We are based in the beautiful town of Alba for our Piedmont tour. Alba, as many will know, is the centre of the universe for truffle production, but is also strategically situated midway between the famous Barolo and Barbaresco wine regions.
Our first night dinner was spent at the amazing Cortiletto d’Alba restaurant in Alba. A fabulous dinner was served that gave a wonderful insight into local cuisine and made all the more memorable by great service from Anna and Marisa who introduced each course and gave a delightful insight into the Piemonte food scene. We washed it all down with some delicious Roero Arneis and a juicy Dolcetto d’Alba.
Our first full day in Piedmont took us to a couple of lesser known areas which are on a rapid quality ascent. To the north west of Alba you find the Roero hills on the north bank of the Tanaro river. The Roero DOCG is very small and covers the Arneis and Nebbiolo grapes together with a bit of sparkling wine. The terroir is a mix of sand, clay and limestone and the cooler sites are being exploited to maximum effect for the production of high quality Arneis. This grape, translated as ‘little rascal’, has historically been quite difficult to cultivate, but recent years has been better understood and the results have been amazing. Plantings and production have soared with quality becoming increasingly higher.
Our first visit was to Marco Porello – a small, family owned estate with 15 hectares. We took a drive into the Roero hills and Marco and Ezio gave us a wonderful insight into the terroir of the area and how it contributes to the regional style. Back to the winery and we had a great tasting of Favorita – the local name for Vermentino, their top level Arneis, Barbera, Nebbiolo and rounded off the session with their Birbet – a delicious light sparkling red made from the Brachetto grape. A top start to the tour!
It was then a short hop to the hilltop village of Guarene where we enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Albergo Miranlange. The view was breathtaking as we took nother culinary tour of Piedmont cuisine. Parmesan ice cream on a pok loin carpaccio was followed by the famous Vitello tonnato and some polenta with porcini. A delicious asparagus risotto was followed by the local plin pasta stuffed with a meat ragu. We still managed to fit in some delicious hazelnut cake. We drank wines from Marco Porello which extended our morning experiences.
A power nap followed as we headed east of Alba into the Monferrato hills. Up and up we went as we reached one of the highest points in the region. Our destination was the tiny DOC Loazzolo – named after the local village. Our destination was perhaps one of the most beautiful places I have visited on tour – Forteto della Luja. This tiny estate has been in the Scaglione family since the 1700’s and the eight generation owners proudly run the farm. Giovanni Scaglione hosted us and totally entranced us with the family story, the insight into the local area and took us through the vineyard and winery. The views are breathtaking and there is a sublime peace and tranquillity about the family home. The estate is also a WWF protected area as wild orchids can be found dotted around the farm. We tasted contrasting Barberas and rounded off the tasting with an utterly delicious Moscato Passito – sweet without being cloying and wonderfully rich. This is a magical place.
