Piedmont

Great tastes and old charm

Located right in the north-west corner of Italy, Piemonte is a region of great tastes, with a wide range of delicacies of exceptional high quality, based on artisan or semi-artisan techniques.

The Alps surround this lovely region, whose name makes reference to its peculiar geographical position (Piemonte means “at the foot of the mountain”), where you find a unique variety of stunning landscapes, beautiful lakes, mountains for ski lovers, romantic hills topped by castles and towers (43% of mountains, 30% of hills and 27% of  rich flatland).

The region attracts gourmet travellers from all over the world who come here to enjoy regional delicaces such as risotto from locally grown rice, white truffles, the renowned cattle breed “Razza Bovina Piemontese” protagonist of the bollito (boiled meat) and fritto misto (fry up), tajarin or agnolotti del plin, real celebrities of home-made pasta, and the extraordinary variety of excellent cheeses paired with some of the best wines of Italy.

The richness of the cuisine is due to the history of this region, where the Kings that unified Italy in 1861 lived, and its peculiar mix of refined dishes and farmers’ tradition.

The productions of wine and rice in Piemonte are particularly important and appreciated worldwide.

Winemaking in Piemonte is genuinely artisan and boutique. Most wineries are family-owned. Wine production in our region is characterised by over 80% of wines with the quality denomination of origin hallmark (DOC and DOCG). The hectares under vines are about 51,000 (6% of the Italian vineyards) with an average production of 3 millions hectolitres of wine a year, 60% of which are exported. Between 16 and 20% of the wine that Italy exports every year originates in Piemonte.

Piemonte can also boost 60% of the national rice production and 30% of the European production, with 120.000 hectares of cultivated areas. The plain in the eastern part of the region - namely in the Vercelli, Novara and Alessandria provinces - is undoubtedly  the best quality rice growing area in Italy and Europe, with a production of  0,8 millions tons per year.

Piemonte is also famous for its bakery products such as “grissini” or “lingue di suocera” (salted) and for its cakes and confectionary: Torino, it’s capital city, is known as one of world capitals of  chocolate. Both in Torino and Piemonte, since the XVIII century, chocolate (known as “the food of the Gods”) has been transformed by excellent chocolatier into many delicious products: Gianduiotti, Praline, Cremini, Cuneesi with Rhum etc. The production of  chocolate all over the region has been successful also thanks to the long lasting “marriage” between cocoa and the local variety of hazelnut: the praized Langhe hazelnut “Tonda Gentile delle Langhe” protected by PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) hallmark.

Piemonte is also a region with secular tradition in dairy-farming. It can offer an extraordinary variety of excellent cheeses, nine of which have been awarded DOP (Protected Designation of Origin) and constitute an important ingredient in many typical recipes: Castelmagno, Bra, Murazzano, Raschera, Robiola di Roccaverano, Toma Piemontese, Gorgonzola, Taleggio, Grana Padano.

Last but not least Piemonte can boost a wide variety of prized fruits and vegetables, cultivated on its fertile plains; among the fruits  the red apple and the chestnut from Cuneo, kiwis, strawberries, red fruits, peaches and plums exported all over the world; among the vegetables the square pepper of Motta di Costigliole d'Asti, or the hornshaped variety of Carmagnola, leeks from Cervere, onions from Ivrea, asparagus from Santena, and the round cardoon of Nizza Monferrato: just a few of the vegetables traditionally served for dipping into bagna caôda, a hot sauce made of garlic, anchovies and oil, which represents the most traditional “antipasto” of Piemonte. The many vegetables and the tasty mushrooms from Piemonte are processed into amazing preserved antipasti (pickled or filled, grilled and in oil…) as well as spreads and sauces (for pasta, meat, vegetables or simple bread), condiments.  Piedmont also accounts a few, large producers of olive oil and vinegar.

Piemonte is an absolute must for food and wine lovers visiting Italy, do not miss it!

