TorreBarolo Blog

Castelmagno is a cheese which has been made for centuries. The earliest known mention of it dates back to 1277. In our lifetime, it wasn’t until the 1980s that the cheese re-emerged in popularity culminating in 1996 with a DOP (Denomination of Protected Origin) which restricts the production to three communes of the Upper Valle Grana, the south west of the Province of Cuneo. These communes are Castelmagno, Monterosso Grana and Pradleves, where there are only 12 producers that make about 6,000-7,000 wheels annually.

In 2002, the jury of the World Championship Cheese Contest that took place at Madison, Wisconsin, named it the #1 cheese among the category “Open Class Hard Cheeses”.

Castelmagno is a semi-hard, half-fat cheese produced from whole cows milk, obtained from cattle of the Piedmontese breed fed on fresh forage or hay from mixed meadows or pasture. On occasion some milk from sheep or goats may be added to the cows’ milk.

The taste is often described as similar to that of a young, semi-hard Parmesan with a similar texture, though flakier in consistency and can sometimes be crumbly. It has a tart, mild nutty taste and is a good cheese to use for grating or adding small pieces to appetizers as a topping.

My personal experience with this unique and delicious cheese is when I used it for the mantecatura in my Barolo risotto. This suggestion I got from Giorgio Locatelli (though not personally!) as normally Parmesan is used in making risotto. I think it is the combination of the robust, earthly flavor of the Barolo wine combined with this cheese from the same area that makes for a wonderful taste sensation. The cheese is also great eaten with just a drizzle of honey and some fortified wine.

It is a hard to find Castelmagno outside of Italy, more specifically Piemonte, but if you have a cheese specialty shop, ask them if they can get you some. And if you stay with us at TorreBarolo you can try it in any restaurant nearby. You won’t be disappointed with its unique flavor. A great selection of Castelmagno’s pictures and recipes can be found on our Fan Page on Facebook.

This is one of the largest royal residences in the world, La Venaria Reale, comparable in size to Versailles. This huge complex includes the baroque Royal Palace and gardens as well as the 3000 hectare of La Mandria Park. The palace was commissioned for Duke Charles Emmanuel II, as a base for his hunting expeditions. La Venaria Reale opened to the public in 2007, following the largest restoration program in Europe. Both the palace and park are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

This extravagant baroque Royal Palace was used as a Savoy residence in the 17th to 18th centuries and is one of the most significant examples of baroque art and architecture in existence and is considered one of the most beautiful royal residences in Europe.

The entire surrounding village of Venaria and the Duke’s hunting grounds were reshaped to incorporate the palace and its many annexes so that they all flowed together into one monumental site.

The garden was completely destroyed in the 19th century but etchings and drawings of the original garden were used in creating the new garden. The new garden has the same lines and proportions as the old garden but has a more contemporary style.

In addition to touring the palace, there are exhibitions available to visit, both permanent and temporary.

In keeping with providing a restaurant recommendation for your day trip, there is a very special restaurant contained within the Palace. Dolce Stil Novo is the restaurant of Alfredo Russo, and is considered one of Italy’s most renowned restaurants. It opened in 2008 and although I can’t personally recommend it (yet) the unique setting would be a great venue to celebrate a special event.

Entrance into the Palace and gardens is €14 and they are open Tues-Sunday. At La Venaria Reale you will loose yourself in nature, history and the arts, it’s located just 10km from Turin city center, or about 50min by car from TorreBarolo.

How? If you aren’t already a Fan of TorreBarolo on Facebook, simply become one by the end of January and you automatically will qualify for the drawing. If you are a Fan of TorreBarolo already, then easy, just continue to support the TorreBarolo Fan’s Page with your comments.

