If you’re visiting Italy, you might be thinking about exploring some of their incredible wine regions. And we all know about Tuscany, but if you’re looking to discover something different, why not check out Piedmont (Piemonte)? Located in the North of Italy just an hour or so drive away from Milan, Piedmonte may not be as well known as Tuscany, but it has so much to discover! Not only is it the home of Barolo and Barbaresco, but it also was where the slow food movement began, and also where some of the most expensive truffles in the world are found! So whether you are a foodie, love wine, want to see incredible scenery or all of the above, you’ll find something you love here. In this travel guide to Piedmont, I highlight some of our favourite spots from our recent trip, as well as some handy tips for planning your own.
Travel guide to Piedmont: An overview
You may not have heard of Piedmont before, but you have probably heard of Barolo or Barbaresco. Piedmont is actually a large region in northern Italy that spans a lot of ground up to the Alps, and so there really is a lot to see even if you don’t love wine. But because the region itself is so big, it is important to know where the wine regions you want to visit are so you can make sure you are in the right spot for you. But if you don’t just want to see wine, rest assured there are plenty of cute villages, and huge cities like Turin to see.
As the region itself is so large, Piedmont is known for more than wine. It is actually where the famous White Truffle is found, so there’s plenty of amazing truffle food to try throughout the year. It’s also the birthplace of famous Italian foods like Nutella and Ferrero Rocher. You should also definitely try the gianduiotto chocolates while you’re there – thank me later!
The scenery is also incredible. Whether it’s the rolling hills of the Barolo covered in vines or the glorious alps. There is so much natural beauty to discover in this region. We loved simply driving around with our eyes glued out the window!
Piedmont grape varieties
Because the region is sheltered by mountains, it is drier and warmer than you’d otherwise expect. This means that late-ripening grapes thrive here. The main grape variety of course is Nebbiolo which is key to Barolo and Barbareso. But you’ll also find plenty of other varieties such as Dolcetto, Barbera, Arneis, Chardonnay, Moscato, Cortese and many more.
Barolo is definitely the most well-known subregion of Piedmont, and the “king of wines” demands a high price tag. The wines from Barolo (using Nebbiolo grapes) are flavourful, aromatic and highly tannic, making them perfect for aging for a minimum of 10-15 years. So if you want to try some wines, keep in mind that Barolo at a tasting will often be too young to be fully appreciated. You might get lucky like us and get to sample something really special like a 1990 and discover just how long you can age them for!
The other main subregion is Barbaresco, known as the Queen of wines. Barbaresco wines tend to be slightly less tannic and so that means that you can usually enjoy them younger, and they tend to be more affordable.
But there are also plenty of more approachable wines to discover, particularly in the Langhe region that sits outside of the Barolo and Barbaresco classifications. You can also try other wines like Dogliani (Dolcetto), Asti (sparkling Moscato), and Gavi (Cortese) for something completely different during your visit! We had some amazing dry sparklings too that were very affordable. So even if you aren’t a fan of big and bold reds, there is something for you.
Travel guide to Piedmont: when to visit
One important thing to consider when planning your visit is that despite the worldwide acclaim for the Barbera and Barbaresco wine regions, most of the wineries are still family-run. You will be surprised by how traditional and small-scale a lot of the wineries are especially when you are planning your visit. It can make it difficult to find wineries that are open, especially on public holidays.
Because of this, I recommend checking for public holidays, as well as opening hours on weekends before your visit. As many of the wineries are family-run they aren’t always open for tastings, especially on public holidays. We visited around Ferragosto which is a huge public holiday in Italy, and we found a lot of the wineries that we contacted were closed for most of August or at least a few weeks. The trade-off is that the scenery is absolutely stunning in August with it being so close to harvest!
I would also recommend visiting in truffle season which is October to December. This will be the busiest time of year to visit but there are a lot of events celebrating truffles. And you might get a taste of white truffle if you have the budget! Just keep in mind it will get a little cooler.
Travel guide to Piedmont: where to stay
It would be easy to look at how large Piedmont is and think you should base yourself in Turin. And Turin is great, don’t get me wrong. There is plenty to do, lots of museums and restaurants, and it is well connected via public transport. However, keep in mind that Turin is over an hour’s drive away from Barolo and Barbaresco. So if you don’t want to be driving to get to the wine regions, I would suggest staying closer to them. And then you can visit Turin on a day trip which I highly recommend!
The other thing I would say is it can be hard to find places to stay in the wine regions themselves as a lot of the wineries are smaller scale. The negative about staying out of town is also that it can be hard to find restaurants, especially if you are there for a few days.
We stayed in Alba which I think is a great in-between for exploring the wine subregions. It is situated pretty much in the middle of Barbaresco and Barolo, and so it’s a great base for seeing both spots with a car. Alba is also a good size as it has plenty of restaurants to visit, but is also small enough that it’s easy to get around.
We stayed at Hotel Langhe which is just out of Alba but a short bike ride away from the main area and had an awesome time. It feels like you are still out of the city, but you are close enough to enjoy all the benefits of being in town. We really enjoyed our stay here and I’d highly recommend it to anyone thinking of visiting.
