I Love Italian Wine and Food - Northern Veneto

I Love Italian Wine and Food - Northern Veneto
If you are looking for a European tourist destination,
consider the Veneto region of northern Italy on the Gulf of
Venice. Venice is of course its best-known city and one of
the most popular tourist destinations on earth. But the
Veneto region has a lot more to offer. You'll find many,
many excellent tourist attractions and you won't have to
fight huge crowds. With a little luck you'll avoid tourist
traps and come back home feeling that you have truly
visited Italy. This article examines tourist attractions in
northern Veneto. Be sure to read our companion articles on
southern Veneto, on that Shakespearean city of Verona, and
on the university city of Padua.

We start our tour of northern Veneto in Marostica,
northeast of Vicenza and northwest of Venice. Then we head
basically east, first to Bassano del Grappa, on to Asolo,
and finally southeast to Treviso.

Marostica, population about thirteen thousand, is known for
two castles: the Castello Inferiore (Lower Castle) a rather
unique setting for Town Council meetings and the Castello
Superiore (Upper Castle) up the hill. But on the second
weekend of September in even years such as 2008 these
attractions take a back seat to the Partita a Scacchi
(Chess Game) with human players dressed in medieval
costumes. This practice first started in 1454. It seems
that two local noblemen Renaldo D. and Vieri da V. fell in
love with the beautiful Lionora P., the daughter of the
Lord of Marostica. They were set to fight a duel for the
hand of that fair lady. The future father in law, good for
him, said no dueling in these parts; if you want to win my
daughter you must first win a chess game to be played in
the square near the lower castle. The winner will marry
Lionora and the loser will marry her younger sister,
Oldrada. The whole town showed up to watch the match.
History does not record whether Lionora was rooting for the
eventual winner or not. The not quite instant replay lasts
from Friday night to Sunday and the moves are announced in
the local dialect. Marostica is also famous for its
cherries and holds a cherry festival every May and June.

Bassano del Grappa, population about forty thousand, was
founded as a Roman agricultural estate more than two
thousand years ago. It's a pretty town with old houses and
squares at the base of Mt. Grappa. This mountain provided
cover to Italian partisans during World War II. In 1946 the
Prime Minister of Italy awarded the city a gold medal for
its military valor. This is commemorated every September.

The city boasts several unusual museums. The Poli Grappa
Museum presents the ins and outs of Grappa, an
internationally known distilled liquor. Tastings are free
but you had better remember grappa is a lot stronger than
wine. The Museo della Cermica's (Ceramics Museum)
interesting collection includes many pieces from the
Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century. You can purchase local
ceramics in many shops in the area. The Museo degli Alpini
(Alpine Museum) honors Italian Alpine Troops. The Town
Museum displays archaeological remains, several paintings
by well-known historical local artists, and drawings by
Albrecht Dürer and Rembrandt.

Bassano del Grappa is home to several historic churches
including the Eleventh Century Duomo (Cathedral) renovated
several hundred years later, the Thirteenth Century Church
of San Donato said to be visited by both St Francis of
Assisi and St Anthony of Padua, the Twelfth Century Church
of St. Francis, and the Fourteenth Century Church of St.
John the Baptist restored in the Eighteenth Century.

The city's best-known monument is the Ponte degli Alpini
(Alpine Bridge) over the Brenta River. This lovely bridge
was designed in the Sixteenth Century by the architect
Andrea Palladio to replace one constructed in the
Thirteenth Century. You may know that Palladio was said to
be the most influential person in the history of Western
architecture. Read more about him and his work in the
companion article I Love Touring Italy - Southern Veneto.
Palladio's bridge was destroyed in 1748 and rebuilt three
years later. What you see today was reconstructed after
World War II from his own design.

Asolo, population about seventy five hundred, is known as
"The Pearl of the Province of Treviso", and as "The City of
a Hundred Horizons". Asolo is associated with the Italian
verb "Asolare" meaning to pass time in a delightful but
meaningless way. The famous British poet Robert Browning
surely agreed with delightful, but not with meaningless;
here in the Nineteenth Century he wrote Asolando, his last
volume of poetry. Other famous writers including Elizabeth
Barret Browning, Ernest Hemingway, and Henry James visited
or lived this town.

