Between art and wine in the capital of Monferrato: A journey to Casale Monferrato

A beautiful city of art, immersed in the green of the hills, surrounded by vineyards and crossed by a great river: the dream of many would be to live in a place like this. We are on the banks of the river Po, the great cities of the industrial triangle of the North are within reach, but here in place of the chaos of the metropolises a small-scale, human-sized atmosphere reigns. Yet Casale Monferrato, the destination of this weekend of ours, is a capital: the capital of Monferrato. The programme of our day foresaw a full immersion both in the artistic beauties and in the food-and-wine delicacies of the city, and we soon discovered that the artistic and the wine-producing aspects here really go hand in hand.

In the same years in which the famous Symbolist sculptor Leonardo Bistolfi created some of his best-known works, such as "La sfinge", "Il boaro" or the imposing symbolic female figures such as "La patria" or "Verso la luce", in Casale Monferrato one of the historic wine companies was born, the Azienda agricola e Agriturismo Bottazza, today run by the brothers Piero and Renzo Leporati, together with their children Giorgio, Roberto and Marco. Already in 1898 the company was awarded distinguished recognitions in the various national competitions. One of the first destinations of our tour was precisely the Gipsoteca Bistolfi, inside the Museo Civico. The artist was born in Casale Monferrato in 1859 and in the five rooms of the Gipsoteca more than one hundred and seventy of his works are displayed.

In the Museo Civico we were also able to admire the masterpieces of other great artists from Casale, such as for example the paintings of Pier Francesco Guala, an 18th-century painter, as well as numerous other works dating back to previous centuries. During our walk in the large pedestrian area of the historic centre, we also visited two marvellous sacred buildings: the Duomo di Sant'Evasio and the Synagogue, built in Baroque rococo style in the 16th century and restored in 1969. The Duomo, of an evocative beauty, is the oldest monument of Casale Monferrato, and is also one of the most important cathedrals in the Lombard Romanesque style of Piedmont. After the art of the monuments and museums, we turned to that of nature and good food, moving to the Agriturismo Bottazza, on the Strada Vecchia per Pozzo Sant'Evasio.

In these areas, as a little throughout Monferrato, the culture of vine cultivation and wine production dates back to the Middle Ages, and this tradition is always among the liveliest, to the point that the Festa del Vino del Monferrato, a famous wine festival, in September of this year returned to enliven Casale Monferrato for the forty-ninth time. Over the centuries wine production was also regulated by many iron rules. In a precious volume of the Statutes of Casale Monferrato, a parchment document, rubricated and bound in worked leather, one reads as many as twenty-eight articles, drafted in the 14th century to protect local wine production. Among the many prohibitions, there was also the one that forbade outsiders to walk in the vineyards from mid-August until the end of September.

Fortunately this ancient rule does not apply to the guests of the Agriturismo Bottazza: as soon as we arrived, we were offered a lovely walk among the rows. "The company extends over about 60 hectares of land of which 34 are planted with vines with Barbera, Dolcetto, Grignolino, Freisa, Chardonnay, Cortese, Pinot and Moscato varieties", Mr Roberto explained to us while we admired the enormous bunches ready for the harvest. After the vineyards, to the delight of our friends' children, we visited the calves and cows of the company, who watched us curiously as we wandered around the stable. Once at the table, we had a further confirmation of how art and nature intertwine in this place: in the room, where weddings are also organised, there were some very beautiful pieces of furniture, genuine sculptures carved from enormous tree trunks: they are the works of Mr Renzo, Roberto's father.

But art also manifested itself on the culinary level: we began with Piedmontese appetisers such as raw meat alla Monferrina with a dusting of truffle, and with excellent peppers in bagna cauda. In choosing the first courses we let ourselves go with some risottos, tasting the peach risotto, and the one with berries. Our friends instead opted for the pumpkin lasagne. As a main course, we tasted a very good braised beef with vegetables, postponing to next time the unmissable plan of also tasting the mixed fry of the house, as well as other types of roasts prepared with the company's veal. We returned to the metropolis enriched by a unique experience, steeped in beauty and taste, and certain that we want to repeat it soon.

Francesca Bertha