii, Sorrento, or any of the quaint villages, to find gigantic lemons on display and for sale – they were oh so sweetly tangy. I recall travelling along the narrow coast road where you had to keep one eye on the car in front, one eye sweeping from side to side, and both on the watch for cars hurtling towards you on your side of the road after emerging from blind corners. Most of the steep hillsides on those roads hosted teeny-tiny vertical lemon groves cut into the hill as small terraces. The lemon trees, heavy with fruit, precipitously bent over with the weight, and threatening at any moment to tumble the sea way down below. Ahhh, the memories..

Back to the present, what a lively selection at Sovrano Limoncello – encased in elegant bottles with a long necks, first the traditional lemon-infused variety. Then, some others to try: chocolatey, orange-infused, coffee, and cream selections of the above. It made the decision really difficult, even though we tried all of the flavours, which ones to choose? We finally bought two. Can't wait to get to Italy again when Covid is behind us....

Another exhibitor booth that caught our eye, was Clemengold Gin, manufactured in South Africa – I knew I had to have a taste of that tipple. We'd been to South Africa many years ago, but we were there to sightsee the Garden Route from Cape Town, all the way to Port Elizabeth. I don't think the travel brochure mentioned gin manufacturer vineyards, possibly it wasn't thought of then.

The vineyards of Stellenbosch region had been making the headlines at that time; Clemengold Gin is made near to that area – cool. Clementgold gin has dry style, very smooth with hints of citrus, I found the flavour quite pleasant. I didn't like gin, when I tried it many many years ago. Perhaps my taste has changed with time, but with a mixer or two, it could be refreshing drink in the summer time. In fact, I could drink it neat, but it did come with a kick, when you least expect it, so possibly not – I'd stick to wine, for now.

We should have had a bag to carry all the goodies home - I espied lots of visitors came with food-trolley-bags with 'Food Show' printed on the side – what a good idea, for next time. Hang on a tick: some booths were selling their own food-carry bag - Mediterranean Foods did just that. Armed with a cool Italian shopping bag, we tried yummy porcini mushroom tortellini, had to have a couple of packs of that. Italian pecorino was deliciously different – it was gluten-free, great, as it suited the shopper/visitor next to me, as she couldn't take gluten; also many other gluten-free products.

Next, Yolo stand – ...green cheese, eh wh..at? Yolo was a particular favourite of ours, they market various choices of cheeses and we were keen to try what was on offer on at Food Show Yolo booth. A unique, particular shade of green, could it be...? It was from a Gouda range, flavoured I believe with wasabi and colouring it green. I tried it... nutty, very moreish, subtle delightful wasabi taste definitely likeable, had to have more tasting before committing, yes, we bought some.

L'Authentique, is to die-for NZ Charcuterie, and was founded in 2006, by former Parisian restaurateur Guillaume Desmurs. Authentic sausages, parfaits, terrines, and more, why have we not heard of them before? Many food-industry afficionados have, they were getting many local gourmet food awards. In essence the sublime French taste, made in NZ. Their Food Show special hit the right spots with choices – a selection of two with the meats, two of the pates, two of the sausages all for a great price. The parfait was silky-smooth, a mousse-like-texture, finer pate – ahh, that explains it. We tried exquisite flavours... duck liver parfait, more complex is chicken livers with shiraz jelly, another one was truffle mushroom parfait gluten-free, and more. The choices! Not having to leave Auckland is tops for the Covid prevention, and foodie heaven – we now know where the supply is; bought some, we'll be back for sure.

Il Casaro.. we visited Farro Food store a while back in Auckland (2013). Whilst there, we had the pleasure of staying for a Cheese-demonstration by none other than Max (Massimiliano), master cheese-maker, co-owner at Il Casaro. Max hails from Gioia del Colle, capital of cow mozzarella near Alberobello, in the Southern Italian province of Puglia; now he's made his home in NZ. We had been in the Puglia region a few months before, Alberobello with quaint trulli houses – what a coincidence. He was demonstrating how to make mozzarella, at home, in your kitchen – wow, that had our interest.

