Giaveno is once again hosting Fungo in Festa, now in its 45th year.
• Thursday 1: opening of the PalaFungo, where lunches and dinners featuring porcini mushrooms will be served; to ensure maximum inclusivity, vegetarian, gluten-free and children’s menus will also be available
• Saturday 3, 10.30 am: The Giaveno Porcino: a national treasure, a talk with meteorologist Lorenza Di Matteo, chef and gastronome Vittorio Castellani (Chef Kumalé), and Claudio Ostorero, president of the Boulajour Association in Giaveno. Moderated by Marco Fedele, food and wine presenter
• Sunday 4: Autumn Trade Fair in the streets and squares of the historic centre and AgriME Fair in Piazza Operatori di Pace
• Sunday 11: Giaveno National Porcini Mushroom Fair. In the town centre, there will be stalls offering tastings and samples of local specialities, stalls selling local produce and handcrafted goods, the much-anticipated market, and the awards ceremony for the boulajour – the expert local mushroom foragers. Music provided by the energetic BandaKadabra and Matteo Bensi, a mycological exhibition, a special opening of the Alessandri Museum, an open-air painting competition, a treasure hunt in the ‘Borgo dei funghetti’ and a closing talk featuring a sensory workshop and a cookery demonstration entitled The 5 Senses of the Giaveno Porcini Mushroom
At the heart of the fair are, as always, the shops and restaurants, which offer menus consisting entirely of mushrooms.
There are plenty of other activities on offer to explore the local area, including walks, cycle rides and quad bike trips…