The ultimate city guide to Alba, Italy
Alba is undoubtedly the most representative city of the province of Cuneo in Piedmont, pearl of the extraordinary Langhe area which has approx. 31,000 inhabitants. The town – which in 2009 climbed the ranking of municipalities over 10,000 residents with the best quality of life reaching first place – is located in a predominantly hilly area.
The historic center of the city still has a medieval structure, with an almost circular plan and the characteristic tower-houses. It is the economic and cultural capital of the Langhe, the name of the typical ridges that give an unmistakable appearance to the hills between the Tanaro and Bormida valleys.
A bit of history
Already inhabited in prehistoric times, as evidenced by the findings of a Neolithic village, it became an important Roman settlement known by the name of Alba Pompeia attributed to it by the consul Gneo Pompeo Strabone before becoming the “City of the Hundred Towers”: many were those arranged between the ‘ 300 and the ‘400 along the walls that protected the town, a medieval heritage of which there are few remains, however clearly visible, which continue to poetically and historically determine the profile of the skyline.
Jacobin republic under Napoleon, Alba found itself in the mournful vortex of the Second World War, quickly becoming one of the theaters of confrontation between partisans and Nazi occupiers in the dark period of the Resistance, narrated by the writers Cesare Pavese and Beppe Fenoglio, to whom Alba was the birthplace in 1922 subsequently dedicating to him the homonymous Association. Center for Studies of Literature, History, Art and Culture onlus. The city, thanks to the brave deeds of its inhabitants, has earned the Gold Medal for Military Valor, an honor that it sports with great pride on the banner.
Remarkable is the economic blazon that it has been able to acquire over time by acting as an accomplice cradle to the proliferation of important internationally recognized companies, now established industries whose turnover contributes significantly to the national GDP. This is first and foremost the land of wines that well represent Piedmontese winemaking culture, so much so that Alba is the university seat of the Faculty of Viticulture and Oenology, located at the “Umberto I” Agricultural Technical Institute. The nectar of Bacchus – in particular Barbera, Nebbiolo, Dolcetto (DOC triptych) and Barbaresco and Moscato (DOCG diptych), leaders of a highly appreciated selection – sprinkles the sinuous cavities of local gastronomy, whose spearhead is naturally made up of truffles, a treasure of unmistakable aroma and perfume that grows abundantly in the subsoil among the soft and luxuriant hills of the hinterland.
What to visit in the center of Alba
From an architectural point of view, Alba looks like a very orderly city, divided into long streets and large squares, among which the nerve center Piazza Savona stands out, an elected meeting place overlooked by elegant buildings and many clubs and restaurants, some now historical. In Piazza Risorgimento stands the landmark of the locality, namely its imposing Gothic Cathedral, already present in the twelfth century with its bell tower. On the façade, you can admire the beautiful Romanesque portals, the icon of San Lorenzo created by Luigi Cocchio in 1878 and the symbols of the Four Evangelists, namely the Angel, the Lion, the Ox and the Eagle (the initials form the name Sunrise).
Internally they preside over the splendid holy water stoup from 1503 and the eight altars that adorn the room. In front of the wooden choir with 35 inlaid seats is the canvas depicting the Martyrdom of San Donato, while on the vault there is the scene of the prophet Elijah offering his cloak to Sant’Eliseo. Moving to the sacristy, admire the valuable bas-relief with the Madonna and Child, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Apostle, work of 1507. Finally, a visit to the basement of the church is required, where the bodies of the bishops rest in the Cathedral. served.
The square hosts the large Aleramic market every Saturday, which Italian and foreign tourists do not give up, being able to come into contact with a strictly short-chain trade; the last weekend of May is instead the turn, again in this location, of the Feste Fiorite, which offer concerts and various dance and theater performances Via Vittorio Emanuele II.
It is the ancient “via Maestra”, with both medieval and Renaissance buildings and decorations, including the Belli and Serralunga palaces, Casa Fontana. Also worth visiting is Piazza Umberto I, formerly Piazza Savona, with the avenues that surround the center according to the layout of the Roman walls, of which some ruins remain.
Alba also includes the G. Busca Theater, inaugurated in 1855 and today used as a place for meetings, conferences and performances of various kinds. Returning to religious architecture, it is the harbinger of other ecclesiastical examples, clearly minor compared to the aforementioned Cathedral, yet significant: it includes the thirteenth-century Church of San Domenico, the Church of Santa Caterina, the Temple of San Paolo but also the Church of Christ Re and that of Saints Cosma and Damiano, along with many who docilely rage in the urban center.
