A fabulous world on the hills, between history and good food: a trip to Costigliole d'Asti

A splendid green hill dominating the valley, immersed among endless vineyards, fields and woods, with a castle on top that seems to come out of a fairy tale: enormous, with four circular towers and red decorations. Only a child could invent a place like this — yet it really exists, and it is not even far from the big cities of the North, such as Milan, Turin, Genoa or Alessandria. To put it in the words of the historian Gian Secondo De Canis, who lived between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, “Giace Costigliole sul dorso, ed attorno d'una collinetta di figura conica, sulla cui vetta sta il massiccio quadrato castello in ottimo stato, fiancheggiato da quattro grosse rotonde torri”.

The Castle, which could be called the symbolic monument of this lovely Asti town set between Monferrato and the Langhe, was built between the XIV-XV centuries and remodelled into its current Gothic-style forms in the nineteenth century. Over the centuries it was the home of various noble families, and figures such as the expert wine lover Filippo Asinari di S. Marzano, who promoted viticulture, or the countess of Castiglione Virginia Verasis, to whom Cavour entrusted the task of ambassador of Piedmont at the Parisian court of Napoleon III, also resided here. After these illustrious historical figures who passed through here, we too begin to discover the beauties of Costigliole d'Asti, starting with the Parish Church of Nostra Signora di Loreto, located in the highest part of the village, called “la rocca”, opposite the Castle.

It dates back to the late sixteenth century and was enlarged and enriched with works of art in the following centuries. The other best-known church of Costigliole is that of the Confraternity of San Gerolamo, inside which we visited the Museum of Sacred Art, which preserves the most significant testimonies of the religious heritage of Costigliole from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Wandering through the characteristic little streets, from which numerous openings onto the splendid surrounding hills appear, we discover that the history of Costigliole is deeply tied to the history of its hamlets.

If the beauty of the Castle left us open-mouthed, chatting with the locals we learn that in the hamlet of Burio stands another important castle, which probably owes its name to the ancient Ligurian stock of the Euburiates, as well as several further hamlets where the remains of ancient castles, by now demolished, are still present, such as the Motta Tanagri, Bionzo, Cavorro, or Lù, on Monte Leucio. The area of Costigliole is also very rich in myths and legends, the best known of which is the one linked to Laureti, that is the hamlet of Loreto, which the earliest legendary accounts would trace back even to one of the first places inhabited by the sons of Noah after the Universal Flood. After this walk through the history of Costigliole, for our dinner we return to the foot of the Castle that enchanted us so much, at the Ristorante Enoteca Caffè Roma in the very central Piazza Umberto I.

We are in the most historic establishment of the village, carved out of spaces once connected to the Castle and used centuries ago as stables and cellars. We settle into the room with the brick vaults of great charm and walls crammed with bottles of wine, and while we begin to study the menu we chat with the owners Anna and Gino Risso. “In 1984, the year we opened, this was a simple village bar. After a while we began to introduce platters of cured meats and cheeses with a glass of wine, like a snack, and little by little we became a wine bar with a kitchen, a trattoria and a vineria, without giving up being a café too”, Anna and Gino tell us, who run the place with their children Alessio, the cook, and Simone who welcomes guests in the dining room.

We start our dinner with a rich Piedmontese starter: the fabulous hand-chopped raw meat, the Russian salad, the cardoon flan and the Monviso, with lard, chestnuts and battered vegetables. The dishes change with the season, but some classics are always there, such as the ravioli del plin with roast sauce, which we enjoy with great pleasure, along with the exquisite minestrone served in bread. We wash down these delicacies with mainly local wines, appreciating the fact that they are also available by the glass. We continue with the chicken cacciatora, the roast beef cooked in hay and the traditional finanziera. We also very much appreciate several dishes based on freshwater fish, as well as the bagna caoda and a rich platter of cured meats and cheeses including the Roccaverano made from raw goat's milk.

Finally, we give in more than gladly to the sweet temptation of the bunet, the tiramisù and the zabaione with hazelnut cake. During this lovely day, which we hope to repeat soon, we have established that in Costigliole d'Asti, besides the Castle, the cuisine and the wines are fabulous too.

Francesca Bertha

FOR INFORMATION:

Enoteca con cucina – Caffè Roma Piazza Umberto I, 14 Costigliole d'Asti (AT) Tel.: 0141/966544