TOURISM IN ASTI AND THE PROVINCE
Itineraries and touristic offers to discover the Province of Asti.
Asti is a land of old Churches and Castles, of Towers and Medieval Buildings, of shops and old inns.
Asti is a country of great wines and historic wineries, of great Piedmontese typical products and of a well-known oenogastronomy.
Asti is a land of great historical commemorations such as the Palio, the Wine and Food Festival, the Siege of Canelli, the Douja D’Or.
A hilly scenery of rare beauty will accompany your visit here.

Every year the 3rd Sunday of September the oldest Palio of Italy takes place in Asti. This is a very old tradition, which dates back to the 13th century, a true feast which was able to preserve its distinctive characteristics through times. Thanks to the Palio, the charm of Medieval history lives again amidst the Boroughs of the town, among its churches, towers and buildings, which are untouched witnesses of the times when Asti shone for its wealthiness and its vitality among the most important Italian and European towns. The Palio, big velvet cloth with the flag of Asti and a representation of the patron saint of the town, Saint Secondo, is the dream to which the 21 contenders aspire. The first written document, testifying the existence of the Palio, dates back to the 1275. In that year the ‘Astigiani’ run an extraordinary Palio around the ruined walls of the town of Alba to mock the defeated and very fierce enemies from Alba and to inflict a harsh stroke to their morale; as a matter of fact the Palio was already run at that time during the feast of the patron saint. Even today, as in other times, the Major gives the licence to run the Palio pronouncing old and ritual words ‘Captain, I give you the licence of running the Palio in the year of the Lord …Go and may Saint Secondo assist you!’.  The day of the Palio begins with the blessing of the horses and the jockeys and with the show of the flag-weavers of A.S.T.A., followed in the afternoon by an historical parade with more than 1,200 figurants dressed up in true historical costumes. The figurants with their precious dresses, jewels of tailoring handicraft, recall real facts and real events from the medieval past of the town. The historical parade of the Palio represents a sort of recalling picture which has no equals in Italy and the world too as concerns the fidelity to the historic research, the manufacturing accuracy and the richness of the contents. At the end of the historical parade the competition begins. It is a competition which animates and inflames the whole town, and a sort of agony begins for the 21 contenders which lasts for all the three heats and for the final too. There are seven horses at the starting line for each heat and nine for the final with thousands of ‘borghigiani’ (= fans of each borough) hoping for a final triumph and victory. In the weeks preceding the Palio the contenders try to draw the good luck on their ‘rione’ with some special rites, ending with big and rich banquets and with the teasing of the rivals. There are also other events during the ‘Palio week’ such as the Contest of the Flag Weavers (= Palio degli Sbandieratori), a little market of the Palio, exhibitions, etc.

The Wine and Food Festival was born in 1973 and it is the truest and more complete representation of the peasants’ life of other times. Furthermore this event is considered as ‘the biggest open-air restaurant’ of Italy. The event became immediately very interesting and important as it pointed out to peasant culture, gastronomy and folklore. The Wine and Food Festival is a big and popular event organised by the Camera di Commercio di Asti (= Chamber of Commerce of Asti) the second week-end of September of every year and its ingredients are tradition, typical food and excellent wine. A special event in the event takes place during Sunday morning with the parade representing peasant life. The parade goes through the streets of the city center with more the 3,000 figurants dressed up in peasants dressings with their tools, farm carts and animals. The parade is divided up in several pictures, which represent the most important moments of rural life, its values and the traditions of a land which finds its roots in the hills nearby. The parade ends towards midday in the peasant village built for the event in Piazza Campo del Palio and made of stands which recall inns and taverns of old times. In this scenery more than forty Proloco (= Local Tourist Boards) from the various municipalities of the Province of Asti offer the special and traditional food of the well-known local cuisine, prepared following the old ‘granny’s recipes’. Obviously all the food is accompanied by a good glass of Barbera d’Asti D.O.C.

During September, which in Asti is a month tied to local traditions, there is also an important event dedicated to wine. Every year since 1966 from the 2nd to the 3rd week-end of September, the Camera di Commercio of Asti (= Chamber of Commerce of Asti) organises the ‘Douja d’Or Prize’, a national contest for D.O.C. wines (Denominazione di Origine Controllata = Controlled Area of Origin) and for D.O.C.G. wines (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita = Controlled and Guaranteed Area of Origin). This is one of the most important event in the national oenological panorama. The coveted ‘Douja d’Or’ prize is awarded to the best and greatest Italian wines which are judged by a special board of experts from O.N.A.V. (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori di Vino = National Organisation of Wine Tasters). After an attentive selection, ONAV experts establish which are the best wines, among those taking part to the contest, which may be awarded of the Douja d’Or prize. During all the event, in the nineteenth-century Palazzo del Collegio in the historical city centre of Asti, it is possible to taste and buy more than 400 great Italian wines which took part to the contest together with those which won the title of ‘Excellent’. During the Douja d’Or there are also concerts, cultural events, art exhibitions, meetings with well-known and new producers of wine, congresses on themes concerning the oenological world, and gastronomic events especially ‘I Piatti d’Autore’, in which every evening a different chef prepares big and refined menus. Ten days in which visitors and tourists have the chance to savour perfumes and tastes of the land of Asti. Today the Douja d’Or is an event of great interest and recalls producers of Italian wines. This event obtained in 2001 the Patronage of the President of the Italian Republic, because it promoted the local economy and the local products.The  wine event of the ‘Douja d’Or’ gains its name from an old recipient, a sort of jug (douja) used in the past to decant and contain wine.

