Barolo (Bareu or Bareul in Piedmontese) is an Italian town of 683 inhabitants in the province of Cuneo, in Piedmont known for giving its name to Barolo wine. The municipality is part of the world heritage with the Langhe of Barolo.
Church of San Donato, parish church.
Church of the Madonna Assunta, subsidiary church.
Church of
Sant'Agostino.
Church of San Ponzio, parish church in the hamlet
of Vergne.
Barolo Castle
Inside
the rooms, the Historical Library ordered by Silvio Pellico and the
Museum of Farmers can be visited. Art exhibitions are often set up.
The Regional Enoteca of Barolo is located in the ancient cellars.
Since 2007 it has been part of the 8 castles Castelli Doc circuit.
The network of castles includes the manors of Grinzane Cavour,
Barolo, Serralunga d'Alba, Govone, Magliano Alfieri, Roddi, Mango
and Benevello. It is also included in the "Open Castles" circuit of
Lower Piedmont. The history of the castle is believed to have begun,
given the absence of historical documents on its birth, in the 10th
century, when Berengar I allowed the local feudal lord to erect an
effective defense against the frequent raids of the Hungarians and
Saracens. Very little remains of that original structure: the keep,
still visible today, is part of it. The first written testimony
dates back to the 13th century in a deed of transfer of property by
the Lords of Marcenasco in favor of the municipality of Alba, who, a
few years later, sold it to the Falletti who significantly
restructured it and made it a permanent home for a branch. of the
family. In 1544, however, it was sacked by the French governor of
nearby Cherasco, during the long wars of the time. Later it was up
to Giacomo and Manfredo to repair the substantial damage, making
further improvements. The new one, the result of sixteenth-century
restorations, remained substantially unchanged until 1864, the year
of the death of Juliette Colbert, the last Marquise Falletti. In the
meantime, the castle had already become a country residence due to
the transfer of the Fallettis' main residence, which took place in
1814, to the Palazzo Barolo in Turin.
Silvio Pellico
undoubtedly stands out among his illustrious guests during the last
period of the Fallettis, introduced to the Marquise by Cesare Balbo
after Spielberg's ten-year imprisonment, who over the years became a
close friend, trusted adviser and administrator of the Falletti
library. Pellico and the Marchesa used to spend long days together
between the Falletti castle and the Volta castle, dedicated to
reading and conversation.
Barolo college and wine shop. On Colbert's death, the Falletti castle passed to the Opera Pia Barolo which, with heavy renovations that profoundly altered its structure, transformed it into the Collegio Barolo. The role of the College, which was active until 1958, was to give a chance to study for children in financial difficulty. In 1970 it was bought by the Municipality of Barolo, thanks above all to a public subscription to which many contributed generously. Its restored cellars house the Regional Enoteca del Barolo, while the second floor is dedicated to the Ethnographic-Enological Museum and, when present, artistic and photographic exhibitions. On the main floor: the first room you come across going up the staircase is the Hall of the four seasons, a large and bright room with fine Empire style furnishings that owes its name to four paintings that surmount as many doors and each dedicated to a season of the year . From this room you enter the Hall of coats of arms, the ceiling of which is decorated with the emblems of both the Fallettis and the families with whom they are related. In addition to the monumental fireplace and its sixteenth-century stucco decoration, this room has hosted the sessions of the municipal council for several years. The Room of the Marchesa is also interesting for the presence of one of the few Empire-style beds visible in Italy. The presence of Silvio Pellico is testified by his room, whose walls seem to be covered with fabric, but are actually skillfully painted to simulate the effect, and by the Library, which Pellico scrupulously kept and which contains about three thousand texts from the period between the 15th and 19th centuries.
Barolo is a world famous wine town. It is the namesake city for the
"king of wines and the wine of kings". Barolo is a very panoramic town.
The surrounding countryside is spectacular. There are some very scenic
views from Castello Falletti.
The most panoramic point of the
city is the Falletti Castle which is located in the center of the city.
Some of Barolo's most famous crus (specific vineyards) are found
just outside the town of Barolo. For example, the Cannubi cru is found
on the southern slope to the right on the hill just before entering the
town on the road from Alba.
