Absolutely lovely immersive experience.
Air:
Flew in/out from Munchen/Frankfurt to Torino. Security thoroug at each. Suggest pick up Moscato d’Asti or similar low alcohol for inflight consumption at Duty Free after Security clearance. Middling selection of wines (non-Italian) on Lufthansa. Poor selection of wines (SF Bay area) on United at $5 per tiny bottle poured out into plastic cups. United continues its 25th year as my Most Hated Airline in the World, and never seems to care much about this distinction. I only fly it to expend all the mileage accrued during years at University.
Hire Car:
Drove through the Langhe via Hertz (booked online). NeverLost GPS unavailable but ViaMichelin directions printed beforehand completely accurate. Watch out for the roundabouts as clock positions are approximate and not exact, but signage is very clear. Petrol pumps not bizarrely discordant and there is one immediately outside the hire car return centre which is literally across from Baggage Check-in. Get the largest car you can as you will have more baggage on returning, guaranteed. Decline insurance if your credit card covers it (AmEx does not cover in Italy; VISA and MC do). Return with a full tank for obvious reasons. Suggest automatic transmission for ease in hilly regions. Air-conditioning mandatory as Langhe air quality consistently poor. Signposts are small, non-reflective and may be posted only unidirectionally in bigger cities. Part of the adventure is in getting lost but be patient for usual rewards.
Torino Airport:
Usual fluid restrictions through Security gate so do not enter too early. Small airport. Limited duty-free supplies. Limited last minute souvenir pick up opportunities. Some eateries. Security adequate.
Lodging:
* Torino – Grand Hotel Sitea. Booked direct via hotel website. Piero. E135 per night incl BKF. AmEx, VISA. *****
* Mombaruzzo – LaVilla Hotel. Booked direct via hotel website. Nicola/Chris Norton. E90 per night incl BKF. Cash only. ****
* Nizza Monferrato – Cascina Christiana. Booked direct via hotel website. Peter Kaplanski. E90 per night. Cash only. **
* Serralunga d’Alba – L’Antico Asilto. Booked direct via hotel website. Elena Picedi.E95 per night incl BKF. Cash only. *****
Dining (we opted for the degustazione – typical large meal- whenever optioned; all prices in Euros are for a meal for 2 including cover charge, taxes, 1 bottle of sparkling water and 1 bottle of wine, unless otherwise stated):
* Perbacco (Via Mazzini 31, Torino 10123; 882110). Typical. No menu. Degustazione. Brilliant food. Best grissino. Great service. English spoken. AmEx. E85 (2 wine bottles) *****
* Caffe San Carlo (Pza San Carlo 156, Torino; 011-56-17-748). Piazza meal. Very slow service. Limited menu. A la carte. Limited English spoken. AmEx. E30 ***
* Café Norman (Via Pietro Micca 22, Torino; 011-195-03477). Aperitivo. Drink the house aperitivo with massive platter of small plates, we counted 24. Limited English spoken. AmEx. E36 *
* Lampara (Via Andrea Doria 23, Torino; 011-81-27-403). Pizza. Never have pizza north of Lazio. Service slow. Trendy bar. English spoken. AmEx. E24 *
* Alla Locanda (Pza Marconi 3, opposite the post office, 14047, Mombaruzzo; 0141-77-51-06). Typical. English menu. A la carte. Brilliant menu. Exciting condiments. Great service. Good desserts but skip the bonet. Limited English spoken. AmEx. E54 (2 wine bottles) ****
