We have known the Grasso family’s winery for many years and are getting older with the owners Maria, Alfredo and Luigi. When we were still working and lived near Zurich, a trip to Treiso d’Alba was part of the annual program. We last visited the winery when we were on our way home from the Cilento in autumn 2016. So, it was high time we paid another visit to the Grassos.

We did that on my 78th birthday, on April 14, 2023. At first, we thought of a trip to Venice, Rome or Granada. In the end, however, a visit to the Grassos swung to the top. Piedmont is just about three hundred kilometers from Kandersteg and can be reached in a leisurely four and a half-hour drive. With the car train we went from Kandersteg to Goppenstein, with a second one from Brig to Iselle – and we were already in Italy.

What a reunion with Maria, Luigi, Alfredo and their niece Elisa, who also runs a small hotel in Barbaresco. There, above the vineyards of Barbaresco and with a view of the picturesque village and the French-Italian Alps, we stayed for the next three days. It was just beautiful!

PS. For the first time in my life, I celebrated my birthday during three days. And they all remain unforgettable – just like the food and drink.