It’s October when I arrive at La Darbia, which lies tucked away in the midst of ancient forest between Lake Orta and Monte Rosa in northern Piedmont. The smell of chestnuts roasting fills the air, wafting from a large iron pan (chock-full of first-of-the-season, shiny, reddish-brown nuts) that swings gently over a small bonfire.
“You’re just in time for the castagnata,” they tell me, as I’m handed a glass of La Darbia’s self-produced red wine. The toast is to autumn, my favourite season in Italy, as it brings the chance to kick through crisp leaves on the hunt for porcini mushrooms and truffles.
