Photo of Autumn vineyards in Serralunga d’Alba by Michael McKechnie
We love Italy at any time of year but come October and harvest time, Italy is a foodie’s paradise. So we thought we’d highlight a few foodie reasons to visit Italy this October. If you’re planning a trip and want to get around with your own set of wheels, see our Italy car hire page for your choice of locations and to get a quote.
In praise of the truffle in Alba
Truffles are like gold in the foodie world. Hailed as a delicacy and even an aphrodisiac, truffles are the most expensive food in the world. It’s amazing to think that truffles are fungi! I’m no truffle connoisseur but what I love about it is how simply it can be enjoyed. You don’t need an overly complicated gastronomic dish – a few truffle shavings can lift a good simple plate of pasta, risotto or even fried eggs to the loftiest of heights. Of course, those few shavings will also lift the price up too!
In the world of gastronomy, the harder to find white truffle is the king of truffles. More difficult to cultivate and apparently the tastiest variety, white truffles can cost up to three times as much as the best of the black truffles – which is a lot!
A white truffle from Alba
Photo by Blue moon in her eyes
Alba White Truffle Fair – 11 October to 16 November
They are, however, at their prime and therefore less harder to find in October where they are celebrated at the Alba White Truffle Fair. Taking place over a series of weekends from 11 October to 16 November, the fair includes a truffle market (there will be plenty of other food and wine events too), cookery shows and dinners with top chefs alongside art exhibitions, wine walks, medieval reenactments and even a donkey race!
The official website has full details of the programme in English and is definitely worth a look at if you plan to be in the area during the fair: www.fieradeltartufo.org. You can also see our write up of the annual event as well as details of how to get to Alba in our blog: Truffle weekends in Alba.
Sunset over Alba
Photo by Rob L
For chocolate lovers, head to Perugia
At the heart of Italy is chocolate. This is because Perugia, which pretty much lies at the centre of Italy, is Italy’s capital for chocolate. As well as being home to a number of chocolate factories, the annual Eurochocolate Festival returns to Perugia from 17 to 26 October.
Eurochocolate Festival, Perugia – 17 October to 26 October
The festival takes over several town squares including Piazza IV Noviembre, Piazza Italia and part of the covered market. Chocolatiers from across Italy and the world will have stands, tastings and demonstrations. They’ll be celebrating chocolate in all its forms from cakes to drinks and even in sculpture form! For the true chocoholic amongst you, there is a ‘chococard’ which you can buy at €5, which will give you discounts and free samples at various Eurochocolate affiliated stands, events and shops.
Eurochocolate Festival… think cakes might be big this year!
Kisses from Italy
Baci in Italian means kisses and that’s the name given to Italy’s most well known chocolate. They’re made by Perugina whose factory lies just a short drive from Perugia’s city centre and which offers tours. For them, an Italian kiss is made with a chocolate and hazelnut filling and covered in dark chocolate. Sounds like a good kiss to me! (You’ll find that Italians are rather fond of the chocolate and hazelnut combo, which they call gianduja… They did invent Nutella after all!)
Beyond chocolate, Perugia is a pretty and easy city to explore. Like lots of Italian cities, you’ll find it choc-a-block with cobbled alleyways, historic architecture and atmospheric piazzas. With Autumn in full flow, it’s a fantastic time to explore the hilly Umbrian countryside too.
For more information about this year’s festival, visit: www.eurochocolate.com/perugia2014 (unfortunately, information is only available in Italian). Perugia is just over 2 hours north from Rome and 2 hours south of Florence.
Pretty Perugia
Steps at Piazza IV Novembre
Photos by luca:sehnsucht and Martin Thomas
For the ultra foodie, head to Turin and slow down…
Every region in Italy will proudly boast about their culinary traditions and cuisine. But the city of Turin can boast what is probably the biggest food festival in all of Italy. This is the Salone del Gusto and Terra Madre food fair. Primarily targeting food producers and food industry types, there is plenty to enjoy for people who just thoroughly enjoy food too.
Salone del Gusto & Terra Madre International Food Festival, 23 to 27 October
Events include cooking classes, dinners by top chefs, tasting workshops as well as foodie events for the kids too. Lots of the events need to be booked in advance so do plan ahead. The official website for the festival has all you need to know (in English too!): www.salonedelgusto.com. You can also download a full programme for the festival and book tickets for particular events from the website.
View of Turin from Palazzo Madama
Aperitivo at Caffe Mulassano
Turin boasts a number or historic and utterly fabulous cafés that are worth a try. There is also a big chocolate tradition and it’s a fab gateway to the Piedmont region’s vineyards… See more of our travel tips as well as our guides to Turin Airport and Turin car hire in our blog.
More Turin tips
Turin is home to the Slow Food movement and it’s a fab city to learn about it. See our earlier post for more information: Experience slow food in Turin. Do also pick up or download a copy of Maestri del Gusto (Masters of Taste) – it’s basically a food bible for the region with listings of food producers (including wineries, cheesemongers, gelaterias, bakeries, chocolatiers and so much more). It’s definitely a must to have with you whilst you’re there! You can usually download it from Turin’s local government website. And here’s a link directly to the current version.
Love food, love Italy
Here’s more from our blog on a foodie fabulous Italy…