Piedmont's Culinary Delights

Piedmont is home to the Slow Food Movement, founded in the small town of Bra, and the Gorgonzola cheese from Novara, home to the white truffle, coveted by gourmands around the world and of course home to the King of Wines and the Wine of Kings: Barolo.

The Slow Food Movement started in Italy as an amiable protest against fast food and has since become a global phenomenon. Promoting the sanctity of taste, it strives to preserve traditional values in regional cuisine, encouraging taste education and food preservation with fairs, events and educational programs.

Piedmont's small farms continue a long tradition of producing delightful cheeses, some dense and creamy, some sharp but subtle, crafted by artisans in the Piedmont countryside. The most famous is Toma and of special note are the soft Robiola di Roccaverano and Murazzano. To the east of the region there is Novara's Gorgonzola whilst from the heights of the Maritime Alps comes Raschera.

The region is also major producer of hazelnuts which are used in cakes, pastries, chocolates as well as local nougat known as Torrone. The divine Tonda Gentile is uniquely sweet with an intense and persistent aroma and is at the heart of Nutella, the world famous chocolate and hazelnut spread.

From the middle of September until late December truffle hunters scour the secret, countryside pathways among the hills of the Langhe and Roero. At this time during the white truffle season sees towns, such as Alba, transformed into gourmet destinations whilst they hold their annual fairs paying homage to this expensive subterranean fungus named Tuber Magnatum Pico.

As for wines, Piedmont boasts Italy's greatest number of classified wines. Rich soil and the Nebbiolo grape are at the heart of the bold red Barolo's and Barbaresco's whilst other notable red wines include Barbera, Dolcetto, Gattinara and Ghemme. Whites such as dry Gavi and Arneis, sweet, bubbly Asti Spumante and Moscato d'Asti complete the picture. Finally, don't forget that Turin is the world capital of vermouth, a fortified wine flavoured with herbs and spices.

This relatively undiscovered part of Italy is an excellent location for your next culinary vacation!