Curiosity: strawberries

In Sommariva Perno, like in the whole of Roero, strawberries are a very important product.

Here is one of the main selling centers, that is rapidly becoming a touristic attraction as well.

The most refined tastes cannot but like this fruit, that can satisfy sight, smell and taste at the same time.

Strawberries in history

Strawberries have first been farmed in Roero some forty years ago, but a coherent marketing strategy is much more recent.

Historians believe that strawberries were eaten and appreciated in ancient times, such as the Naolitic and Paleolitic eras.

In the following eras, when man started farming and breeding cattle, the gathering of these fruits no longer was a matter of survival, and was somehow neglected.

Strawberries became again famous in the Renaissance period: S. Francesco di Sales admired its “fresh innocence”, and Shakespeare said they were the fairs’ favorite food.

From then on, aristocratic cuisine started using strawberries and Louis XVI was said to greatly love them.

Linneus, the great naturalist, believed strawberries to be a powerful cure for many illnesses, including an excessive presence of fat in the body, thanks to its refreshing, bactericide, diuretic and digestive qualities.