In the Food Show 2020, Massimiliano and his team had mozzarella, piccolini, and a number of other delicious products. From memory Il Casaro produced cheese variants like bocconcini, ricotta, mascarpone, burrata. We'd bought Il Casaro's mozzarella many times before, but on this occasion we tried piccolini. Which is great for Ensalada Tricolor, where you substitute sliced/torn mozzarella with perfectly formed, readily eaten, light as a cloud, melt-in-the-mouth piccolini.

At Il Casaro stand, we also couldn't miss-out on Sicilian/Italian cannoli. We first had cannoli at cafe near Rifugio Sapienza, on the way to visit Mount Etna (volcano!). It was a bitterly cold foggy day, driving up the mountain where the traffic slowed to a crawl – a cafe/restaurant suddenly loomed out of the mist, so a good opportunity to stop for a snack. Oh my goodness - they have... delicious cannoli. Lots of it. Sweet, ricotta-filled pastry, it is a ritual to make at home (perhaps involving a few friends in changed-Covid world), though very rewarding – perfect for afternoon tea. At the Food Show stand, we needed no invitations to get a few cannoli to take home – yummm! A veritable string of cheese-awards, Il Casaro never ceases to amaze.

We watched celebrity chefs, at food stations and at work demonstrating food ideas, and tips. Nadia Lim was at the podium and busy on the NEFF Cooking Theatre cook top; eyes in the audience were locked onto her every move.

We flitted from here to there, to everywhere, savouring flavours. Further away, we caught sight of Brett McGregor, Masterchef, Author and Presenterat Olivado NZ booth; he is now exclusive to Olivado – great.

Fresh As ..NZ amazing flavours, freeze-dried ingredients! We'd seen facsimiles of brands - freeze-dried fruits in the retail space of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, on our travels. Handy, nutritious, freeze-dried exotic fruits like rambutans, mangoes, even durian, had subtle quirks. Fresh As, a company in Auckland have been providing quality driven freeze-dried ingredients since 2006.

Fresh As: the stand at the Food Show served as 'freebies' ultra-mini cupcakes with the most delectable flavours in powder-form: for zingy-flavoured delicious quality dessert - yum. The Panna Cotta range, Icing... – we can attest to that, what to choose for dessert range to take home? If you're a baker or into desserts one can imagine the serious delectable buttercreams, icings, and more, that you could make with the product ranges.

... have you had a tarantula or mealworm bite-to-eat, lately? Turning around a corner, Murray joking leads me to another stand at Food Show 2020. Taking pictures/selfies it took a minute to register the query - ..eat .. a cricket? I had seen videos on TV, where a contestant had to eat.. a tarantula, a scorpion. But eaten.. by me? – I eyed it with suspicion. High in protein, very sustainable, marketed as protein pasta, cricket flour, scorpion lollies, edible locusts; they are here to stay,...well maybe.

Eat Crawlers, ...a tasty snack? It's much the same as eating nutty-crunch anything, to my surprise... if you don't think about where it has been, and what you're actually eating. From what I'd been given to understand, it takes less resource to farm insects! NZ's first and largest Edible Insect & Cricket flour manufacturer and supplier, founded in 2013, it takes some beating. And.. I did in fact eat some crickets, and I got the badge to prove it. It makes for novel Christmas presents, the Xmas-present-receiver would not be able to say - ...'intolerant of gluten'?

There were so many interesting, innovative, exciting booths at the Food Show. We spent a minimum of three hours tasting-around-the-world at the show; we could have spent a couple more hours, actually. Not having the opportunity of travelling anywhere at the moment because of Covid, it was a culinary experience well worth the effort. It's mainly home-grown international inspired feasts, gifts for Christmas, Thanksgiving, whatever the occasion. Or just returned from overseas and seeing NZ Foods & Wine had to offer– it was a glorious eye-opener. Happy Shopping & see you again at the next food event...