Not to be missed is the “Federico Eusebio” Archaeological and Natural Sciences Museum. It has exhibited about 1500 pieces (tools, axes, hatchets in polished stone, ceramics) of the Neolithic age, of bronze and iron found during the excavations of the last century and which testify to the importance of the existing settlement in the prehistoric era in the surroundings of present inhabited center. It also houses Roman period material such as oil lamps, funerary furnishings, cinerary urns, coins, various ceramics from Campania, Arezzo, Italic, southern Gallic.
Events and fairs
Among the events, we remember first the truffle fair. It takes place from the first Sunday in October to the third Sunday in November. Created in the period between the two wars by the hotelier Giacomo Morra, it has an international reputation. It is dedicated to the white truffle or Alba truffle, an exclusive specialty of Italian cuisine, which has its main area in Piedmont and above all in the woods of the Langhe. It is identified and unearthed by the “trifulau” (collectors), who trade it at the fair. It can be worth up to 300-400 euros per hectogram. It grows in early autumn and until the first snowfalls. The event is anticipated by the Palio degli Asini.
The Vinum spring fair is dedicated to wine. However, do not forget the other gem, namely Albese meat, to be eaten raw marinated with oil, salt and pepper and accompanied by very tasty native breadsticks. The typical cuisine includes, among others, the tajarin (fresh Piedmontese tagliatelle), fondue, braised meat in Barolo, the inflated Vitello tonnato (they are now served everywhere in Italy) and, in the parterre of sweet first fruits, the fabulous stuffed peaches, the pastes of corn and the entrancing hazelnut cake (from the Langhe, of course). The influential industrial realities travel in unison with the management of agricultural resources.
Here, one of the flagships of Italian entrepreneurship acts, Ferrero S.p.A., a producer of excellent confectionery and above all of the famous Nutella, so good thanks to the exquisite hazelnuts of the Langhe that are harvested in large quantities. Of course, this company is constantly on everyone’s lips, yet others dot the economic landscape of Alba and are the Miroglio Group specialized in fashion and the textile sector, the Mondo as regards flooring, toys and motor yachts, and finally the Società San Paolo afferent to publishing
Also worth mentioning is the Giostra Dalle Cento Torri, an event with great historical heat.
Curiosities about the truffle
Great credit for the popularity of the Alba truffle goes to the pharmacist Luciano De Giacomi, grandmaster of the ‘Order of the Knights of the Truffle and Alba Wines “, who founded the association’ ‘to defend and spread the genuine gastronomy and wines ” of his city. Starting with the truffle, the vulgar name of some species of the genus “tuber” (in Latin, “terrae tuber”, earth tuber): ascomycete mushrooms with characteristic tubercle-shaped fruit bodies. They grow underground, isolated or in small groups, remaining in a relationship of mycorrhizal symbiosis with the roots of oaks, hazelnuts, poplars, willows. The white truffle, although it was already known in ancient times, began to be valued only at the beginning of the last century when the bourgeoisie of Alba called the nurses and young maids of the Langhe to the city, who brought their traditional recipes.
Where to eat truffles and other specialties of the Langhe
Some places are recognized among the best restaurants in the north: Da Beppe, Daniel’s, La Capannina, Il Nuovo San Giorgio, up to the Savona hotel. You can taste the specialties with truffles, which is the essence of Alba cuisine: the main one is the fondue made with melted fontina cheese. The fresh truffle goes well with Piedmontese risotto as well as with tagliatelle, with several meat dishes and with game (which, by the way, already has a strong taste). Other specialties: the “bagnacauda” and the rare lasagna.
Shopping: Wines, as well as truffles. There are six noble wines in the area: Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera d’Alba, Nebbiolo d’Alba, Dolcetto d’Alba, natural Moscato.
In the surroundings, visit Diano d’Alba and Montelupo Albese. Along a road with a solitary and grandiose landscape. Grinzane Cavour. Visit the 13th-century terracotta castle, former residence of the statesman Camillo Cavour, now home to a restaurant and the regional wine shop: tasting, purchase of grappa and wines.
How to get to Alba
By car, it is advisable to take the A6 Turin-Savona motorway (exit at Marene, connection with the A33 Asti-Cuneo, exit Cherasco, Pollenzo and finally the highway for Alba SS231) or the A21 Turin-Piacenza (exit Asti Est, connection with the A33 Asti-Cuneo, highway for Alba SS231); trains depart from Turin Porta Nuova or Porta Susa station which require a change in Cavallermaggiore or Bra; the two direct bus lines depart from Piazza Carducci, which can be reached by underground in the direction of Lingotto, Carducci stop; the closest airport is Sandro Pertini in Caselle Torinese.