Castello Falletti, Piazza Falletti, ☎
+39 0173 56277. Regular admission €3.50; €2.00 discount ticket: children
aged 6 to 18, seniors.. Every day from 10am to 12.30pm and from 3pm to
6.30pm, closed on Thursdays. Guided tours available in Italian, English,
French and German. It contains a number of interesting places, including
a museum and a wine shop. The castle was built in the 10th century to
protect itself from the assaults of the Huns. Parts of the original
10th-century keep still stand, although much of the original structure
was destroyed by the Savoys in 1544.
Taste the wine. There are many good wine bars in the city, and a
number of well-known producers have tasting rooms in the city. Many of
the city's wine shops have been aging Barolos since the 1980s. Wine shop
owners typically have bottles opened for tasting, and can open a
specific bottle for tasting upon request.
A prominent producer
with a tasting room in the city is Marchesi di Barolo, Via Alba 12, tel.
0173/564400, Fax: 0173/564444.
Go hiking in the surrounding
countryside.
There are many good wine shops in the city, located near the Castello
Falletti. Other shops in Barolo are limited. This isn't a shopping town,
it's a wine town.
Enoteca in the basement of Castello Falletti,
Piazza Falletti, ☎ +39 0173 56277. This enoteca has many local wines of
recent vintages and charges €5 for a tasting of three wines and €2 for
one. edit
Regional wine cellar of Barolo. Every day from 10:00 to
12:30 and from 15:00 to 18:30, closed on Thursdays.
Barolo is located south of Alba.
By car
From Milan, take
the A7 motorway towards Turin. Near Tortona, exit on the A21 motorway in
the direction of Asti Est. Exit the A21 at Asti Est and follow the signs
for Alba. 146km.
From the Torino Sud entrance on the A6 motorway,
take the A6 in the direction of Asti. Exit onto the A33 motorway. A33
exit at Cherasco on SP 12. From SP12, turn left onto SP 3 in the
direction of Barolo. Continue on SP3. 71km. From Alba, follow the signs
for SP3 in a southerly direction as far as Barolo, 15 km from Alba.
There is a free car park on the left as you enter the town. You can park
there and reach any panoramic point of Barolo in a few minutes on foot.
The streets are quite narrow, so parking there is a good idea.
By
bus
Bus service from Alba or other nearby towns.
Barolo is easily explored on foot, even if some roads are quite steep. You can walk the whole city in 30 minutes.
Average prices
La Cantinetta, Via Roma 33, ☎ +39 0173 56198.
Ristorante del Buon Padre, Via delle Viole 30, ☎ +39 0173 56192.
Average prices
Hotel Barolo, Via Lomondo 2, ☎ +39 0173 56354.
Post Office, Piazza Municipio 4, ☎ +39 0173 56385.
The town is located on a small plateau, shaped like a spur, protected by the surrounding hills, arranged in an amphitheater. The territory is hilly typical of the Langhe at an altitude between 213 and 480 m s.l.m.
There is no
precise information on the birth of Barolo, although the area was
inhabited in prehistoric times by Celto-Ligurian tribes, the first
effective settlement on the territory is of barbaric origin and
dates back to the Early Middle Ages.
During the Lombard
dominion it depended on Gastaldo di Diano, then it passed under the
County of Alba and subsequently under the Marca of Turin.
The
original nucleus of the castle was built in that period by
Berengario I, as a defense against Saracen raids. In 1200 the town
was mentioned in the Rigestum Comunis Albe with the name of Villa
Barogly.
In 1250 the Falletti family acquired all the
possessions of Barolo from the Municipality of Alba. The Fallettis
were a powerful family of bankers, exponents of the new bourgeoisie,
who marked the fate of Barolo and the surrounding areas. Around 1300
they came to control up to fifty Piedmontese fiefdoms.
In
1486 Barolo became part of the Monferrino state, then in 1631 it
passed to the Savoy with the Treaty of Cherasco.
Barolo then
became a Marquisate in 1730, the first Marquis was Gerolamo IV.
After Gerolamo IV there were only two other Marquises: Ottavio
Alessandro Falletti and Carlo Tancredi, at the death of the latter
his wife the Marquise Juliette Colbert governed, who distinguished
herself for her brilliance and for her actions in favor of the
weakest. On his death in 1864, among his wishes there was the
establishment of the Opera Pia Barolo to which he left the entire
family patrimony.