‘LCarlo Veronese explains to a group of diners in Bosmenso that they should look at the color. “Try it out and see how it smells. Then, check its flexibility.” After paying attention to the appearance, structure and smell of the food we are about to taste it.
The world’s most popular salami, according to many, is not what we will be tasting. salame di VarziThe 15 villages that surround the town with the same name are located in the south-east of Lombardy.
With 3,000 inhabitants and eight centuries of towers, churches, porticos and a castle, Varzi is one of the jewels of the little-visited Oltrepò Pavese. Oltre This is the area of Pavia province that lies south of the Po River and climbs up from the valley to the Appenines.
With 1,724-metre (5,656ft) Monte Lesima at its southern point, the Oltrepò is roughly the shape of a bunch of grapes – appropriate as this is an important winemaking area. The world’s third largest producer of pinot-noir grapes, after Burgundy and Champagne, the Oltrepo is shaped like a bunch of grapes.
Which is astonishing, as the area is as gorgeous as its nickname – the “Tuscany of the north” – suggests. Its green hills look like a fairytale, with their castles, medieval abbeys such as Fortunago or remote homesteads. Since Covid, Italians have made more use of their own backyard. Prices are low, and there are few tourists. You can drive, walk or cycle for hours without ever seeing another soul.
Renting bikes from Dionisio Cicli in Rivanazzano Terme. The Oltrepò’s biggest town, Voghera, on the mainline from Milan, is the starting point of the Greenway Voghera-VarziThe former rail line is perfect for cycling or walking.
Bagnaria is a village with cherry orchards. We have a coffee break in Salice Terme – a spa town from the 19th century with a large park. We cycle through fields of matching red poppies and trees covered in glossy, ripe fruits early in the summer. Visitors can try the cherry products, applaud the prizewinners, and enjoy cherry risotto and local wine at a festival held on the second or third Sunday of June.
The Oltrepò’s unspoilt nature shows in its impressive biodiversity: this area of just over 380 square miles has, for example, about double the number of species of butterfly as the UK, which has 59. There are many designated butterfly walksBut we see beauties in every color, including red, orange and yellow, as well as pale greens and black and whites.
We are on a trail that was once well-traveled. It is peaceful today. The Staffora valley formed part of the ancient Via del Sale, the trade route on which wool and weapons from the north of Italy were taken by mule over the Giovà pass to seaports in Liguria to exchange for precious salt for use in delicious salami, among other things.
Varzi can be reached from the west. We leave the Greenway behind and enter a maze narrow alleyways. Porticoed streets with three-storey shops and merchant houses show how important the town was as a stop on the salt route. Castello Malaspina is a 13th century castle hidden in the center. It was recently reopened to host weddings, events and guided tours, as well as wine and salami samplings. Current owner Enrico Odetti, descended from the family that was given the land in 1164 by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, has plans to add a dozen B&B rooms.
A 12th-century record shows the Marquise of Malaspina selling a prized heirloom. salame di Varzi There are many places to try this dish in the city, but it is best enjoyed in the nearby countryside. We drive south to Bosmenso to visit the fourth generation Buscone (sisters Ornella Roberta Marina), who make salami with semi-wild pork that is free to rootle around for acorns. The salami is aged for at minimum three months and usually six. They also own the Buscone Restaurant. Roberta says, “It is in our DNA.”
As instructed by Carlo we note the rich red and pure white of the salami – cut on a diagonal with a knife – its aromas of grassy fields, crusty bread and mild garlic, and the sweet yet deeply savoury taste. It makes a perfect antipasto with pickled veg from their garden, plus glasses of Bonarda, the Oltrepò’s classic slightly sparkling red.
We visit wineries in the days that follow (see below), and we eat well. This fuels us for the activities like a five-mile circular walk through the chestnut forests from Moglie village to the Sant’Alberto di Butrio Hermitage on a steep hillside. The complex, which dates back to the 10th century, is surrounded with roses, beehives and geraniums. One of its three chapels has frescoes that look just as vibrant as they did 600 years ago. Pizzocorno is famous for the strong-smelling, hardy cheese it produces from milk. vacca varzese cows.
The following day, we visit a gallery founded by Franco Riccardi in Rivanazzano.artartnews.com, €10/£8.50pp), who has spent the past 50 years putting together a treasure house, in a former wine warehouse, of paintings and sculptures from the 1930s to 70s.
There is also a modern art museum at Castello dal Verme in the east of the Oltrepò. This corner of Lombardy seems to have good living down to an art, whether it is pork, wine or untrodden hillside.
Wines
You can also find out more about us on our website. Cà del GeIn the high green hills of Tuscany, Sara and Stefania, the daughters of Enzo Padroggi who founded this winery, produce quality rieslings using grapes usually associated with Germany. 5,000 bottles are produced each year. méthode champenoise sparkling. TravaglinoA former monastery in the mountains of Monte Ceresino uses pinot noir to make a more intense “champagne”. We also enjoy a red Pernero with wild strawberries and balsamic vinaigrette. Castello di Luzzano Giovanella, a winemaker and sculptor who has spent more than 40 year working at the estate that her father developed, is in charge. The courtyard features a spider created from bike chain, sparkplugs, oystershells and wire. Her wine labels also feature modern artworks. The family-owned business is located up winding lanes of the Ardivestra Valley. Castello di StefanagoGiacomo Baruffaldi grows 20 hectares organic biodynamic vines. We particularly like his Ancestrale 36 sparkling rosé.
Restaurants
In the hill town of Nazzano, Il Belvedere Its name is true, with panoramic views of the surrounding area. Staffora valley Stefano Migliora serves up a wide variety of vegetarian and traditional Italian food. It also offers charcuterie. Ristorante BusconeThe kitchen at the restaurant near Varzi offers homemade pastas, mains like roast duck and garden vegetables, or tasty caramelised pork ribs. The kitchen at Salice Terme is a great place to eat. Il Caminetto Giovanna is still at the helm, rattling pans even though she’s 82. They have a risotto made with Voghera yellow sweet peppers, and they bake to order. cannonciniPastry tubes filled with cream
What to do?
As tourism grows, the number of hotels in the region is gradually increasing. Castello di Luzzano has four romantic doubles in what used to be a salt route tollhouse, from €130 including breakfast on a shady terrace. Near Godiasco’s Greenway Ristorante Italia is a great pizzeria with B&B in simple rooms from €90. The rooms start at EUR90. Terme spa at Rivanazzano has serene, well-equipped apartments from €99 per person, including spa entry, treatments from €20.
The trip was sponsored by the Oltrepò Wine and Tourism Consortium