Towns to visit
There are so many towns to visit around Piedmont, so I wanted to highlight a couple that we visited and loved:
- Barolo – If you love wine you have to visit Barolo. The town itself is very cute and has plenty to discover from wine bars to views of the vineyards. I absolutely loved the wine museum here which had a spot where you could sample wines from across Piedmont.
- Barbaresco – Barbaresco is a little smaller but still worth a visit, especially for the Torre di Barbaresco. For a small fee, you can scale the tower and get an incredible view out across all the wineries. It’s definitely worth a visit for this alone, followed by a wine and aperitivo in the square of course!
- Neive – We weren’t going to visit this town but our hotel recommended it and I’m so glad we did! Neive is near Barbaresco and such a beautiful small town to visit. Not only are all the streets stunning, but there are some awesome wine bars to visit and try wines from around the area.
- Monforte d’Alba – This town is a little south of Barolo and absolutely stunning. Just make sure you have your walking shoes on to walk all the winding streets up to the top! You’ll be rewarded with a stunning view out over the vineyards.
Turin is also a good spot to visit if you want more of a city experience. They have amazing palaces you can see and great aperitivo. It’s also great for a spot of shopping!
Restaurants to visit in Piedmont
A travel guide to Piedmont wouldn’t be complete without talking about food! There are so many great spots to eat in Piedmont, I mean it is Italy after all! Some of my favourites from our trip were:
- Cantina Comunale Di Castiglione Falletto con cucina – We went here for lunch on the day of our winery tour and had the best time. It has a beautiful terrace with a stunning view out over the vineyards. I love that you can choose your wine from inside the store and there are many wines to try from across the region, rather than just from one winery. And the food was absolutely delicious too! I loved the pasta, and we had an incredible pork with hazelnut sauce that I still dream about.
- Osteria dell’Arco – In Alba, you are spoilt for choice when it comes for restaurants, but one of our favourite spots we visited was Osteria dell’Arco. The food was absolutely incredible, and it was very affordable too. I loved everything we ate, and the wine list was great too. It had plenty of options for different budgets, and we had one of my favourite wines there. Definitely remember to book though because we saw a lot of people turned away!
- La Duchessa Pizzeria – I’m not normally one to have pizza everywhere in Italy, but on the public holiday we were looking for a restaurant that was open and not having much luck. We stumbled upon this pizza place that was absolutely packed with locals. So we sat down and ordered 10 euro pizzas and a bottle of wine, and it was one of the best pizzas I had on the trip! I was blown away by how delicious it was, and how cheap the meal was too!
Wineries to visit in Piedmont
We didn’t visit as many wineries as I would have liked to due to many of them being closed, but here are the ones that we loved while we were there.
Montaribaldi
Montaribaldi is located near Barbaresco and is a great spot to visit for lovely views, a great tour and delicious wine. We had a four-person tour of the winery followed by a tasting and it was a lovely morning. We were warmly welcomed and I learnt a lot on the tour of the winery and cellar. The wines were also absolutely delicious from their sparkling to their reds. And the views from the tasting terrace make it worth a visit alone!
The tasting for us was 20 euros per person and needed to be booked ahead.
Alessandro Rivetto
Alessandro Rivetto is a great spot to visit for a by-appointment tasting experience. It was really special to visit and taste the wines just the two of us, and be able to ask as many questions as we wanted. We had a great visit and learned so much throughout the comprehensive tasting. Although the tasting was a little more expensive, it was worth it for the personalised experience. Out of the wineries we visited, I definitely learned the most in this tasting and probably enjoyed the wines the most too. Bonus points for the cutest wine dog, Buddy!
The tasting was 40 euros per person and by appointment only.
G.D. Vajra
G.D. Vajra is a great spot to visit near Barolo and has plenty of tours available when you contact them. On the tour, you visit their winery and cellar and learn all about their winemaking process as well as their history. The winery has beautiful stained glass windows which are beautiful to see, and lovely views across the vineyards. We’d had some of their wines before so it was great to try more of their range. Each tasting is tailored to the group so you’re sure to find something you love!
The tasting was 25 euros and you need to book ahead.
Marchesi di Barolo
Marchesi di Barolo is right in Barolo and a bit more commercial than some of the other wineries we visited. But don’t let that deter you as the wines here are great, and the tour is awesome too. You learn a lot about the history behind the winery, as well as the region. I also thought it was good that they had multiple tasting options so you could choose what you wanted to try based on what you wanted to spend.
The tasting was 35 euros each and you’ll need to book in advance.
Vinoland Wine Store
If you want to try a number of different wines from the area, we stopped at Vinoland in Neive and had a great time. You have to pay for the tasting but we ended up getting to try a lot more than what the tasting was meant to include which was great. They also tailored it so we could compare different grapes or different styles of winemaking. It was definitely one of the best tastings we had on the trip, and the service was amazing. We ended up staying there for almost two hours!
In summary: Travel guide to Piedmont
I hope this travel guide to Piedmont helps you to plan your own trip to this incredible region. Whether you head there to explore the scenery and small towns, enjoy some delicious food or discover some great wine, there really is something for everyone to discover!