The rules:
1. As of January 31st, all names on the Fan page will be entered into a hat and we will draw a name. If the lucky winner is unable to redeem their prize, then we will draw a 2nd winner … and so on;
2. The prize of 3 nights at TorreBarolo has a value of €375 and is not redeemable in cash. As is standard at TorreBarolo, a security deposit will still be requested upon check-in;
3. The availability period for the winner’s 3 night stay runs from Feb 5th, 2010 to March 31st, 2010;
4. If the winner removes him/herself from the TorreBarolo Fan’s page before their 3 night stay, the winner forfeits their winning;
5. After staying at TorreBarolo, the winner will be requested to enter a review on the TorreBarolo website as well as on TorreBarolo Fan’s page;
6. The winner will be contacted via Facebook directly to their message inbox;
7. The final winner will be announced on the Fan’s page on Feb 1st.

Last night I saw the musical film Nine, directed by Rob Marshall who is best known for his film adaptation of the stage musical Chicago. The trailer of the movie is very intoxicating as it is filled with chic beautiful people in iconic Italian scenery set to a catchy musical number titled “Be Italian”.  For this reason I wanted to see the movie, although the reviews haven’t all been stellar.

My brother is our family movie critic and he said it was “entertaining”, which was enough to be able to convince my Italian boyfriend to accompany me. This post isn’t to review the film itself but more to reflect on what the film captures so well, which is the era when Cinecittà (Cinema City) was at its peak.  It was a time in the late 50s and 60s that you had world famous Italian and international directors making glamorous and historic movies at this 99 acre Roman movie studio. The chic, elegance of the Italian society was both a beautiful backdrop to these movies but also these glam images were exported to the rest of the world via glossy magazines reporting on the on-goings of the stars living and working in the Italian capital. Some might say that this era was Italy at its best and it was a delight to indulge in watching a movie that captured this Campari-drinking, Alfa-Romeo spider driving period so well. In the movie there are 2 particularly catchy tunes. One is titled “Cinema Italiano”, which is sung by Kate Hudson.

The song is about the director but has a few verses that reflect the images of this era. For example, “I love the dark and handsome guys with their skinny little ties dressing mod and looking out of site. I love to watch them as the cruise with their pointy leather shoes, wearing shades in the middle of the night”. The song I like the most was the title song, “Be Italian”, which is sung by Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas. She does an excellent performance playing a grittier, more sexual Italian woman and in her performance was mesmerizing portraying this essence of Italian. Enjoy the clip and I’d love to hear your views of the movie.

The most impressive thing about Mondovì is the location on the top of Monte Regale with a backdrop of the Maritime Alps.  Getting to the top of the hill and inside the old town center takes some effort, as being a hillside city there are many one way streets and god forbid you try and drive into the city center at 1pm when the school kids are being let out for the day. I learned the hard way that school kids have priority in Mondovì and access by car into the old town center is virtually impossible (unless of course you really do know where you are going).
That aside, once you navigate up the hill, likely you will find yourself in the pretty Piazza Maggiore, the heart of the old town center.  Via Vico, which heads into Piazza Maggiore, features facades that are decorated with frescos dating back to the 15^th and 16^th century.  Also on this street you will find an 18^th century Synagogue, which is testimony to the Jewish quarter. Mondovì actually was the most populated town in Piedmont in the 16^th century and is home to the first University founded in Piedmont.

Sites:

• the Church of St. Francesco with the painting masterpiece “La Missione” by Andrea Pozzo;
• the Cathedral of St.  Donato and “The Misericordia” Church, architectural masterpieces by Francesco Gallo;
• the Belvedere, the Town tower (13^th century) and the spectacular facades in St. Pietro square (15^th-18^th century).

Another reason Mondovì makes a good day trip destination is that likely there is a cultural event or show happening. For example, in February the city host a Carnival, one of the most well known and important ones in Piedmont. In April they host a Spring fair. In August there is Handcraft fair, where pottery is one of their most famous handcrafts along with printing, wood restoration and wrought iron). On September 7th, there is a fireworks display and then at the beginning of November the truffle fair “Peccati di Gola” (sin of gluttony) kicks off which is a bounty of wines and gastronomic products of the area.