Atop the town sits a converted monastery that now houses a
university: CIMBA (The International Consortium for
Management and Business Analysis). Students from all over
the world live, work, and study in Asolo while earning
their MBA. CIMBA has a sister campus for undergraduates in
Paderno.

Treviso, population about eighty thousand, has had a long
and bloody history. It was close to the site of an
important battle in World War I and the site of a
concentration camp in World War II. During that war the
medieval city was heavily damaged with quite a loss of
life. In spite of the massive destruction its center is
still something to see. Treviso is home to the famous
designer Benetton and has enough canals to merit the
nickname "Little Venice".

Start your visit at the Piazza dei Signori (Square of the
Gentlemen), the center of the medieval town, with several
buildings of interest including the Twelfth Century Palazzo
dei Trecento (Town Hall). Close by you'll find the
Pescheria (Fish Market) on an island in the canal.

Among the churches to see is the Late Romanesque-Early
Gothic Twelfth Century Church of San Francesco (Saint
Francis), used by Napoleonic troops as a stable. It
contains several paintings and frescoes of interest and the
tombs of Pietro Alighieri, son of Dante, and Francesca
Petrarca, daughter of the poet Francesco. The Church of San
Nicolò is a mixture of Thirteenth Century Venetian
Romanesque and French Gothic elements. It is also loaded
with historic frescoes. The Duomo di San Pietro (Saint
Peter's Cathedral) was built in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth
Centuries on the site of a Romanesque church. Among its
artwork is Titian's The Annunciation.

What about food? Treviso is known for many specialties
including various pasta and rice dishes with wild herbs and
vegetables, such as risotto with wild asparagus
(bruscandoi). When gourmets think of Treviso it's often for
the local radicchio, perhaps served in risotto. Other
popular local dishes include bigoli, thick homemade
spaghetti served with duck or sausage sauce, risi e bisi
(rice with peas), and pasta e fagioli (pasta with beans).
Meat and cold cuts are often served with peverada, a strong
sauce made with liver and spices. Like several other areas,
Treviso claims the famous Italian dessert, tiramisu.

Let's suggest a sample menu, one of many. Start with Sopa
Coada (Pigeon and Bread Soup). Then try Ravioli ai Porcini
e Ricotta Affumicata (Ravioli with Porcini Mushrooms and
Smoked Ricotta Cheese). For dessert indulge yourself with
Focaccia alla Ceccobeppe (Flat Bread with Dried Fruit). Be
sure to increase your dining pleasure by including local
wines with your meal.

We'll conclude with a quick look at Veneto wine. Veneto
ranks 3rd among the 20 Italian regions both for the area
planted in grape vines and for its total annual wine
production. About 45% of Veneto wine is red or rose,
leaving 55% for white. The region produces 24 DOC wines and
3 DOCG wines, Recioto di Soave, Soave Superiore, and
Bardolino Superiore. DOC stands for Denominazione di
Origine Controllata, which may be translated as
Denomination of Controlled Origin, presumably a
high-quality wine The G in DOCG stands for Garantita, but
there is in fact no guarantee that such wines are truly
superior. Almost 30% of Venetian wine carries the DOC or
DOCG designation.

Montello e Colli Asolani DOC is produced on the right bank
of the Piave River north of Treviso. There are many styles
made from a variety of local and international grapes. The
best known is Prosecco, made from the white Prosecco grape
with up to 15% of other white grapes, mostly local, but
including Chardonnay. While Prosecco wine may be still or
fizzy, it is usually sparkling. And it is usually not very
special.

----------------------------------------------------
Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on
computers and the Internet, but he prefers drinking fine
Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods and
people. He knows about dieting but now eats and drinks what
he wants, in moderation. He teaches classes in computers at
an Ontario French-language community college. Visit his
Italian travel website http://www.travelitalytravel.com
which focuses on local wine and food.