Most producers blanch artichokes in water. Wine costs a great deal more, which is why the original method was quietly dropped somewhere along the way — and why this jar does not taste like the others.

The artichokes grow in open fields in Italy and are picked across a season counted in weeks rather than months. They are trimmed by hand, then blanched in Chardonnay with a little white wine vinegar, exactly as the old recipe asked. The wine never announces itself. It rounds off the sharp edges and carries the artichoke's own flavour forward instead of masking it. Wild rosemary, sage and whole peppercorns follow, then Italian extra virgin olive oil. Seven hundred jars of this size came out of this year's harvest.

The texture is the surprise — soft and yielding at the heart, yet still faintly crisp at the edges. Both at once, which is the whole point.

Serve at room temperature with good bread as part of an antipasti board, and keep the oil when the jar is empty. By then it tastes of rosemary and artichoke and makes an instant dressing.