History

It was 1968, I had won a public competition and I started working recently.

I lived alone in a monocale and I was established in Verona, my hometown however, and, like all young people, I was often at the bar with friends and colleagues.

The “white out” drank often, at all hours, but I still had not the habit of doing, preferring the foam (!) As a drink, a meal also.

I always liked the coffee, though, and often drank it during work breaks, even far away from “home”, so often happened, that their older colleagues they offered one to me, the young fellow fresh use.

One day a colleague asked me if I wanted a proper coffee: I do not know what it was, but also respect for him, I agreed, continuing to chat, facing the other patrons, and when I handed him the steaming cup, just drank a sip.

I immediately took my breath away! I thought I was suffocating!

Maybe I became livid, but I did everything to “keep calm” and still can not remember if anyone was aware of what was happening to me: I probably could not make a fool of Verona who does not know what a coffee “correct grappa”!

I knew I was a teetotaler and that the trick was not to happen anymore, but life is full of surprises …

Always ate in the cafeteria: the maid had certainly taken a liking to me, because one day came a young girl, very beautiful, and she (I was then you know that already knew) invited her to sit at my table, not her to be alone.

“It ‘a good boy!” he said, to reassure her.

The girl agreed, and so we had lunch together, I drank orange foam and she a glass of red wine!

I had the car I offered to accampagnarla home ….. now my wife for 38 years!

A sunny, warm Sunday in July, we decided to go al fresco in San Zeno di Montagna: walk and visit to the shrine of Our Lady of the Crown and then to the bar for a cool drink.

“Look at that cute!’ll Take it as a reminder of today?” she asked enthusiastically, pointing to a shelf in the bar: how could I refuse?

It was the miniature of vodka Keglevich of Stock in Trieste, which became the first miniature of my collection.

Why, if before I had never noticed, from that moment I began to see mignon everywhere were the 70s, a period really hot for this kind of collecting.

Later I met the Club of Mignonnettes and passion was consolidated, because I was not alone!