All about the food, the wine, the colours and the flavours of Italy

Tue 17 Nov 2009

Grab your kit and hit the slopes at Limone Piemonte

Posted by Megan under Entertainment
95No Comments2009-11-17+20%3A19%3A36Megan

Given the Piemonte ski resorts officially opened this past weekend, I thought some information on skiing in the area would make for a timely post.

When people think of skiing in Italy, world famous resorts like Sestriere, Courmayeur and Cervinia come to mind. Having skied the later two, I can say that both are lovely villages that have all the amenities that one would want for a week’s ski holiday in the Alps. But what if you don’t want to commit a week to being just in a ski resort? Then this is where the Cuneo Valley offers a good many alternatives.

One of the many reasons I fell in love with TorreBarolo was its proximity – 45min to the Mediterranean and 45min to Maritime Alps that are close to the French border. Although I have hiked into these Southern Alps to escape the summertime heat, it was only this past February that I finally had time to take advantage of my proximity to the numerous local ski resorts ….. and I was very pleasantly surprised.

There are numerous small ski resorts in the Cuneo valley, but I think your best choices are the Riserva Bianca at Limone Piemonte or the Mondole Ski area with your choice of Prato Nevoso and Artesina. From Barolo by car, Limone Piemonte is about an hour and a half and Prato Nevoso and Artesina are a bit less than an hour. If you don’t have a car, there are bus and train options.

Limone Piemonte got a complete make-over/upgrade in 2008 when it hosted The Snowboard World Cup. Lift systems link three valleys and the resorts of Limone, Colle di Tenda and Limonetto. It has 80 kilometres of trails (41 trails to be exact) serviced by 19 ski lifts. (One of the ski lifts was so comfortable, I could have been sitting on my couch.) The resort has a few different areas to ski, but I generally opt for Limonetto that is at 1,294 metres and has trails on 2 mountains, the highest from the 3 Amis mountain at 2,050 metres.

There is a cluster of buildings at the mountain base that contains a ski rental shop, a snack bar/restaurant and a lift ticket booth. I was worried about the quality of the rental equipment at a small report, but it turned out the equipment I rented was the best I had had for years. Lift tickets cost about €33 for a full day though if you are lazy like me, you can start after 11am and pay just €28. The weather tends to be mild in the Maritime Alps and when we were there, the sun was bright, the sky was blue and there wasn’t a cloud to be seen.

The views are stunning over the “Mountains of the Two Rivieras” (Nice is only 60 km away). The slopes are wide, steep and with very few bumps and I felt like a ski goddess cruising down the mountain. And if the non-crowded, well groomed pistes weren’t enough, we had lunch at this cabin restaurant at the top of the mountain where I indulged in polenta with sausage in a wine and tomato sauce …… oh my god. All in all, it was the perfect ski day.

And at the end of the day, you get in your car and head back to the Langhe Valley free to decide if your next day on holiday should be to Turin to indulge in a biceren at one of the elegant cafes or instead to drive 45mins to the sea to explore the seaside towns and indulge in a bowl of fresh seafood pasta. Everything is possible.

(Personally I do everything I can to not fly Ryanair, but in the winter they do have a very handy London-Cuneo Levaldigi flight every Saturday. Levaldigi is only 40mins from Limone Piemonte and the airport has all your basic services like car rental and shuttle services.)

Tags: Artesina, Cuneo Levaldigi, Langhe, Limone Piemonte, Limonetto, Maritime Alps, Mondole Ski, Piedmont, Piemonte, Prato Nevoso, Riserva Bianca

Sun 8 Nov 2009

The Torino Film Festival 2009

Posted by Megan under Entertainment
80No CommentsThe+Torino+Film+Festival+20092009-11-08+00%3A05%3A30Megan

This year, the Torino Film Festival celebrates its 27^th anniversary; this is also the first year it is directed by Gianni Amelio. The Festival remains true to its tradition of discovery and critical reflection of contemporary cinema, its languages and its authors.

On November 13^th, the opening of the 27^th TORINO FILM FESTIVAL will be celebrated at the prestigious Teatro Regio with the international preview of Nowhere Boy, the first feature film by the English director Sam Taylor Wood. The film focuses on John Lennon’s early years and is based on the book Imagine This: Growing Up With My Brother John Lennon, written by John’s stepsister, Julia Baird. 2010 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the death of the English musician.

One of the new features introduced by Festival director Gianni Amelio is a special recognition, the TORINO GRAND PRIX, to honor directors who, from the rise of the nouvelles vagues of the 1960s on, have helped renew the film language. During the final evening of the Festival, the award will be given to Emir Kusturica, for the inventive quality of his films and the absolute originality of his style.

