View over the hills in the moonlight: Journey to Tagliolo Monferrato, Piedmont, Italy
When you sip a glass of Dolcetto d'Ovada, wine typical of this area, you will be enraptured, through the senses in a world of extraordinary beauty. During the long months of work, immersed in the dullness of the big city, you almost forget that there are hills so green, a sky so blue, even in autumn and a calm so deep as in the places where the wine is produced.
We chose, for a weekend dedicated to relaxation and good air for long walks in nature, a place immersed in this wonderful landscape Tagliolo Monferrato. As the name reveals, we are in the Alto Monferrato, hilly area that connects to Piedmont, Liguria. The Po valley is not far, but you can not see from here: Coming from Milan and Turin, has already left behind, those coming from Genoa however, not met. Framed by the spectacular view of rolling hills and vineyards, are the mountain ranges of the Apennines in Liguria. Getting to Tagliolo, village by the name of medieval origin, reminiscent of the logging activities undertaken at that time to create new areas for cultivation, is simple: the big cities of the North takes about an hour drive away from Genoa is sufficient half an hour.
We left at Ovada, and even after ten minutes we were already arrived at our destination, the Farm Ca Bensi, which is also at the Farm Moonlight. We placed the farm in bright rooms, and we immediately started to discover the country.
This is a true jewel resort, where you can breathe the air of mysterious medieval villages, mainly thanks to the impressive Castle Tagliolo, still privately owned and home to important events, but also thanks to the beauty of the streets. Among the colorful houses in Ligurian style and Mediterranean gardens, some open views over the vineyards of the valley, offering unique emotions. While fantasize about her story of a strange house with a tower that we saw just before we reach the seat of the Nativity mechanized, next to the church. The crib covers an area of about two hundred feet square and is positioned in the shape of a horseshoe. In a setting of the early stage of the last century, we see a multitude of characters in motion: the carpenter who back a piece of wood, a fisherman who pulls the network near a small waterfall, a woman who mixes the polenta on the stove , a farmer with a horse plowing a field, but also a brother who the bell tolls.
From the manger, mechanized, open all year, the birds of rare species, a short step: a Tagliolo Museum has established an important bird sanctuary, where they are exposed to about nine hundred stuffed specimens of local fauna, including some very rare or at extinction, as well as exotic species.
After this long tour of the country, the pleasant weariness and hunger made us go back in Farmhouse, where, however, we could not resist doing a second round between the rows. We admired the huge bunches of grapes, almost ready for harvest. "We grow eight hectares of vineyards, the vines are old enough. We believe that it is better to produce a little 'less, but doing the utmost attention to quality wine, "explains Frederick, one of the owners. Walking in the vineyards but we notice a photovoltaic system. "With this system, our company is independent from the energy point of view," said Federico. Here is a reality that future in mind: a company green, surrounded by greenery, where you eat too well: we have found at dinner, enjoy a typical menu: agnolotti, dish Ovada, which are always available here . Our friends have chosen instead of a first season, with mushroom sauce. In choosing the latter, we brought out our wild side, opting for the excellent roast boar. The menu also includes the boiled dishes of rabbit, polenta and winter. Of course, we washed down with wines produced from the farm: Dolcetto d'Ovada Ovada the DOCG, the Monferrato and white.
We have dedicated the rest of our weekend on excursions on the trails in the hills and woods nearby roads immersed in nature, which are also found along the rural churches of exceptional beauty. When, on their return home sip wine purchased from Ca Bensi, its authentic flavor will make us come back to mind the beautiful days spent here, and we will certainly want to come back soon.
Frances Bertha