Cascina Barroero: Visiting a Wonderful Italian Hazelnut Farm

Cascina Barroero is this delightful family-run hazelnut farm and bakery in the Langhe area of the Piedmont region of Italy.

Specifically it’s in the Alta Langhe which is an area of higher elevation.

And it’s a great place to grow hazelnuts.

The tour is wonderful, the products delicious and the scenery is beautiful.

This is why I highly recommend a visit to this hazelnut farm and kitchen.

 

Getting there

So I got a bit lost getting to Cascina Barroero.

The gps (Google Maps, Waze) takes you in a way that is not the most direct so really look at a map before you make the drive or consult with some locals.

I drove from Agriturismo Il Gioco dell’Oca in the Barolo area to the farm.

According to Waze it should have taken about 45 minutes.

But it was more like an hour and I ended up on some wee rural road that was not the right one.

Oops.

I did call and did figure out how to get there.

There is a sign for it.

As I left to go back to my agriturismo, I saw what was a better route.

Oh well.

The drive is beautiful but it will take you on some smaller, rural roads.

Just give yourself plenty of time to get there and don’t hesitate to call Cascina Barroero if you get a bit turned around.

 

The area around Cascina Barroero

This area of the Langhe is really gorgeous.

It has steeper hills and narrower valleys than the area around Barolo.

Somehow it feels a bit wilder and a little less populated.

This Alta Langhe area is definitely one I would like to explore more.

And it’s one that I would recommend to you to check out as it seems to be under-visited yet filled with lots to do — from outdoor pursuits to charming towns to churches (it’s Italy!) to wine and food tourism.

 

The Barroero Family

Stefano Barroero is the husband and father and the founder of Cascina Barroero.

In true Italian fashion, Stefano wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps.

His father had been a pastry chef.

But Stefano wanted to take it a step further because he wanted to ensure the ingredients he was using were pure.

So along with his wife, Isabella, he moved to Cortemilia where he could grow the hazelnuts he would use to create tasty sweets.

Now Isabella and Stefano have 5 children who may one day take over — or at least one of them might.

But there’s still loads of time as Stefano and Isabella are still pretty young.

Their oldest daughter, Camilla, works with them now.

And she is the one who took me on the tour.

Camilla is in her early to mid-20’s, speaks good English, loves to travel and is passionate about leading a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.

We definitely got along well!

I did get to meet Stefano and he is wonderful.

But he’s quite busy!

 

The tour of the farm and kitchen

The tour consists of walking about the hazelnut groves and learning about the trees and the hazelnuts.

It’s interesting to learn that it takes about 3-5 years for hazelnut trees to begin producing the fruit — the hazelnut.

The best nuts come from trees that are a bit more mature, around 20-25 years old.

Hazelnut trees can live to be 50, but typically they are not producing as much at that point.

After learning about the trees and how they harvest the nuts, you then see how they collect the nuts and shell them.

It was at this point that I met one of the dogs.

This particular canine eats hazelnuts — shell and all.

I know.

That’s a first!

I learned how the hazelnuts are sorted by size.

Camilla then took me inside to where the nuts (no shell) are sorted by hand so I got to see what good and bad hazelnuts look like.

This might be a small operation yet they produce a lot.

The tour includes seeing the bakery side of the operation where they create hazelnut butter and hazelnut flour.

That hazelnut flour becomes cakes, torts, cookies and biscuits.

And the hazelnut butter becomes something akin to Nutella when chocolate is added.

Only the Cascina Barroero version is 10 times better!

 

The tasty stuff

Everything I sampled was delicious.

And yes, you end the tour with a tasting — kind of like taking a wine or whiskey tour.

My favorites?

Roasted hazelnuts, the chocolate/hazelnut spread and ladies’ kisses which are 2 hazelnut biscuits with the chocolate/hazelnut spread in between.

But there are hazelnut cakes (they call them torta), hazelnut flour, hazelnut pasta, biscotti and various cookies.

There is also a cafe if you would like to stay for lunch.

I was full from all the samples!

You can purchase any of the items right at Cascina Barroero as well.

My guess is you won’t be able to leave without buying a couple of treats.

 

You can stay at Cascina Barroero

The Barroero family also has rooms and apartments for your holiday.

They rent out 3 rooms and one larger house/apartment that is for groups as it can accommodate up to 9 people.

There is a pool and a lovely garden area to sit and relax.

Plus you are surrounded by the nature of the Alta Langhe.

I bet it’s really quiet at night here!

 

Final thoughts

I knew I wanted to visit a hazelnut farm during my time in Piedmont as this region grows a lot of hazelnuts.

In fact, Italy is second to Turkey in hazelnut production.

The regions of Lazio, Campania and Sicily also grow hazelnuts.

But Piedmont grows the most.

And a small family-run production like Cascina Barroero is a wonderful way to hear all about the hazelnut.

Put it on your list!