As always, the program of the 2009 TORINO FILM FESTIVAL offers a rich selection of approximately 220 films, projected in the following sections:

TORINO 27 – FEATURE FILMS COMPETITION. The main competitive section of the Festival is reserved to directors making their first, second or third film and proposes fifteen newly produced films that have yet to screen in Italy.
A MOVABLE FEAST. This is a voyage that will accompany Festival-goers through the most interesting films of 2009, the rising trends and the most curious previews.
CONFIDENTIAL REPORT. This section takes stock of an emerging director or specific phenomenon in international cinema. This year, the protagonist is Nicolas Winding Refn, a young Danish director.
ITALIANA.DOC. A competition reserved to unscreened Italian feature-length documentaries, on film or in video.
SONS AND LOVERS. Six important Italian directors, representing different generations, trends, expressive lines and themes, are asked to choose a film from the past that was of fundamental importance in catalyzing their inspiration and their desire to become a filmmaker.
ITALIANA.CORTI. Short films have their own language, tempo and rhythm and this is why the TFF has decided to reserve a specific competitive space to them.
SPAZIO TORINO. This competition presents the best shorts that were made by filmmakers who were born in or reside in Piedmont, an area that has always been a ferment of film activity.
WAVES. This section is a crossroads of trial proofs, research trends, explorations of languages, formats and expressive methods.

Tags: Film Festival, Piedmont, Piemonte, Torino, Turin

Sat 31 Oct 2009

Truffle: The mysterious fungus

Posted by Megan under Alba, Food, Langhe
51No CommentsTruffle%3A+The+mysterious+fungus2009-10-31+16%3A11%3A30Megan

Given the 79th International White Truffle fair in Alba is currently in full swing, I wanted to provide a bit more background on this delicious and mysterious fungus.

Alba is famous for white truffles and although these special fungus grow in various parts of the world (e.g., Albania, Romania, ex-Yugoslavia), it is the Alba white truffle that is considered the ultimate and that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors a year for the annual truffle fair, that will culminate in the 11th White Truffle World Auction at the Grinzane Cavour Castle on November 8th.

White truffles (tuber magnatum pico) are a wild fungus and for them to grow, the soil must consist of special properties. Also critical is that this special fungus needs trees because the truffles only grow by absorbing the water, salt minerals and fibers from the soil through the roots of the trees. Even more interesting is that the tree the truffle grows close to influences the flavour of the truffle. For example, if the truffle is growing close to an oak tree, the truffle smell will be more intense than if it grows next to a poplar tree.

Fresh truffles lose their intensity of scent and flavour quite quickly so they aren’t good for oil to be kept for months. After a few days, fresh truffle oil will loose its flavour, therefore, if you see truffle oil in shops be aware that it likely contains a chemical flavouring.

Black truffles (see photo to the right) in my opinion lack the intensity of flavour and smell of the white ones. The winter (November to March) ones tend to be the best quality and they are not as highly expensive as the white ones.

Given the going price this year is €250/100 grams, it may be intimidating shopping for a truffle. Be aware that you area allowed to take off a little skin and look at the inside of the truffle. The inside should be light to dark brown. If it is any shade of white, the truffle isn’t mature. If you do buy a truffle and it has not already been cleaned for you, they immerse it in a bowl with equal parts white wine vinegar and water. Very gently brush the outside of the truffle with a brush you might use to clean mushrooms and then pat it dry.

A truffle hunt is very exciting but can be very depressing too when you spend five hours looking, and you find nothing (personal experience!).

Because its flavour is so intense, traditionally truffle is used very simply – shaved over risotto, pasta or often eggs or a carpaccio of veal or beef – so no other flavour can try to compete with it. In the Langhe, expect to pay about €60 for a bowl of the local pasta, tajarin with a generous shaving of white truffles.

Bon Appetite!

Tags: Alba, Black truffle, Grinzane Cavour Castle, Langhe, Piedmont, Piemonte, Truffles, White truffle, White truffle world auction

Fri 9 Oct 2009

Gambero Rosso’s Vini d’Italia 2010 guide

Posted by Megan under Best Italian wines, Wine Events, Wine guides, Winemakers
341 Comment2009-10-09+10%3A01%3A34Megan

One of the best regarded wine Italian guides, Gambero Rosso’s Vini d’Italia, was realised yesterday. It is a survey of 2,520 winemakers, divided by region. The best winemakers are awarded stars, between 1 and 3, depending on the quality of their production and its continuity year after year.

In this year’s guide there were 366 producers awarded stars, of which 14 of them have been awarded 3 stars. Of the 14, three of them are from Piemonte: Bruno Giacosa, Gaja and Giacomo Conterno.

