Piemonte Itinerary

[Mark]

So we are looking at 11 nights in September.
Flying into Milan. We have friends who live there.
looking at 4 nights in Milan (3 full days)
2 Night in the Lakes Como or Maggiore
4 nights in Piemonte (more like 4 fulls days and 2 half days)
and last night at an airport Hotel.
Does this sound about right or should we add to the lakes and take away a day in Milan or Piedmont.
The day we arrive will be wasted as we don't get in until 12:30 PM.

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Mark

For me (and I suspect others here) the 2 nights at the lakes would sit uncomfortably with a slow travel mindset, of relaxing and taking a place properly in. However I have an idea that might make that seem less manic.

Piemonte is certainly a big region, with lovely variety, so useful to focus onto what you want out of it. Do you want the wonderful city of Torino, the fresh mushrooms up in the hills and mountains, the historic Palio in Asti, the famous wine region of the Langhe, great walking their or elsewhere,...

Armed with what you're looking for, it will be easier to suggest great places in Piemonte.

Are you tied to leaving via Malpensa, or could you leave via Torino's airport to the north of the city?

For Lakes Como & Maggiore, you could consider swapping in the quieter Lake of Orta. We've not been, but an option if you want a car, want to avoid the crowds and want an easier entry point into Piemonte. The idea is to make this a mini road trip, taking you across to the Valsesia and then following that river valley down to Gattinara a historic wine town whose wines are very much back on the up now. If you can get in for an overnight stay with evening meal, then I'd recommend Il Cavenago in Ghemme, for a veritable feast including risotto as good as I've tasted. Ghemme itself is nothing much to look at, excepting a small historical area, but for an overnight stay, I'd say the above agriturismo is worth it (FWIW we don't mind Ghemme's plain feel - the people seem very friendly and we've enjoyed longer stays , but I doubt many would enjoy it like we do). From there maybe an overnight in Parco Ticino (for Malpensa departure) or across at say Venaria Reale for a departure from Torino airport.

Now these ideas might not match your expectations of Piemonte, so it's important to ensure we're clear on what you're looking for.

Regards
Ian

 

[Mark]

Thanks Ian, I thought you might chime in.
I should have mentioned in my initial post ,we will probably be spending out time in Barolo/Barberesco.
I will look into Lake Orta.
I know you are found of Torino but perhaps on a future visit.
We only get so much vacation time and cannot get away for more than 12 - 13 days.
I have been researching this trip for 3 years gathering input including yours and from Wine Berserkers . We have not gone before is because my friend who lives part time in Milan was not going to be there on our scheduled dates. So we went to Southern Spain and Bordeaux/Dordogne the last two years.
Once are plans are set I'll use our wine distributors/importers to make arrangements for our winery visits and using Piemonte on Wine's site to backfill any additional bookings we may need

 

[lisaonthecape]

My husband used to work in Piemonte years ago, so we've been there many times. I would personally shave a day off the Milan stay and add it to Piemonte. On our last visit, we spent only three days there and left feeling it was far too short (so many great restaurants! so much great wine!) We stayed in Annunziata, a frazione of La Morra, which is also the home of one of my favorite restaurants, Osteria Veglio, and were very happy with our choice. It's smaller and less touristy than Barolo, but only minutes away. You definitely want a car in the Langhe.

I love Ian's suggestion of Lake Orta. Orta San Giulio in particular is another favorite spot of ours

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Mark
That helps clarify. I think then it boils down to Milan as planned (spending time with people who live there is often a wonderful way to see a more genuine insight)... then

Option A: Add in a lake, but for just 2 days, considering the smaller Lake Orta as a more practical experience that you might feel you gave it enough chance to shine. Then down to a base in Barolo or Barbaresco (but not both). Consider a day in the other if you like, but I'd personally just do one or the other with 2 days + 2 half days.

Option B: Exclude the lake, giving that time to the Langhe, perhaps allowing you to consider 3 days near Barbaresco (including a trip into Alba) and 3 near Barolo. Or 6 nights in one place and allowing you a full day trip to the other wine region and a good morning or late afternoon in Alba (some fine food shopping to be had).

Agreed Torino wrong to squeeze in this time

The reason I say near Barolo / Barbaresco, is I feel the former has already become rather a coach tour destination and the latter starting to experience it. Better IME to stay in the other villages of the region e.g. Treiso or Neive (for Barbaresco), La Morra, Monforte, Serralunga, Castiglione Falletto, Novello, Verduno, etc. for Barolo. Dining in Treiso is wonderful - a small village with 4 fine (and different) places to eat, from Michelin style (and prices) through to intimate Trattoria, traditional Trattoria and a wine bar with very good smaller plates (and excellent wines by the glass). Good places in all the Barolo villages and I hear Neive excellent as well.

