Introduction
Last update 26 November 2018
Vinchio stands on a group of hills between Langhe and Monferrato, with the centre marked by three main roads of Roman origin (Via Ramaudio, Via Luparia and Via Fonsmagna).
It extends over a mainly hilly area of 9.31 sq.km, with a population of 600 people.
The altitude is 269 m. above sea level.
From the historic center, once dominated by the Castle belonging to the Marquis Scarampi del Carretto, the panorama is truly spectacular. A succession of hills, on which the vineyards climb, leaving occasionally emerge groups of farms that seem to rise from the ground like mushrooms .
Davide Lajolo, a politician and writer from Vinchio used to say: “In winter, mine is the country of mud, as in spring it is the country of peaches and cherry trees in bloom, in summer it is the country of lizards and hares, in autumn the country of the grapes, of the harvests of the Barbera”.
Some of the houses have been renovated, the stables have almost completely disappeared and very often the courtyards are no longer a service for agriculture, but have turned into flower gardens with geraniums and oleanders.
Forests of chestnut trees and oaks have captured space for the vines, more selected for quality production. Vineyards still characterize the landscape and the local economy with almost 1250 ha.
The vineyard is at “man's height”, on every branch, on every clod of earth on which the rows of trees stand, the centuries-old peasant labor is marked. The winemaker begins to prune the vine when his shoes still plunge into the winter mud. It is still cold and already you can see the muffled peasants, the reddened hands trudging through the rows while choosing one by one the branches to decide which ones will put the bunches and must therefore have all the vigor of the roots, and the others that must instead be cut. Pruning is not just a trade, it is an art.
The cut branches put tears. If you pass between the rows, it is like watching a silent cry and you are led to feel the vine as a creature.
The tourist who reaches Vinchio will discover a gentle horizon of hills and basins, a green alternation of vineyards and woods, perhaps identical to what they saw the eyes of the fierce Saracen exterminated by Aleramo on these hills more than a thousand years ago.
In this magical place, history and legend are mixed with the best things that the earth produces and stimulate the imagination and the palate of those who spend a weekend discovering its treasures. You can taste the fine local products (especially wines, white truffles and asparagus), enjoy the natural heritage of the Val Sarmassa Nature Reserve, participate in the food and wine events that take place during the year and admire, in addition to a striking view of the Alps, the historical buildings that testify to the old farming culture.
