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Piedmont cuisine

Piedmontese cooking is rich, wintry and French-inflected: raw veal, egg-yolk pastas, white truffle from Alba, braises built on the region's own Nebbiolo, and a butter-and-hazelnut sweetness rather than olive oil. It is a table made for Barolo, Barbaresco and Barbera.

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Antipasto

Vitello TonnatoCold veal in tuna sauce

Thin slices of cold poached veal blanketed in a creamy sauce of tuna, anchovy, capers and egg. A summer antipasto of Piedmontese-French origin.

vealtunacapersanchovy
Wines to drink with it
Carne Cruda all'AlbeseAlba-style raw veal

Hand-chopped raw veal (Fassona breed) dressed simply with olive oil, lemon and salt, sometimes with shaved white truffle in season.

raw Fassona vealolive oillemon
Wines to drink with it
  • Nebbiolo d'Alba DOC A fragrant, lighter Nebbiolo flatters the delicate raw meat without overpowering it.
  • Dolcetto d'Alba DOC Dolcetto's soft, dark fruit and low acidity are an easy everyday match.
Bagna CàudaWarm garlic-anchovy dip

A communal winter dip of garlic and anchovies melted in oil and butter, kept warm over a flame for dunking raw and cooked vegetables.

garlicanchoviesolive oilvegetables
Wines to drink with it
  • Barbera d'Asti DOCG Barbera's high acidity and juicy fruit stand up to the pungent garlic and anchovy.
  • Dolcetto Dolcetto's soft tannin and dark fruit tame the dish's intensity.

Primo

Agnolotti del PlinPinched meat-filled pasta

Tiny egg-pasta parcels 'pinched' (plin) shut around a roast-meat filling, served in butter and sage or in their own roasting juices.

egg pastaroast meat fillingbutter
Wines to drink with it
  • Barbera d'Alba DOC Barbera's bright acidity refreshes the buttery, meaty filling.
  • Nebbiolo A Langhe Nebbiolo's tannin and perfume dignify the classic Sunday primo.
Tajarin al Tartufo BiancoThin egg noodles with white truffle

Very thin, richly yolked hand-cut noodles in butter, showered with shaved Alba white truffle in autumn.

egg-yolk pastabutterwhite truffle
Wines to drink with it
  • Barbaresco DOCG Barbaresco's aromatic tar-and-rose Nebbiolo is the classic partner for white truffle.
  • Barolo DOCG A mature Barolo echoes the truffle's earthiness with its own tertiary depth.

Secondo

Brasato al BaroloBeef braised in Barolo

A beef chuck marinated and slow-braised for hours in Barolo with aromatics until spoon-tender, the wine reduced to a glossy sauce.

beefBarolo wineonioncarrot
Wines to drink with it
  • Barolo DOCG Serve the same wine the meat was cooked in; its tannin and structure match the deep braise.
  • Barbaresco DOCG Barbaresco offers the same Nebbiolo grip in a slightly softer register.
Bollito MistoMixed boiled meats

An array of boiled meats and cuts served from the trolley with salse - notably the green bagnet verd of parsley, anchovy and capers.

mixed boiled meatsbagnet verdmostarda
Wines to drink with it

Dolce

BunetChocolate-amaretti pudding

A dark baked custard of cocoa, crushed amaretti, eggs and a little rum, set with caramel - the classic Langhe dessert.

cocoaamarettieggscaramel
Wines to drink with it
  • Asti DOCG Moscato d'Asti, the gently sweet, lightly fizzy style of the Asti DOCG, lifts the dense chocolate custard.
  • Moscato Bianco The grape's grapey, aromatic sweetness is a natural match for the amaretti.