In keeping with my desire to combine day tripping with a long lunch, there is a unique restaurant in Mondovì that I would recommend, especially if you have had your fill of restaurants with exposed brick and yellow walls. Trattoria Ezzelino is a contemporary restaurant serving creative Italian dishes. Instead of the typical tomato and mozzarella salad, I remember getting served a quasi gelato/mousse of tomatoes and mozzarella. Also very unusual to find in the Langhe, there was fresh fish on the menu and I enjoyed seared tuna over a medley of fresh vegetables. (29 Via Vico. Closed Monday and Tuesday for lunch, Phone number: 017 455 8085).

From TorreBarolo, Mondovì is 34 km away and can be reached in about 35minutes. If you felt like some culture combined with some skiing, Prato Nevoso is only another 15min up into the Alps past Mondovì.

If you are holidaying in the Langhe Valley for a week, you might want to include some sites a bit further afield. I thought it might be helpful to do a series of blogs posts on day trip destinations. I chose Saluzzo as my first destination as the view driving towards Saluzzo with Monviso (3,800 meters/12K feet) in the background is stunning in the winter.  As you drive towards Saluzzo, the rolling terraced hills of the Langhe ebb away and the landscape becomes flat and is covered in fruit orchards of an extensive variety (apples, pears, kiwi, and peaches). 

Local fruit produce is the pride of Saluzzo and dominate the “el mercà d’le fômne” (the women’s market) which is held every Saturday in the quaint setting of Via Volta. Other noteworthy products are the white Saluzzo Hen, which is high acclaimed and promoted by the Slow Food organization, as well as many excellent local cheeses from the nearby valley such as Castelmagno D.O.P and Toma d’Elva.
With a population of 17K, Saluzzo is half the size of Alba, but the many large piazzas and shopping arcades (under the canopy of arches), makes it feel bigger than Alba.

A very pleasant afternoon could be spent walking through the many shopping arcades and streets of this beautiful walled medieval city and when you need a break, the city has many cafes that are perfect for people watching. If you are hungry for some culture, the Saluzzo tourist site (which is also in English) has three excellent walking tours with maps showing the route. For example, the tour titled “Door to Door” walks you past all the noteworthy architectural and historic buildings. The other two tours are “The 19th Century” and “The Walk of the Marquis”.

A day trip wouldn’t be complete without a wonderful lunch and I have just the place. A few years back on my very first visit to Saluzzo, I lunched at La Gargotta del Pellico and I can still remember the meal – Silvio Pellico was a patriot and writer was born in Saluzzo in 1789. The restaurant is hard to find as it is tucked away in the ancient city streets, but don’t let that put you off. When we finally found it, it was 2pm on the dot and I was worried they wouldn’t seat me and my sister for lunch, as typically 2pm is the cut off for any orders to the kitchen.

Thankfully the combination of my attempt to explain in Italian how I was lost, our mini-skirts (it was 85 degrees) and both being blonde may have helped and we were seated in an elegant dining room (with air-conditioning ).

One thing you will realize after staying a few days in the Langhe is that the menus at the restaurants are all very similar, however, just an hour away in Saluzzo you will find a refreshing new selection of Italian delicacies to enjoy. I remember for a starter my sister had a lovely lightly fried stuffed zucchini flower whereas I remember my main was fresh egg pasta with the most delicious duck (or was it boar) ragu I had ever had. For dessert we had fresh peach gelato that actually came stuffed in a frozen peach.

There is much to explore and writing this blog makes me want to be sure to get back on my next visit down to TorreBarolo.

Sites:

• The Cathedral, built in the years 1491-1501 and dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta and San Chiaffredo;
• The church of San Giovanni, hosting the finely sculpted sepulchre of marquis Ludwig II;
• Villa Belvedere, once the hunting residence of the Saluzzo Marquisses;
• Casa Cavassa, a symbol of the Renaissance with its 15 magnificent rooms, hosting the Civic Museum.

Saluzzo is 49km from Barolo and should take a bit under an hour by car. To reach Saluzzo, head back towards the A6 Autostrada and take the exit Bra/Marene.  Head towards Savigliano and the SP662.