* Rabaya (12050 Via Barbaresco, near Marchesi di Gresy vineyard, Cuneo, Via della Stazione 12; 0173-635223). Typical. No menu. A la carte or degustazione. Excellent food. Charming chef. Ask to go down to see the cellars for wines back to 1939. One wine list for “reds and whites”, another for barbarescos –each wine *list* is a spiral binder slightly larger than the New York Times Sunday Edition. Eat “fuori” (outdoors). Limited English Spoken. Cash (AmEx connection was down) E43 *****
* Locanda Frazione de Bardone Ristorante (very difficult to find; parking challenging). Typical. No menu. A la carte. Some English spoken. Meat trolley par excellence. Very dodgy to find the place and we only stumbled upon it by asking locals for directions. Booking needed. AmEx. E131 (2 wine bottles) ****
* La Curia (Via Alla Bollente 72 15011 Acqui Terme; 0144-356049). Typical. A la carte or degustazione. Menu has English and German subtitles. Yummy saltines they made more of for us. Adjacent enoteca with small plates and very mature Barolos to sample, drink or buy. Fine grizzini outside Torino. Best desserts. AmEx. E44 (2 wine bottles) *****
* La Sosta (Via Roma 9, 14040 Montabone; 0141-76-2538). Typical. No menu. Degustazione. Simply the best meal I have ever had. Full marks. Limited English spoken. Wines, aperitifs, digestivos, grappi, liqueurs incredible. I would take the death defying drive (with limited signage) again and again. Incredibly inexpensive. Let Luca decide what you should eat, as cooked by Locanda, his wife/chef, after you explicitly indicate your dietary allergy/intolerance/sensitivity. Booking needed. Cash only. E64 (3 wine bottles; this is not a typographical error and we did not previously know the owner/chef) ******
* Schiavenza (12050 Serralunga d’Alba, Via Mazzini 4; 0173-61311). Typical. Degustazione. Very bright lights. Very quiet ambiente. Limited English spoken. AmEx. E42 (2 wine bottles) ***
* La Rose Dei Vini (Localita Parafada 4, 12050 Serralunga d’Alba; 0173-613219). Typical. Degustazione or a la carte. Family owned and catering to locals. Hostess very business like. Best spectrum of cheeses outside of a hotel/inn breakfast. Best pasti tasted. No English spoken. Cash only. E54 ***
* Locanda del Borgo Antico (Via Boschetti 4 in Cascina Lo Zoccolaio, 12060 Barlo Direzione Monforte d’Alba; 0173-356-355). Not typical. Trendy modern restaurant with hushed pastels and ultramodern décor. A la carte or degustazione. American karaoke music. Expensive. Death defying drive with limited signage guideposts. Booking needed. English spoken by Brioni suited corporate type. AmEx. E95 **
* An osteria we did NOT dine at – Osteria Veglio (Fraz. Annunziata 9, 12064 La Morra, Cuneo; 0173-509341). We did not have bookings because of the variable distances driven and uncertainty of locations. We arrived much earlier than usual dining times in Piemonte (typically 2000, local) and, while the osteria was mostly empty, the tattooed hostess rudely threw us out without even checking for reservations, possible accommodation outside or a later reservation time, each of which was specifically requested in non-accented Italian. Considering the death-defying drive we made to get to this place, this was not appreciated. Skip the booking at this non-hospitable osteria. English not spoken.
* A ristorante we canceled our booking at – Da Cesare (Via San Bernardo 9, Albaretto Della Torre, Cuneo; 173-520-141) as we were multiply warned that the chef is a bit eccentric, the menu is fixed with no substitutions permitted (we have a few restrictions) and priced at E75, not including beverages, we were too wimpy to take the risk. English not spoken.
