Vantage World Travel

Piedmont for Connoisseurs

Piedmont is a complex and extraordinary region, tied up with a double thread to tradition as well as to the idea of progress and innovation, and an inexhaustible well of art, nature and, above all, sublime tastes. This is a land of castles, vineyards and romantic hills shrouded in mist and overlooked by the Alps (Piemonte means “at the foot of the mountain”). In autumn, fog climbs the brightly colored hills and you can just make out the castle tops and hilltop villages reaching out from the mist.

From the lakes of the North, extending over the hills of Cuneo and passing through the vast lowlands of the Po Valley, we are greeted by castles, monasteries, historical centers and farmhouses. On the plains of Vercelli, bathed by the great Po River, grows the best rice in the world. Traveling south, through Roero and Monferrato, we are captivated by the wonderful bouquet of the sparkling Moscato. Further south we arrive to the marvelous hills of the Langhe, known for the production of Barolo and Barbaresco, two of the most important DOCG national wines. The Piedmonte region is also well-known for its delicious cheeses such as the seasoned Gorgonzola, Bettelmat, Castelmagno, Tomini, Testun, the sweet Robiola, Raschera and Murazzano.

Piedmont is a must for food and wine lovers with its small charming villages and “Slow Food” style of touring and a tour of the palate here has to start from the vineyards boasting an unbeatable heritage in terms of wine with 44 “Denominazioni di Origine Controllata” (D.O.C.) and 10 “Origine Controllata e Garantita” (D.O.C.G.), the highest national standard, granted to only 31 wines throughout Italy.

Then it continues through the many delicacies that only an area as outstanding as this can offer: meat, to start with, as “Razza piemontese” beef has the lowest cholesterol content of all known breeds, then cheeses as stated by the existence of hundreds of products and the prized traditional vegetable crops, cultivated on its fertile plains. Of course there is the real “king” of regional gastronomy: the white truffle, that little “tuber”, worth more than its weight in gold, whose tiny slivers sprinkled over tajarin pasta or even just fried eggs release that truly unique aroma.

Of course there also is its ancient chocolate tradition, a long love story that has been going on for nearly five-hundred years. A tale full of personages, anecdotes, and curiosities that over the centuries has left here with a noble tradition successfully reinterpreted today by famous artisans. It was Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, general of the Spanish army under the Emperor Charles V who, upon his return to his homeland brought cocoa seeds from the New World and served the entire city a steaming cup of hot chocolate to celebrate the transfer of the capital of the Kingdom of Savoy from Chambéry to Turin.

And here in Turin, in 1678, Maria Giovanna Antonia Nemours (known as Madama Reale) granted the first “license” in the world to chocolate maker Giò Antonio Ari, authorizing him to sell as well as process and produce chocolate. Then, in the 18th century, Turinese chocolate makers began using rudimental machines that allowed the solidification of chocolate, which until that time had been consumed only as a beverage. By the end of the century chocolate making had become a small industry with famous names like Caffarel and Talmone who had chocolate production facilities on the banks of the Pellerina canal. In one of these “factories” worked Francois Luis Cailler, who later brought the secrets he learned in Turin to Switzerland. A specialty of the chocolate confectionery tradition of Torino are the gianduiotti, prepared with paste of cocoa and the famous “nocciola tonda d’Alba”, the locally grown hazelnut.

Suggested Regional Programs

Our suggested regional programs include the traditional, cultural and artistic sites but also much more as, we think, it is important to emphasize one of the distinguishing characteristics that makes Italy well-known through out the world: its food and wine. In every region we have carefully selected local companies and producers where the most distinguished Italian specialties are made, as well as restaurants where our guests will have the opportunity to experience and taste the very best of Italian cuisine specific to each region. These regional discoveries are presented mostly as customized individual discoveries available in a variety of service levels, from self drive itineraries to chauffer driven tours, but we have also prepared some escorted programs in selected areas. The following is only a short list of suggested programs. A lot more is possible, just ask us to prepare the program of your choice with the locations you desire.

Escorted Programs

Piedmont & Lombardy (8 days) - Escorted Program

From Turin to Milan discovering art and sweet treasures, the taste of which will remain with us forever. Piedmont offers endless options for art visits, culinary delights and wine tasting, while the attractions of Lombardy are different: still in a historic environment, it represents modern Italy all over the world. Discover Turin’s world of chocolate and the Langhe region, then to Lake Maggiore and Milan, which is much more than just fashion, and via Monza and Bergamo reach the little known Franciacorta, an area first cultivated and made commercially active by the Benedictine monks during the Middle Ages, a morainic farmland where vineyards have been grown for centuries, and where sone of the most excellent Italian sparkling wines are made nowadays. The itinerary is Escorted and departs on Set dates.

Independent Programs

The Lakes of the North and the Po Lowland (5 days)

Visit Novara, a town close to the Lombardy border and Ghemme, famous for the production of an excellent “Nebbiolo of the North”. Then continue to picturesque Lake Orta to visit the Basilica of San Giulio and the Sacro Monte, a sanctuary adorned by 20 chapels with scenes of the life of Saint Francis. Continue to Stresa, on Lake Maggiore and point of departure for the boats visiting the Borromean Islands. Stop in in Arona to visit a cheese factory with a guided tour of Piedmont’s best cheese products before continuing to Valsesia, with its well known sanctuaries, and famous Gattinara, with its excellent wine bearing the same name. Finally Vercelli and the Po lowland, guarding an unexpected treasure, rice, the main resource of this territory of flat fields and channels. The riserie, where rice is grown, are beautiful indeed and contour the course of the Po river. Vercelli itself has a refined city center, reflected by the museums and churches, especially the Basilica of Sant’Andrea, the Cathedral and San Cristoforo. The itinerary is highly customizable and expandable both as a self-drive or chauffeur-driven program!

The Langhe Wine Hills (7 days)

Start in the Monferrato area, known above all for its wines and considered the “temple of Barbera”. Then continue from the “Langhe”, the land of the famous Barolo and Barbaresco wines and stupendous cheeses, to the Romanesque style monuments found along the “Via Francigena”, the old pilgrim trail which crossed the Alps from France into Italy. Finish in Turin, elegant and mysterious, disclosing unexpected treasures in its buildings, museums and boutiques. There are thousands of good reasons to visit this area: you might feel for its wines and good food passionately, you might be interested in art in all its forms, you might be curious to find out something more about the culture of people who are strongly bound to their own traditions but open to innovation. The itinerary is highly customizable and expandable both as a self-drive or chauffeur-driven program!

The above itineraries are but a short list of available programs. A lot more is possible, just ask us to prepare the program of your choice with the locations you desire

Contact us for your Customized Program

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