Piedmont Winery Authentic Italy - Culinary Luminaries - Green Vacations - For Wine Lovers

Character: Two classic Piedmontese inns. One offers five-star gourmet meals and simple rooms in a large family home; the other offers elegant guest rooms in a teeny ancient hamlet. Both are surrounded by prime vineyards. Advantages: A nice opportunity to experience Piedmont living, with private accommodations in your hosts' home or at the Guesthouse. The food is truly memorable. Location: In Canelli, in the heart of Piedmont's Langhe district, which produces some of Italy's finest foods and wines. Close to Alba, Asti and Aqui Terme, 65 miles from Turin, 100 miles from Milan. Click here to see a map. Size: The Main House features one double room with bathroom; one triple room with bathroom; one apartment with kitchen, living room with sleep sofa, panoramic double bedroom and bathroom; and one cottage featuring a living room with sleep sofa, double bedroom, bathroom, and panoramic balcony. The Guesthouse is 500 yards away and has six extremely charming double rooms, many with romantic canopy beds and private doors opening directly onto the garden. Features: Price includes breakfast; a wonderful dinner is also available at the Main House, prepared by your hosts, former owners of one of Turin's best restaurants, and served with top-notch Piedmontese wines. Minimum stay: Two nights. Disadvantages: No swimming pool (but there is a public one very nearby). The Guesthouse is more elegant than the Main House, but dinner is served only in the Main House, so you have to drive home afterward (it takes only five minutes). There is no elevator in either building. Car needed: Yes.

Lovers of fine wine and food will never want to leave this panoramic winery, set in a gorgeous valley where an ageold local tradition sees the farmers burning old grapevines on the night of the August full moon as an omen for a good harvest. Perhaps it was on one of these bewitching evenings that your host Franco first fell in love with this hilltop paradise and vowed to make it his. Back in Turin, where he and his wife Ester were pluri-awarded local chefs, the city folks thought he was mad. But Franco knew better. Nestled in the hills of Piedmont's famed Le Langhe region, overlooking the world's best moscato and spumanti vineyards, the land he has owned for thirty years now offers a tranquil setting for his friendly hospitality and his wife's unforgettable meals.

This is genteel country living at its best. Ester and Franco have restored every inch of their property, with loving concern for even the tiniest detail. The Main House actually had to be rebuilt from scratch, because it had been constructed using bricks made from limestone and moscato wine - this ancient local technique may sound enchanting, but the bricks had a nasty habit of melting in the heat! So they replaced them, creating a portico that would capture the summer breezes and the winter sun. Inside, a vast collection of paintings and baskets of fresh fruit enliven the warm, spacious sitting room where guests can enjoy an early evening aperitivo or catch the latest news on CNN. Upstairs, the homelike accommodations include a double room with private bath; a triple room with double bed, single bed and private bath; an apartment featuring a living room with TV, two single sleep sofas (suitable for children), a table for four overlooking the vineyards, a kitchenette with mini-fridge, sink and stove, a double bedroom lined with picture windows, and a bathroom with washing machine; and a small cottage featuring a living room with sleep sofa, double bedroom, bathroom, and panoramic balcony accessed by living room and bedroom. This cottage is 20 yards from the house and is accessed via a short stairway. Inside the house, the triple room can be connected to the apartment for larger groups. If no rooms are available for your dates, you may stay in the Apartment or Cottage for the same price as the rooms.

Five hundred yards away is the Guesthouse. Here you'll find a spacious shared living room with fireplace, a sunny breakfast room, a wine tasting cellar, and six double bedrooms all with private modern tiled bathroom (with bathtub, hand-held shower and glass door). On the ground floor, Bianca has a queen canopy bed and full-sized day bed. Vistavigna has a Liberty-style dresser and bed. Upstairs, Gialla and Rossa each open onto the garden and have a queen bed. Verde has a queen canopy bed and room for a single bed. Blu has a queen canopy bed and full-sized day bed. While all the bathrooms in both houses are modern, the rooms are furnished with the heavy wooden 19th-century pieces that are typical of this region.

Back at the Main House, the sitting room serves as center stage for meals, prepared using ageold local recipes and the farm's own fresh fruits and vegetables. Each course is accompanied by a different wine, and you'll be able to sample plenty of the Dolcetto, Cortese and Moscato wines which come from the lush vineyards just outside the doors.

There aren't enough days for trips in this area: you'll want to visit lovely Asti (just 15 miles away), the truffle haven of Alba (20 miles) and the spa town of Acqui Terme (15 miles - its pristine medieval streets are virtually devoid of tourists). Or set out with no known destination, ramble through the rolling hills and stop in every picturesque little town, tasting world-class wines and delicious hearty food along the way. If you're here in the fall, you'll encounter myriad local festivals celebrating wine, grapes, truffles and wild mushrooms. Of course you can also relax on the estate, learn how to play bocce, stroll through the vineyards to the Guesthouse, or drive a mile down the road to the public tennis courts, swimming pool and riding stables. When you do have to leave, you're about 65 miles from Turin and Genova, about 100 miles from Milan.

For this property:
We strongly urge you to dine at least once at Piedmont Winery - the price is 30 Euro/person plus beverages and you will not get better food in the area at any price (although it is VERY easy to pay much higher prices in this area!). Click here to see a sample menu
French, Spanish and basic English spoken
Prices are based on double occupancy

Please note that you need a car to stay here.

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