Walking is excellent and I'd recommend factoring in at least one walk directly through the vineyards you probably know well from the wines. Dhared ownership = open access

 

[Mark]

Thanks Ian, We are looking at the smaller towns of Barolo to base. Thinking La Morra.
Do you advise against staying in Alba. The truffle fair would not have started.
Still need to research staying in Monforte, Serralunga, Castiglione Falletto .

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Mark
Alba is so close to Barbaresco that I'd choose the one that I felt offered me more of what I wanted and/or something different. e.g. if straight after Milano, you might want to stay in the vineyards, if you do Barolo first, then a charming town might be a nice way tomentally prepare for the trip home.

La Morra has some great views and is a great place to explore the current state of play in the modernist vs. traditionalist debate (one that thankfully has calmed down as people have found their own 'middle ground'). e.g. (Cavaliere!) Lorenzo Accomasso is a stone's throw from Elio Altare, and between those extremes are plenty of differing styles. If you don't mind a 'modernist leaning' producer, I'd recommend Mauro Molino, whose children are taking over the reins with great professionalism. Further down the hill, Cascina Ballarin also worth a visit, with one of the best value langhe nebbiolo wines (a genuine mini Barolo in flavour) plus some decent value Barolo wines. Osteria Veglio also very good for us at lunchtime.

Monforte also a good choice, with plenty there and some fine restaurants and an excellent wine bar / restaurant le case della saracca (IIRC). We stayed about 20 mins walk from the centre in apartmenta at la casa gialla. Very friendly, the apartments were fine, though ours a little small, with an odd & tight metal spiral staircase. Nice 'sun deck' for later afternoon / evening relaxing.

Likewise Serralunga also decent (when we stayed there it was a short walk outside of Serralunga at the apartments of Franco Boasso (Gabutti), a very much under the radar traditional producer whose Barbera is one we'd buy by the case if we could find it - definitely in the style we like (and I'm a little fussy with Barbera). A favourite producer for us was Schiavenza, who also have a very reasonably rpiced restaurant. Both husband and wife work very hard in the winery / restaurant respectively and it shows in what they produce.

Verduno much quieter, being on the edge of the Barolo vineyards, but that means it has even more charm. We stayed over the main road from here, in a couple of large and excellent apartments in Santa Vittoria d'Alba (Agriturismo Valdispinso)
That place has a good pool / patio / bbq, set in lovely gardens with a view of the castle. Not in the vineyards, but a 10 minute drive from Verduno and a place we'd return to (the only minor 'meh' was the breakfasts, which were functional more than artisanal, but they were included in the price - we skipped it a couple of times, after all we had an apartment and could get our own stuff in).

Regards
Ian

 

[Mark]

Thanks again Ian

 

[Fedina]

Hi Mark,
Sounds like a great trip in the works! Having friends who live in Milan makes that experience very different than if you were just staying there as tourists. So the 4 days might be great because they'll bring you places that you might never see on your own. That is exactly what happens during my visits with my family who live near Parma. They are usually the high points of our visits.

I've been to Como, Maggiore and d'Iseo several times, and they are beautiful, but 2 days isn't really enough as Ian said. Orta sounds like a great shorter time option and positions you closer to Piemonte. We were in Piemonte, near Asti, last October. We stayed at Agriturismo C'era Una Volta, Agliano Terme (Asti), which is a vineyard (Barbera), has a restaurant and also brews beer. I can't recommend it enough and the welcoming owners Daniele and Silvia treated us like friends. The breakfasts and dinners were truly amazing, as was the wine. Some of the best meals I've eaten anywhere and that's saying a lot, because my Emilian family has taken us to some great local spots over the years.
When we were planning for that trip, I struggled with where to stay and we opted with a more rural location. Not regrets about that either. We were only about a half hour from both Alba and Asti and we stayed for 6 nights. There was much to see and explore, many festivals, and the walks through vineyards were lovely. That amount of time worked well for us. We always rent a car and just love to poke around. The Alba street fair was fun, but filled with people.

 

[Mark]

Thanks for the info.
We are leaning towards passing on the lakes and spending 6 nights in Piemonte.

 

[jan]

We spent a week in a really great apartment in Alba, last fall, which included a parking space for our rental car. In 2016, we spent 4 nights at Corte Gondina in La Morra. I much prefered staying in Alba--walking a few blocks for morning coffee, stopping into a close by bakery for fresh bread etc. Here's a link to my review: https://www.sloweurope.com/community/threads/alba.5075/

I would really recommend a day trip to Grinzane Cavour.

We also spent a night at https://www.ilcucchiaiodilegno.com/ at Lake Orta. The restaurant attached, which you need to reserve in advance, is a quintessential Piemontese feast. Feel free to look at my blog from October 2019. Link in my signature