During Piemonte’s Harvest, Sticky Fingers & Fat Bunches
Cumingsuma a vendemmié!
That’s “Let’s start the harvest” in Piemonteis. With a later summer lingering into October, the Nebbiolo grapes ripened early this year. Add a rare weekend-long gap between preparing and guiding trips, and I was thrilled to finally help harvest at our friend Sergio’s vineyard in Rio Sordo, Barbaresco—one of the most famous sub-regions of the Piemonte wine region.
Is it back-breaking work? Actually, Barbaresco’s steep hillsides are a plus here: standing on the downhill side to harvest with the plump, luscious bunches hanging high, no deep bends are required.
“Harvesting is a wonderfully social activity.”
And better still, harvesting is a wonderfully social activity. We worked in pairs, chatting about wines, weather, grapes and local gossip in a mix of Italian and Piemonteis. The work of snipping bunches, untangling a few from branches or wires, and trimming dried or red-tinged berries that hadn’t quite ripened to full colour, went fast and the red plastic boxes filled quickly. In the golden autumn sun, fondling such fat luscious grape bunches, it was a joy to help.
And sometime after 2015, when the Produttori di Barbaresco release this Rio Sordo Riserva vintage, I’ll savour its taste all the more knowing my sticky fingers helped it to happen.
Experience Piemonte With B&R
Scheduled Group Biking Trip
As the home of Barolo, Barbaresco and Slow Food, Piemonte tastes as good as it looks. On Piemonte Biking, we’ll hunt for truffles and get a firsthand pasta-making demo from an expert chef. Delizioso.
DETAILED ITINERARYScheduled Group Walking Trip
Slow down, sip and stroll your way from the well-heeled wine hub of Piemonte all the way to pastel-hued Portofino. We traverse to each side of the Apennines on an epic Piemonte to Portofino Walking trip!
DETAILED ITINERARYMORE FROM Italy + Piemonte
![Reading for the Road: Books About Florence](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Books-about-Florence-banner-480x240.png)
Reading for the Road: Books About Florence
Tuscany![New Trip Spotlight: Venice to Verona Biking](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Venice-to-Verona-biking-Verona-cathedral--480x240.png)
New Trip Spotlight: Venice to Verona Biking
Veneto![Cuisine 102: Tuscan Delicacies](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/tuscan-cuisine-banner-480x240.png)
Cuisine 102: Tuscan Delicacies
Tuscany![How to Best Experience the Natural Wonders of Umbria](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Umbria-Banner-480x240.png)
How to Best Experience the Natural Wonders of Umbria
Umbria![Notes from the Road: A Research Trip in Sicily](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Sicily-Banner-1-480x240.png)
Notes from the Road: A Research Trip in Sicily
Sicily![Umbria’s 3 Essential Cities](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/umbria-banner-480x240.png)
Umbria’s 3 Essential Cities
Umbria![Sustainable Cuisine in Northern Italy: In Conversation with Michelin-starred Chef Norbert Niederkofler](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/AlpiNN-Banner-480x240.png)
Sustainable Cuisine in Northern Italy: In Conversation with Michelin-starred Chef Norbert Niederkofler
Dolomites![The Origin of the Negroni: Florence’s Favourite Cocktail](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Negroni-480x240.png)
The Origin of the Negroni: Florence’s Favourite Cocktail
Tuscany![The 10 Best Restaurants in Florence](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/aaaaaaaaaaaa-480x300.png)
The 10 Best Restaurants in Florence
Tuscany![Giro-E: Racing the Giro d’Italia Route on E-bikes](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Giro-E-2020-Stage-11-480x300.png)
Giro-E: Racing the Giro d’Italia Route on E-bikes
Italy![The Best Villas in Italy: Amalfi, Tuscany and Umbria](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/bellaria-slide-interiors-13-451x300.jpeg)
The Best Villas in Italy: Amalfi, Tuscany and Umbria
Amalfi Coast![A Taste of Piemonte with Silvia Altare](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Silvia-Altare-1-480x300.png)
A Taste of Piemonte with Silvia Altare
Piemonte![Finding Prosperity in Food & Community in Rural Italy](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Alex-and-boy-in-garden-448x300.jpg)
Finding Prosperity in Food & Community in Rural Italy
Puglia![5 Unmissable Tuscan Hilltop Towns](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/siena-480x300.jpg)
5 Unmissable Tuscan Hilltop Towns
Tuscany![The Most Incredible Hikes in Italy’s Dolomite Mountains](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/dolomites-2630274-480x300.jpg)
The Most Incredible Hikes in Italy’s Dolomite Mountains
Dolomites![The Best Hotels in Rome for Every Taste](https://blog.butterfield.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/rome-4087275-1-480x300.jpg)