The trip was less than 30km, although we did stop off in the neighbouring small village of Neive; “a very pretty village” as advised by our accommodation host from Novello, a “must see”, for a coffee initially, and then for some lunch.

Yes, Mick was not too happy when I explained that the part of Neive I wanted to visit was the historic centre, and it involved a very steep climb on foot for almost 1 km to get there. I had found a park near the railway station, and I checked that it was not paid parking with a local woman who assured us it was free. I needed to check because the day we visited the Castle Cavour I did get a parking ticket. We didn’t find out for a few days because the piece of paper that had been pushed under the windscreen had become so soggy from all the rain that it had turned to mush. It was two days later that the scrap of paper was seen, and Mick carefully teased the paper apart to confirm, with Google Translate’s help, that it was indeed a parking fine. I have decided to wait until we return the hire car in Turin to ask for advice about how to pay for it, as the paper is so damaged all the instructions are unclear.

Neive certainly had some pretty buildings, along with several enotecas (wine shops) with people already enjoying wine tastings, and lots of restaurants. We were able to get a coffee here, but only if we drank it at the bar. Which was OK with us.

I loved this little alcove on the edge of one of the streets.

After we had looked around the historic centre of Neive, we decided to head back down the hill to our car. I thought I’d visit the public toilets in the centre of town before we embarked on the trek, but one look and my mind was changed. For some reason I no longer needed to go!

We found a fabulous restaurant just across from our car park which had lots of local workers enjoying their lunch. That is always a good sign. I chose another pizza, but could only eat half this time.

When planning this trip earlier this year, it seemed sensible to base ourselves in Barbaresco for a few days as there are some great places to visit near here. And yes, lots more, and different, wines to be tasted.

Barbaresco is smaller than Novello, with a population of fewer than 700 people. It is famous for its wine of the same name, also made from Nebbiolo grapes, which is supposedly more famous than Barolo wine. But I guess that depends on who you ask.

This time we are staying at a winery, right in the middle of the town, called Casa Boffa. It is more like a B&B, with a beautiful terrace and wonderful views from our room.

We have three days here to try and work out the differences between Barbaresco and Barolo.

I have read that Barbaresco has a slightly warmer, drier and milder climate than in Barolo. The soils here contain more nutrients, and as a result of both these factors, the grapes tend to ripen earlier than those in Barolo. While, there is still plenty of acidity in a Barbaresco wine, the tannins are softer than those found in your average Barolo.

The difference is in the taste on the mid-palate; the tannin won’t hit you quite as hard in the Barbaresco.

We will see!

When we arrived around 1.30pm, the little town was filled with people – lots of American people were enjoying lunch here, and later in the afternoon they hopped on their bus and headed ??? to somewhere else.

During the late afternoon we enjoyed a wine tasting at our accommodation along with a few other people who are staying in the village.

We were still pretty full from our lunch in Neive, so dinner was my left over pizza.

Tomorrow we get serious.