The twinning between the Austrian region of Burgenland and Strada del Barolo, signed last 21st February in Vienna was officially presented in Alba during the 83rd International White Truffle Fair.

A Burgenland delegation made by the agriculture councillor Andreas Liegenfeld, the president Matthias Siess and the director Christian Zechmeister of Wein Burgenland (Regional association of wine producers) and the director of Burgenland Tourismus (the Tourist Regional Board) Mario Baier, took part in the opening of the 83^rd Alba International White Truffle Fair.

Having arrived on Friday 11th October, the Austrian guests took part in the gala dinner, organized at the Ferrero Foundation and the following day were welcomed at the town hall of Alba, where they met the mayor Maurizio Marello and the director of Strada del Barolo Daniele Manzone, together with the mayors of Roddi Roberto Giacosa and La Morra Giovanni Bosco, who are also tourist councillor of the Union of Municipalities of the Barolo Langa and councillor of Strada del Barolo respectively.

Daniele Manzone outlined the profile of this “wedding of Excellence”, signed with the purpose of gathering together expertise and practices for the mutual development in the wine tourism sector. In detail, this is a European project organized into five essential steps:

1. Exchange of practises, forecasting mutual “study tours” in the two regions, providing to both partners the possibility to see with their own eyes the reality of the other’s country and learn the best practises;
2. Workshop dedicated to the sector operators of the two countries, aiming at the promotion of Piedmontese wine tourism in Austria, of Burgenland in Italy and the two regions together in other international markets: in March a delegation of Strada producers will take part in the wine presentation event of Burgenland which takes place every year in the Hofburg of Vienna;
3. Joined promotion of the two partner regions, addressing one’s own specific proposals to a common target, for example through actions of “direct marketing” using the databases of both organizations;
4. “Master Classes” and “Wine Dinners” to train the Austrian sommeliers on Piedmontese wines and Italian sommeliers on Burgenland’s wines;
5. Joined promotional events in foreign countries: for example, in May, the wines of Piedmont and Burgenland will be presented together in Munich, Germany.

After Manzone’s speech, it was the turn of the Mayor Maurizio Marello to make the guests feel at home: “I thank you for your visit which this year has made our Fair of the White Truffle in Alba even more international”, declared Marello. “The cooperation between the two top quality wine producing areas, Burgenland and Piedmont, is extremely important for your and our economy. For the twinning you chose the most important trail of the most important wine: Barolo, and it is amazing that this twinning is signed in the council hall of the Palace where the town hall of Alba is. You are in front of some of the mayors of the municipalities of Strada del Barolo, and this is another proof of the cohesion of our territory. This is a very important fact, as it is important the cooperation between your territory and our territory of Langhe and Roero”.

Sincerely satisfied, the Burgenland agriculture councillor Andreas Liegenfeld said: “For us, it is an honour being invited to what I consider one of the most important food exhibitions in the world and we are proud to work with Strada del Barolo, known in our country as one of the first organizations in Italy for wine tourism promotion. We are here because we have a common goal: improving visitors from abroad by relying on wine and food. In order to do it, I think it is important to share the best practises at different levels. But this twinning does not only have to be considered just a project: it is, in my opinion, an experience which brings alive the idea of cooperation among European countries”.

And it is with this spirit that Strada del Barolo, after taking part, last Febuary, in the Burgenlandprasentation (important event dedicated to the wines of the Burgenland region), invited the regional association of the Burgenland producers to present its wines in the “city of 100 towers”, as Alba is dubbed, with a stand inside the Alba White Truffle World Market”, in the Maddalena courtyard, where Saturday 12^th and Sunday 13^th October hundreds of visitors coming from all over the world could taste the wines and the specialties of this region, showing great interest and enthusiasm.

During their stay, the guests from Burgenland had the opportunity to take part in a sensory analysis on the truffles and enjoy a Wine Tasting Experience® on the “Crus of Barolo”. They also visited some cellars of producers of Strada del Barolo, having also the possibility to admire the amazing hills that surround Alba. Highlight of the visit was, for sure, the dinner on Saturday night at the restaurant “La Crota” in Roddi, where the chef Danilo Lorusso proposed the dishes of the Piedmontese tradition matched with four wines of Burgenland and four wines of producers of Strada del Barolo: some fifty people took part in the evening, in a friendly and cheerful atmosphere, and all the attendees appreciated the unusual combination of the wines coming from the two different regions.

Together with the Austrian delegation, a troupe from the ORF TV channel arrived in Alba; they visited the city and the surrounding hills for a service broadcast on Monday 14th October 2013 in regional newscast of Burgenland. Watch the video

Besides the Truffle Fair, the Austrian journalists also visited the Wine Museum in Barolo and the Castle of Serralunga d’Alba and filmed some of the most breathtaking views along the Trails of Barolo.