Pollenzo

Pollenzo(Polèns in Piedmontese) is a hamlet of the municipality of Bra in the province of Cuneo.

Ancient Pollenzo, known as the Roman city of Pollentia and mentioned by Pliny the Elder, was founded in the 2nd century BC.

In 402, Pollentia was the scene of the Battle of Pollenzo, where Visigothic troops led by Alaric were defeated near the city by the Roman general Stilicho, forcing them to retreat to Illyria.

Between 1832 and 1848, Charles Albert of Savoy, King Sardinia, initiated a significant transformation of the village of Pollenzo and its castle.

After abdicating on May 9, 1946, the King of Italy Victor Emmanuel III assumed the title of Count of Pollenzo.

Since 2004, Pollenzo has been home to theUniversity of Gastronomic Sciences, run under the auspices of Slow Food.

Pollenzo: small but beautiful

Pollenzo will almost certainly surprise you.

It is a town crisscrossed by a major thorough fare and shrouded by high walls, which on the surface may have nothing special to show.

Instead, as you leave the main road and enter the historic center, you will be overwhelmed by a complex of ancient Savoy palaces, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

You will be impressed by the red brick walls as far as the eye can see and the vastness of the complex, which is inscrutable from the outside because of the wall surrounding the town.

The center is a real gem guarded by the walls.

The ancient buildings and Slow Food

The reason these buildings are located here is that little Pollenzo was once one of the most important settlements in the area.

It indeed held great military importance due to its strategic location: on the road from Turin(Augusta Taurinorum) to the coast near Vado Ligure(Vada Sabatia) and Asti(Hasta).

The imposing buildings date back to the 18th-19th centuries, and with the arrival of Slow Food they have recovered much of their former glory.

Around 1990, Slow Food indeed chose this place to host its activities.

The buildings were therefore bought and renovated one after another and now house theUniversity of Gastronomic Sciences, the Wine Bank and a hotel with its beautiful gardens.

TheUniversity of Gastronomic Sciences attracts students from all over the world, who must fight for a place at this coveted university.

I sincerely hope that their efforts can make a difference in the future and change our relationship with food.

From the Slow Food buildings it is possible to walk to the historic center of Pollenzo in a few minutes.

And here’s another surprise: this village reveals its Roman origins in a very funny way.

The town center is in fact built on the foundations of an ancient Roman amphitheater and is therefore circular, with the houses arranged in a closed circle developed around a courtyard and some vegetable gardens.

The one in Pollenzo is probably the prettiest village you will encounter in the area.

Rosalinde Klein

The Langhe in 7 Days