|
Langhe Monferrato Roero - Piedmont
The Langhe,
Monferrato and Roero are located in the South of Piedmont, taking in the
ranges of hills in the Provinces of Cuneo
and Asti, the basin of the River
Tanaro and the Belbo and Bormida valleys. Alba
and Bra, Asti and Acqui Terme: towns which are the focal points for an area comprising hundreds of small villages, each
of which has its own distinguishing feature, may it be a product, a viewpoint, or a castle. Places of memories, imagination and literature, where every village has a castle or
tower testifying to its history and legends, and every historic centre is distinguished by an overlapping of Roman,
mediaeval, Renaissance, baroque and liberty styles. The landscape is a geometrical succession of vineyards - dropping
above 500 metres into wooded ravines of multicoloured flora - in an ideal setting for nature holidays, trekking
on horseback or mountain bike, rambling and sports activities.
The hills of the
Langhe district south of Alba sketch out a helter-skelter route, uphill,
downhill, and round the bends that form the boundaries of Piedmont's finest
vineyards. This is the kingdom of Barolo: wine of kings, king of wines. Not that
other important wines are lacking; Nebbiolo, Dolcetto and Barbera, for example.
Within the space of just a few kilometres the route takes in all the most famous
towns and hamlets of the area, from
Barolo itself to
La Morra, from Monforte
to Serralunga d'Alba,
in a succession of ancient estates and mediaeval towers hidden in a succession
of fields and vineyards.
The Monferrato, a generous Piedmontese wine area,
extends from the threshold of
Turin to an eastern border with
Alessandria.
From north to south, it
includes all the band of hills lying below the Po
river, eventually losing its identity in a district
called the
Langa Astigiana
around
Roccaverano.
The part nearest the Appennines is called "Upper
Monferrato". It comprises the towns of
Aqui Terme
and Ovada, as well as the zone where
Gavi and
Cortese
are produced. The second part,
Monferrato Casalese, takes its name from the town of
Casale, even though it is only located on
the edge of the hills. The centre, on the other
land, comprises the
Astigiano,
the most substantial and personal part of the
Monferrato,
which lies astride the
Tanaro river
and is heart of the production of a large number of
appellation of controlled origin wines
Roero
 The name « Roero », as a geographic identity, is fairly recent. From the
beginning of the seventies, this name has identified the hilly region situated north of Alba where, a long time ago, an old and noble family of Asti named Roero ruled the country for ages. During
the following years, new villages situated on the left side of the Tanaro river (due to their geographic affinity and similar capacity) joined to the first group
of villages identified by Roero. Today, this group includes twenty-four towns, twenty-three of which are situated
in Cuneo Province and one in Asti Province.
 Food and WineThe cuisine is a great tradition of this land, reconciling two schools - the farmhouse
and middle-class styles - with a few touches of nobility. The truffle, a seasonal ingredient of great prestige,
rounds off the excellence of the local produce for refined, demanding palates.
Mountain cheeses and a hazelnut dessert made from the highly-prized "tonda gentile delle Langhe" variety
complete a regal menu.
It is a land brimming with fine red wines, such as Barolo and Barbaresco,
as well as dessert wines like Moscato d'Asti
and Brachetto d'Acqui, and every
hilltop has its own speciality: superb Dolcetto, strong Barbera,
smooth Nebbiolo, and - in the Roero
- a special white: Arneis.
|
|
