My memory of Piedmont, Italy...

As I sit here on New Years eve, writing this post, with my dog sleeping to my side, I can't help but turn on the computer before bed to reminisce a bit about Piedmont Italy, a place with breathtaking hillside views, castles  and a a lot of mystery.  So off we were, in our little Fiat, to a region that created so many nice memories...

Truffles!!!  It all reminded of business school 101.  I think learning about truffles made me realize how much of a simpleton I really am, a complete and total "non-foodie".   Case in point, I had no clue what a truffle even was.  For me , it was some type of European chocolate.  Little did I know that this is a delicacy found in certain regions of Italy, one being deep in the forests of Alba.  They grew under certain oak trees and dug up by a secret society of Truffle hunters.  These hunters have the ultimate weapons, either their truffle sniffing dogs, or even their keenly aroused pigs...though recently, the fashion of using pigs to find truffles seems to be dying out given they eat all the truffles.

So it was, I experienced truffles by eventually ended up at a place at the end of the truffle supply chain- the truffle festival of Alba!  There it is where the "truffle sniffers", human chef's with a keen sense, are able to 'sniff' and accordingly price the truffles.  And boy are they NOT cheap.  In fact, I was told that one 1 KG truffle was once recently sold at a Hong Kong auction for over $100K.  Whoa!  Talk about supply / demand!  Apple, move over!

Aside from all this food stuff, I was taken aback by the hillside, the scenery and the smells of Piedmonte.  And again, the simplicity I so possesses was proven once again.  I never was much of a wine appreciator,  despite most people I associate with,who live in spoiled So Cal.  Even still, when I went to the small towns surrounding this region, I learned what "love of wine" really meant.  I was taken aback by all of them, espeically the Barolo and Barbaresco wines, made of the Nebbiolo grape.  It was love at first taste. In fact, the other day, when I went to my local Vons to buys a bottle and reminisce  I was stunned by the cost--- $50+ per bottle!  Whoa I thought..I guess I do have good taste!  Aside from this though, everything about Piedmont was filled with beauty, the hillsides were breathtaking, the castles majestic, the small towns so serene, and of course, the wines, so flavorful...

But yet again, the experience wasn't over.  Have you heard of an Agra-Turisimo?  I sure haven't.  And boy, was I fascinated!  Imagine owning a farm, growing organic foods/ wines and then setting up a resort style get-away for tourists to visit!  And that to, from a Mafioso type family---I so wanted to meet the owner and get his perspective on that life!What a pleasant surprise this part of the trip was.  The food we tried was delicious, from the homemade wines, to they flavorful pastas, to the exquisite deserts-- a meal to definitely remember.  And trust me, being vegetarian, its' not common for me to speak so highly of outside food--but this was delicious.  To top that, the rustic, yet historical rooms we stayed in, created a unique charm which just added to the effect. Most of all, the experience at this farm, only re-ignited my desire to own my own farm one day, with my own animals, and producing my own fresh produce.

Last but not least...how nice is it when you meet someone local at the place you are visiting.  Well, that is EXACTLY what transpired.  See, back before I made my trip, I visited Isola, a nice Italian restaurant that just opened in Little Italy.  Because I'm a talker (esp. when I've had a few drinks), the owner came to know that I was heading up to the Piedmont region of Italy.  Next thing I knew, he was giving me the card and phone number of his bro, who happened to make wine and have his own vineyard, in the region  So after calling him up on the phone from Turin, another nice city in Northern Italy, and his genuine welcoming email to visit him, we decided to take the drive, literally in the "boondoks".  Boy what a beautiful and scenic drive that turned out to be.  But honestly, the credit goes to an Iphone for getting us there.  If it wasn't for that, we'd have never made it through the one lane dirt road , in the hills of Piedmonte, to Pietro Renaldi's home.  

And what a treat that was to meet him!  Not only did we get to go to a local vineyard in the middle of nowhere, but his hospitality only affirmed the positive stereotypes us Americans have of Italians, warm, welcoming, and stylish.  We talked, drank and toured his facility..  Most importantly, we left Piedmonte with a beautiful taste in our mouth...