Is that cheese in your bra or are you just happy....?

October 24, 2011 10:06 AM

Anybody been to the biennial international cheese festival in Bra, Italy? (Or touristed near Bra?) Italian Piedmont.

If so, where did you stay? Did you work the event or were you there in some other capacity? If you were there as a cheese fan was it worth it or is it so industry-specific that your everyday cheese lover wouldn't get much out of it for the expense?

If you haven't been to the festival but know the area, I'd love some ideas of where might be good places to stay in or near Bra. We are planning to go with a few other couples so renting an apartment or house may be ideal. Looking at Torino/Turin as a possibility.

I know this is a long-shot question but Metafilter comes through in often unexpected ways.

posted by amanda to travel & transportation around Italy (4 answers total)

I stayed at Cascina Papa Mora which is not too far from Bra and it was great. They only have a few rooms so you may be able to book the whole place which would be fun.
posted by cushie at 10:35 AM on October 24, 2011

Didn't you just miss it?

Anyhoo - that part of italy is arguably perhaps the best place for gastronomic tourism in the country. And Fall is the right time to do it. The food blogosphere is chock-a-block with travelogues of the region - both food driven and win driven.

I've not been to the cheese festival, but I have been to that part of Italy - you def are better off staying in Bra (or really the countryside) then you are staying on Torino.
posted by JPD at 10:35 AM on October 24, 2011

I'm planning ahead. If I'm going to go in 2013, I need to get started now.
posted by amanda at 10:41 AM on October 24, 2011

I had a film in the Slow Food Film Festival in Bra about eight years ago, and stayed with a family in town. It is an incredibly beautiful small town with a weekend market and hike-able hills in the outskirts. The local favorite snack is raw veal sausages. I didn't think that I would be into them, but they were delicious.

Since you've got some time, I think your best bet is to contact the festival organizers or some slow food members, and ask if they know anyone in town who could rent you some rooms. The town was small enough that most people seemed to know each other. When I was there, very few people spoke English, so you may need to enlist an Italian speaker to help you out with logistics.

Have a good time.
posted by DaveZ at 11:02 AM on October 24, 2011