 

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Located right in the north-west corner of Italy, Piemonte is a region of great tastes, with a wide range of delicacies of exceptional high quality, based on artisan or semi-artisan techniques.

The Alps surround this lovely region, whose name makes reference to its peculiar geographical position (Piemonte means “at the foot of the mountain”), where you find a unique variety of stunning landscapes, beautiful lakes, mountains for ski lovers, romantic hills topped by castles and towers (43% of mountains, 30% of hills and 27% of  rich flatland).

The region attracts gourmet travellers from all over the world who come here to enjoy regional delicaces such as risotto from locally grown rice, white truffles, the renowned cattle breed “Razza Bovina Piemontese” protagonist of the bollito (boiled meat) and fritto misto (fry up), tajarin or agnolotti del plin, real celebrities of home-made pasta, and the extraordinary variety of excellent cheeses paired with some of the best wines of Italy.

The richness of the cuisine is due to the history of this region, where the Kings that unified Italy in 1861 lived, and its peculiar mix of refined dishes and farmers’ tradition.

The productions of wine and rice in Piemonte are particularly important and appreciated worldwide.

Winemaking in Piemonte is genuinely artisan and boutique. Most wineries are family-owned. Wine production in our region is characterised by over 80% of wines with the quality denomination of origin hallmark (DOC and DOCG). The hectares under vines are about 51,000 (6% of the Italian vineyards) with an average production of 3 millions hectolitres of wine a year, 60% of which are exported. Between 16 and 20% of the wine that Italy exports every year originates in Piemonte.

Piemonte can also boost 60% of the national rice production and 30% of the European production, with 120.000 hectares of cultivated areas. The plain in the eastern part of the region - namely in the Vercelli, Novara and Alessandria provinces - is undoubtedly  the best quality rice growing area in Italy and Europe, with a production of  0,8 millions tons per year.

Piemonte is also famous for its bakery products such as “grissini” or “lingue di suocera” (salted) and for its cakes and confectionary: Torino, it’s capital city, is known as one of world capitals of  chocolate. Both in Torino and Piemonte, since the XVIII century, chocolate (known as “the food of the Gods”) has been transformed by excellent chocolatier into many delicious products: Gianduiotti, Praline, Cremini, Cuneesi with Rhum etc. The production of  chocolate all over the region has been successful also thanks to the long lasting “marriage” between cocoa and the local variety of hazelnut: the praized Langhe hazelnut “Tonda Gentile delle Langhe” protected by PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) hallmark.

Piemonte is also a region with secular tradition in dairy-farming. It can offer an extraordinary variety of excellent cheeses, nine of which have been awarded DOP (Protected Designation of Origin) and constitute an important ingredient in many typical recipes: Castelmagno, Bra, Murazzano, Raschera, Robiola di Roccaverano, Toma Piemontese, Gorgonzola, Taleggio, Grana Padano.

Last but not least Piemonte can boost a wide variety of prized fruits and vegetables, cultivated on its fertile plains; among the fruits  the red apple and the chestnut from Cuneo, kiwis, strawberries, red fruits, peaches and plums exported all over the world; among the vegetables the square pepper of Motta di Costigliole d'Asti, or the hornshaped variety of Carmagnola, leeks from Cervere, onions from Ivrea, asparagus from Santena, and the round cardoon of Nizza Monferrato: just a few of the vegetables traditionally served for dipping into bagna caôda, a hot sauce made of garlic, anchovies and oil, which represents the most traditional “antipasto” of Piemonte. The many vegetables and the tasty mushrooms from Piemonte are processed into amazing preserved antipasti (pickled or filled, grilled and in oil…) as well as spreads and sauces (for pasta, meat, vegetables or simple bread), condiments.  Piedmont also accounts a few, large producers of olive oil and vinegar.

Piemonte is an absolute must for food and wine lovers visiting Italy, do not miss it!

 

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