Wineries visited (Bookings needed. English spoken. Cannot purchase wine at site but listings of enotecas and foreign importers available easily on request. We did not personally know these wine makers before hand but arranged all bookings via prompt email before leaving home.):
* Marchesi di Gresy (Azienda Agricola Martinenga, Barbaresco, Cuneo; 0173-62-5221; marchesidigresy.com). Full spectrum of tasting. Cellarmaster Jeffrey Chilcott is a genial host. Educative. Easily reached if you ask for Martinenga. ****
* Noceto Michelotti (Azienda Agricola Noceto Michelotti, Strada Bogliona 15/17, Regione Noceto, Castelboglione, Asti; nocetomichelotti.com). Graham and Margaret Kresfelder are genial hosts. Tessa the intern showed us about the winery. Barbera and grappi outstanding. Easily reached. ****
* Distillerie Berta (Via Guasti 34-36, Frazione Casalatto, 14046 Mombaruzzo; 141-739528; distilleriaberta.it). Excellent overview of distillation process. Educative. Good spectrum of tasting with amaretti con grappa. Courteous and friendly Alice Forin. Easily reached as by the road side. ****
* La Spinetta (Via Carzello 1, 12060 Grinzane Cavour, Asti; 333-186-5454; la-spinetta.com). Middling tour. Subpar tasting. Business like approach. Emphasis on bactericidal antiseptic quality. Usual hostess unavailable. Look at detailed map on website as approach challenging. *
* Conterno Fantino (Via Ginestra 1, Monforte d’Alba; 0173-78204; conternofantio.it). Just uphill from centro Monforte d’Alba. Picturesque grounds. Brad the intern from New Zealand showed us about the winery. Chiara Giachino. Good tasting. Easily reached. **
* Sandrone Luciano (Via Pugnane 4, 12060 Barolo, Cuneo; 173-560023; sandroneluciano.com). Great grounds. Detailed educative tour even for us Barolo cognoscenti. Very personalized tastings. Barbara Sandrone. Owner and his daughter very personable and darling. Keep aside a couple of unhurried hours. Easily reached but you will hit it immediately upon exiting the motorway headed towards Barolo centro. *****
* Pio Cesare (Via Cesare Balbo 6, 12051 Alba; piocesare.it). Park anywhere in the clearly marked multiple parking lots in Alba, some free and other E0.80 per hour, and walk over. Absolutely comprehensive tour, education and tasting. Matteo Gobino. Perfect English. Best Barolos and Barbarescos we tasted. Easily reached. ****
* Massolino (Piazza Cappellano 8, 12050 Serralunga d’Alba; 0173-613138; massolino. it). In the little medieval town of Serralunga d’Alba. Small production facility. Lost emails precluded our planned tourand were limited to perfunctory tasting in the packing facility, standing upright but were still charged E10 per tasting!. The only place to charge for a tasting, which was odd. Danila Bertola, very businesslike. Met Franco Massolino, who is personable. Easily reached. **
* We rang to cancel our appointments at Braida (Via Roman 94, 14030 Rochetta Tanaro, Asti; 0141-644113; 39-0141-644113; Giacomo Bologna; braida.it) and Elio Grasso (Via Ginestra 40, 12065 Monforte d’Alba; Marina Grasso; eliograsso.it) owing to insufficient time available between a bit of sightseeing, some well deserved siesta, and quite a bit of shopping for typical products. This should not reflect on these wineries, who were each prompt and accommodating to our requests.
We bought quite a bit of honey, oils (olive, infused olive, truffle, hazelnut), dried pasti and funghi (not truffles) , condimenti, amaretti, cioccolati, gianduia, Langhe grappi and assorted relishes. You cannot bring home cheese, cured products or anything unsealed. Truffle products will set off the sniffing dogs in airports and border patrols so it is best to avoid purchase for home purchase. You can easily make yourself a complete meal by shopping at the local vendors. In larger towns, Di Per Di, Di Per Di Express (like Tesco or Safeway) and Gulliver’s can fulfil your shopping needs. Oviesse is good for limited travel clothing or luggage emergencies. We found bargain luggage at a EuroTree (think Pound Store or Dollar Tree) where we conversed with the owners in Mandarin.
Lessons learnt:
* September/October are the best times to visit. It will be harvest time but less tourists, most conducive weather, truffle hunting season, several local festivals (Douija d’Or, Sangre, Palio d’Asti) and less traffic make it appealling enough.
* Would book the entire villa in Serralunga d’Alba and use it as a base camp for all travels in the Langhe. Courtyard, loft facilities for children, self-contained kitchen (with microwave and coffee machine) and proximity to local food and beverage shops make it the obvious choice. Regardless of where you book, outline all requests (room size, smoking/non, payment method, checkin/out times) explicitly beforehand to avoid frustration. Recommend taking your own bath products consistently.
* Some knowledge of preliminary Italian greatly enhances the experience but do not fret. If you simply use buongiornatta, scussata, grazie, prego and vado trovare/dove, you will be more than fine. For a more immersive experience, pick up Point It, The Traveler’s Language Kit (Graf edition) from flight001.com, my favorite travel store.
Buon Appetito as I need to work off all the poundage immediately.
