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Sandro Paolini

Pinolo Gelato

Portland, Oregon

Sandro Paolini, Pisa, Italy native and founder of Pinolo Gelato, is widely considered an artist in gelato making. Paolini came to the United States with a degree in agriculture and forestry, learning English while working in kitchens and on farms, which brought his love of agriculture and good food together. His passion to open a gelato shop drove him back to Italy to learn the craft at a gelateria near his childhood home. There he learned to make the kind of gelato he grew up eating as a boy, reviving a tradition of handmade artisan gelato and bringing it back to the states. At his SE Portland gelateria, Paolini works with farmers to select the best varieties of fruits - often hand-harvesting his own ingredients - to create gelatos that sing with freshness.