As for particular denominations and vintages below is the list of reds from Piemonte:

Barolo Monprivato Cà d’Morissio Riserva 2001, Giuseppe Mascarello e Figlio
Barbaresco Asili di Barbaresco 2005, Bruno Giacosa
Barolo 2005, Bartolo Mascarello
Barolo Acclivi 2005, Burlotto G.B.
Barolo Brunate – Le Coste 2005, Giuseppe Rinaldi
Barolo Rocche Rivera 2004, Oddero Luigi & Figli
Barolo Vigna Elena 2004, Elvio Cogno

Below are also Gambero Rosso’s special awards by category:

Winery of the year: Bruno Giacosa of Piemonte

Red wine of the year: Antoniolo, Osso San Grato 2005 Gattinara

White wine of the year: Clelia Romano, Colli di Lapio 2008 Fiano di Avellino

Sparkling wine of the year: Cavit, Altemasi Graal Brut Riserva 2002 Trento

Producer of the year: Gianfranco Fino of Puglia

Sweet wine of the year: Barattieri, Albarola Val di Nure Vin Santo1999 Colli Piacentini

The Vini d’Italia 2010 guide is for the first time solely produced by Gambero Rosso, after its recent split from SlowFood. In the spring of next year, SlowFood will introduce its own eagerly awaited wine guide, that will have less focus on awarding stars and a greater focus on informing consumers of the land, the people, the history and the climate that contribute to the vintage.

Other distinguished Italian wine guides include: L’Espresso’s I Vini d’Italia, Duemilavini of AIS (the Italian Sommelier Association) and I Vini di Veronelli.

Tags: Bruno Giacosa, Fiano d'Avellino, Gaja, Gambero Rosso, Giacomo Conterno, Piedmont, Piemonte, SlowFood, Wine

Thu 1 Oct 2009

The Alba International White Truffle fair 2009

Posted by Megan under Alba, Entertainment, Langhe
66No Comments2009-10-01+14%3A22%3A30Megan

If you aren’t familiar with the events surrounding the annual International White Truffle fair in Alba, this is a great video that captures the mood and spirit of it. The images in the video are mainly from the opening weekend celebration when the city hosts various events with participants in medieval dress. One particularly entertaining event in the opening weekend is Alba’s Donkey Palio.

This is Alba making fun of its rival city Asti and its Palio (on bare horse back). Other events that weekend involve numerous wine and food tastings. If you want to make plans for a visit, this is a great time to experience the Langhe. Although the truffle fair goes on for a whole month, many of the events highlighted in this video take place the first weekend of October.

Tags: Alba, Asti, Langhe, Palio, Piedmont, Piemonte, Truffles, White truffle, White Truffle Auction, White truffle world auction

Mon 28 Sep 2009

Ciao! Welcome to TorreBarolo’s blog

Posted by Megan under Langhe, Welcome
131 CommentCiao%21+Welcome+to+TorreBarolo%27s+blog2009-09-28+16%3A48%3A34Megan

Ciao! Welcome to my Blog.

I love the Langhe Valley and wanted to create a means to communicate my excitement about the many things that make up this little jewel tucked away in the Northwest of Italy.

You might wonder how an American, originally from California, came to become a Langhe enthusiast. I credit my dad, Harvey, with exposing me to the area. My dad loved food and he was convinced he was Italian in his previous life. Luckily for me, this resulted in lots of trips to mainly Tuscany and Liguria to eat and visit the Italian friends he collected over the years. Of the three children in our family, I most certainly was the one that embraced his passion for food, so we made a good du0.

What I remember most about my first visit to the Langhe Valley in the winter of 1998 was how different the food was from Tuscany and Liguria. The Langhe dishes were lighter and pasta seemed to melt in my mouth. It was exciting to experience a new Italian regional cooking that was more refined, simpler and distinctive than what I knew to be Italian cooking.

The exclusive use of locally sourced produce and livestock ensure a consistent menu of local delicacies at the highest standard……..and that is just the food. For all you wine lovers, you will already know that during the late 90’s, the wine makers in the region were producing some outstanding vintages to accompany the earthly flavours of the regional cooking.

That trip in 1998 was one of four that I shared with my dad before he died in 2000. The summer after his death, as a family we travelled to his favourite places in Europe, including the Langhe, to scatter a portion of his ashes. Since that summer, each year I returned to the Langhe and I was overwhelmed by a sense of “being home”.

In 2005 I bought TorreBarolo, a17^th century tower in the center of Barolo. No matter how many times I stay there, no matter what the season, I am always overwhelmed by the natural beauty on the Langhe. This combined with my love of the regional cooking and wine has turned me into a qualified Langhe nut, such that a blog on all the wonderful events, food, wines, attractions in the Langhe and beyond just made sense. I hope you find the information useful in planning your stay.

Megan