Living Positive: Wine Country

Today we headed south to the Barolo wine country. This area in the Piemonte region is famous for its wine made from the Nebbiolo grape. The grapes are still on the vines because harvest for this variety isn’t until later this month.

This area is so beautiful it is hard to capture in a photo. Hillsides of vineyards, little villages and castles are everywhere. We stopped in the small village of Barolo at the Museo del Vino a Barolo (wine museum) which is in an old castle. The museum was more artsy than informative but you are in a castle and there was wine tasting at the end so all was good!

The wine tasting was all automated. We obtained a card from the cashier that we swiped at every bottle of wine that we wanted to taste. The cost of each tasting was in correlation to the price of the wine which is a great way to experience a $150 bottle of wine without too much of a commitment! We didn’t taste them all but made a good try.

We made our way to the nearby village of Nevello for lunch as all of the restaurants in Barolo were packed. It doesn’t take much for a cafe to be full because they are all quite small so when you arrive with 6 people the chances of finding a table are low. However, our brother-in-law Antonio is an adept driver and able to navigate the narrow and winding cobblestone streets of these villages, as well as park, which in itself is an art!

This is truffle season and we were near town Alba which is known for its truffles, white and black. We were able to enjoy some truffles with lunch and then made our way to the town of Alba which was having a Truffle Festival. It was very busy and a great place to people watch. Also, the headquarters of Ferrero is in Alba which make Ferrero Rocher candy as well as other products such as Nutella, Kinder candy and believe it or not, Tic Tacs! Unfortunately they don’t give tours. There are many Hazelnut orchards in the area which is a key ingredient for their treats.

A full day with eating and wine…perfecto!