So many reasons to go to Langhe this weekend, starting with the changing colors and harvest time…

#1 – Practice driving (or put putting along;) the VERY difficult ’75 VW Beetle on the windy country roads through the vineyards.

#2 – Visit our new piece of land in La Morra. GOOD NEWS: It’s full of hazelnut trees! So why not take advantage of this and scoop up all the leftover nuts on the ground?

#3 – Visit the Castle of Serralunga in the heart of Langhe. Since this is one of the castles that I had never been to, I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to see it for free this date as advertised. After hilariously stalling the car on the steep Castle entrance, we found a bunch of confused people waiting outside the door. No opening, no sign, no castle visit, NO PARTY! In any case, I was content with visiting the town (a ring around the castle) which I discovered while desperately searching for a bathroom and was able to look up at this amazing medieval sky-high tower. When all else fails, GO WINETASTING!

#4 – In Piedmont it’s not that easy to go ANYWHERE on a Sunday because, as alluded to with the castle, everything is closed. The only places open are International-type chains and wineries. Even though I am normally not interested in mass producing companies, we decided to check out the large scale winery, Fontana Fredda. Actually you could even call it a village! I must admit, the tasting room was clean, modern and impressive and they offered winery tours every couple hours on weekends.

 

We didn’t have a lot of time or interest in this winery so we just decided on a 3 glass tasting each for 5 Euros. Between the two of us we tasted a wide range starting from whites like Gavi and Chardonnay and then moved all the way up to a 2007 Barolo. Both of us preferred the more herbaceous Gavi and suprisingly enjoyed the Dolcetto “La Lepre” and Barolo. We were unimpressed by the Barbera Superiore which didn’t have enough body or personality for our tastes. The same was true for the Barbaresco. Although we had a lovely young college girl pouring our wines, she couldn’t give us any more information other than the descriptions read from the information card on the counter. All in all, it was a nice experience, good for the money and fun to see this giant winery in contrast to the small family style ones we are used to here in Langhe.