The historical reconstruction of the Siege of Canelli – year 1613” takes place on the third weekend of June. The event commemorates a real historic episode happened at the beginning of the seventeenth century during the wars for the succession of the Duchy of Monferrato (1613- 1617). The war for the succession of the Duchy of Monferrato began in 1612 when Francesco Gonzaga died and Carlo Emanuele the First, Duke of Savoy and father in law of Francesco, decided to take to arms against Carlo Gonzaga, Duke of Nevérs.
Canelli, on the border between Monferrato and Savoy and completely fortified, was subjected to endless disputes and forced to endure numerous incursions and attacks. In June 1613 taking advantage of the lack of soldiers at the "Canellesi" fortifications, Carlo Gonzaga, Duke of Nevérs, succeeded in crossing the river Belbo and besieged the town of Canelli with both a cavalry and infantry regiment and numerous guns. The troops from Monferrato attempted to enter Canelli by various means, but the small garrison left in charge was supported in a truly determined manner by the local population who, in sacrificing themselves, reacted defiantly and they succeeded in holding out against all the attacks levelled against them. The enemy was then forced to retreat. To show his gratitude for their loyalty and bravery, the Duke of Savoy rewarded the people of Canelli by exempting them from the payment of taxes for the following thirty years.
This memorable victory is remembered every year with a two-days Historical Commemoration, where about three thousand people in costumes give life to duels with cold steel, battles with ancient cannons, and cavalry charges thus recreating the atmosphere and the reality of a town under siege. The visitor becomes both protagonist and witness of the events and like the soldiers and the common people, must expect to be subjected to the strict conditions imposed by the pass (= Tiletto). He or she must accept the possibility of being interrogated by the guards doing their rounds, being searched, even being put in the pillory if found to have imbibed a drop too much in the inns. Everywhere the smell of gunpowder pervades, drums beat, commands are bellowed. There are unexpected inspections, moments when there is nothing much happening followed by bursts of excitement, all this to recreate an extraordinary atmosphere which recalls every year thousands of visitors and tourists. About 20 inns and taverns participate to the event, accurately fit in the style of the seventeenth century and offering menus exactly repeating the recipes of that century.

Underneath the streets and the houses of the town of Canelli there is a wide net of underground tunnels which, for centuries, served as a place for protection and refining of the wine produced in these hills. These tunnels are known as ‘Underground Cathedrals’ of Canelli and they are one of the emblems of the civility of wine, which in Piedmont has far away roots. These cellars are a unique example, at least in Italy, as concerns their sumptuous work of architecture. Their uniqueness is demonstrated through their candidacy to become part of the Unesco Word Heritage. The underground cellars are concealed and dug into the tufa of the hills, especially the one dominated by the sixteenth-century Gancia castle. Underneath that hill there are about 20 kilometres of galleries, dug in the 19th century during the boom of Moscato sparkling wine production. These cellars are particular and characterised by barrel vaults, bohemian vaults or by one aisle or two aisles halls. In these cellars there is an even temperature of about 12-14 Celsius degree and here the most prestigious sparkling wines of Canelli are kept for refining. The last master cellar men, with their industrious activity, take care of the wines and they are the depositories of ancient oenological rituals, like the rémuage, the dégorgement and the dosage, which are handed down from generation to generation, and which make every bottle of Italian sparkling wine a true masterpiece. Most of the ‘Underground Cathedrals’ are open to the public and the visit may start from Gancia’s Cellars, where in 1865 the initiator Carlo Gancia, who learnt the secrets of champagne during a staying in France, created the first Italian sparkling wine. The underground cellars assure the ageing for the most valuable sparkling wines of Gancia. The ‘Infernot’, room used once for bottling, is for sure a place of interest because it is a sort of museum, containing documents and historic bottles, which tells the story of the Gancia Winery. The itinerary to discover the ‘Underground Canelli’ leads along Via Giuliani which is the address of the best known oenological houses of the town. A big Liberty gate introduces into Contratto’s wineries, which are dug in the tufa at 32 meters depth, in the heart of the hill. This cellar is really spectacular. Under its monumental vaults there are the ‘pupitre’, which are sort of wood stands where millions of bottles of sparkling wine are kept for refining, while in the long galleries there are the barriques, in which the great Piedmontese red wines, like Barolo, Barbaresco and Barbera d’Asti, are kept for ageing. Red wines are important also for Coppo’s Winery production. Coppo House was founded in 1892 and its historic cellars, situated in Via Alba, may be considered an ideal prosecution to Contratto’s cellars as they almost border on them. Finally the great oenological house Luigi Bosca, founded in 1831, which put together wines and art. Its cellars are, in fact, full of works of sculpture, of which the most singular is the work ‘Le Piramidi’ by Eugenio Guglielminetti.

The cultural association ‘Patria Astese’, with the patronage of the Province of Asti and the Municipalities of Castelnuovo Don Bosco, Cerreto d'Asti, Cinaglio, Cortazzone, Montechiaro d'Asti, Montiglio Monferrato, Roccaverano, Settime e Tigliole, presents the 4nd edition of the touristic and cultural event ‘Discovering the Romanesque Churches of the Province of Asti’.
The event consists of a series of free guided tours, with tourists guides, to some of the most interesting and beautiful Romanesque Churches of the Province of Asti, through which visitors will have the chance to discover a precious and unique heritage which dates back to the Medieval Age (10th-13th century).
The review, with a lot of dates in the calendar, will take place mainly at week-ends from April to December. Most of the visits will occur together with other cultural or enogastronomic events in the territory.
Click here for appointments and hours of the visits (.pdf, 165 Kbyte).