Charming hospitality in Monferrato, Langhe and Roero

At first it was mainly the foreigners, particularly the Germans and English, that discovered the countryside of Piedmont with the Langa hills that for the Italian writer Beppe Fenoglio were not so much a geographic location as a sort of existential landscape, not as striking or tame as Tuscany, and not as wild as the Marches. Yet its secret seductive powers make one love it, soon after discovering this territory with its scents of grape marc, must, hazelnuts, mushrooms and truffles. Now that the Piedmontese have become aware of the beauty of this land of theirs, they have risen to the task of providing suitable hospitality to guests visiting the area.

Made from Langa sandstone, topped with roofs in stone shingles or curved tiles, reinforced with bricks in their arches and vaults, the farmhouses in the Langhe, Roero and Monferrato area once spoke the dry peasant language that knew the meaning of plenty only at grape harvest time. Up in the hills, suspended over a tray of fog, set in an irregular grid of vines, over the past ten years the farmsteads of southeast Piedmont have been converted into country hotels and bed & breakfasts. To the joy of those who come for the wine and truffles. Austere with respect to similar spontaneous architectural conversions, rarely post-modern or minimal, they offer hospitality in reassuring, traditional environments. They are temporary dwellings for the new pilgrims, as they journey down the road of flavours, at times unusual gathering places for contemporary artistic experiments.

This book illustrates, through a series of large colour photographs, twenty of the area’s most attractive resorts, hotels and farm guest houses; some stick to the criteria of the traditional country house, others allow concessions to modernity and luxury, yet their stories are always told slowly, never in a frenetic way. In order to ensure that the beauty of the landscape, the charm of the locations, the flavours of the Piedmontese wine and cuisine are thoroughly savoured.