Emma Varila. ‘Somewhere in Italy’. Casale 2024
About the First Harvest and the Art of Living
The leaves of the Nebbiolo grapevines are just about to start turning red — the phenomenon we have been eagerly waiting to see. It is one thing to see the leaves and grapes growing, and to participate in the pruning — helping them to thrive. But getting to witness the red- and violet-toned foliage taking over the hills of Langhe is another. And grape by grape, they also start turning purple as we are reaching towards that season: the harvest.
After travelling around Italy for one year — actually, all its twenty regions — we are back in Piedmont. We have been here before, of course, a year ago during the time when the vines were just starting to grow wildly. Then, luck struck us: we got to meet Yvonne, Tuomo and Miky — our beloved Langhe guides and future friends. In the heat of June, we followed Miky’s steps and guidance in the steep hills, trimming Barbera, Pinot Nero, as well as Riesling vines on Serafina Quota’s lands. An experience that eventually, among other moments, inspired us to write a book about Italy. And it was here, in the green rolling hills of Langhe, where we wanted to settle to write those pages.
We had been travelling in Italy for six months when the idea for an Italy book began to take shape. Up until that moment, we had been documenting our journey with photos and journal entries for our own joy, marvelling at everything we had seen and heard, “somewhere out here”. After finishing “the grand tour of Italy”, we decided to head back north and settled to write the book in Langhe, surrounded by the lush green hills and accompanied by some of the country’s — maybe even the world’s — best red wines. Just like you could imagine those historical, real writers and artists doing. It just felt right. And when the summer turned to autumn, we moved ourselves and the few belongings we had to stay at Borgata Casale — to continue our work, but most of all, to take it all in: la vita Langhese. Everything between the hard work of the harvesting season and the pure enjoyment of long lunches and social dinners.
The Casale inspired us in so many ways. The mornings would start the same way. We would expect Tuomo to arrive for a quick coffee, meet and greet the kittens of the house, and occasionally take Alfredo — that handsome young furry one — with him to enjoy the surroundings. We would do our work either upstairs in the flat, or if feeling more creative, in the music studio or library. Either way, the balance was perfect: being fully immersed in nature and silence, while daily having pleasant visitors and good conversations. We would be making new friendships between the field work and over a coffee: Michael — a creative designer from Switzerland, and Johan & Niklas — a visionary couple running a hotel in Sweden, among others. We would taste the authentic flavours straight from the garden of our friendly neighbours. We would be learning to create beautiful prints with the original, analogic printing machines downstairs, and we would be making wine bottle sealings by hand in the cellar. The kind of work that is nowadays mostly automated and digitalised — yet doing it by hand gives a greater pleasure, a sense of truly creating something with thought, with your own hands. A spark of happiness that comes with accomplishing the task, and even in those imperfections that leave a mark of “made by hand”. All this, reimagined and made possible to practise, thanks to Yvonne and her vision.
The leaves continued to turn more purple, and so the day arrived: the season’s first harvest, Vendemmia. We had been eagerly waiting to join our first harvest once those first red boxes had started to appear on the hills of the area. There’s something nostalgic and grounding in the panorama: picture tens of red boxes, each located at the beginning of vine rows, perfectly and evenly placed, ready to be filled with hand-picked grapes.
“Controllo!” Miky calls out frequently, reminding us to check the backs of the plants — and collect the hidden grapes too. There we were, back among the Serafina hills again, now accompanying some more experienced friends — and friendly ones — helping out to collect the catch. The first harvest is for the Pinot Nero, which is ready slightly earlier than its neighbours on these hills. With sturdy boots on our feet, and armed with pruning shears, we set off to the hill. Our dog Lilla follows closely like a supervisor, while her local male friends, Alfredo and Pako, play together wild and free. Together, we filled the boxes with grapes, carried them to the sides of the steep hills where Dominik, the winemaker, could access to collect them with a small truck-a-like. During the following days and weeks, we’re happy to participate in so many others — almost like collecting stamps in a harvesting pass of Piedmont: Barbera, Dolcetto, Nebbiolo — and finally, Nebbiolo for Barolo.
During the time of harvest, all hands are needed, and a helping hand is usually near. Lunches and dinners are communal, filled with stories, and never rushed. We are served the best local flavours — sometimes even in the midst of the hills. One could write a book or two simply describing the beauty of life like this, here, in the Langhe.
by Emma Varila
A marketeer by day, a co-author for “Somewhere in Italy” book by night.
IG: @somewhereitalia
