Discover how Italian rice is made

Piedmont

Destination

1.5 hours

Duration

Ita-Eng+

Language

People

We will visit in Asigliano, in the Vercelli area, the farm that houses the large and environmentally sustainable rice processing plant. The farm selects the best rice varieties following ancient traditions, with the love and sensitivity that only expert hands know how to ensure.

There, we will see all the steps of rice processing, from paddy to wholegrain rice and milled rice, made with high-quality modern machinery.

We will also find out where the waste from a rice processing plant goes and why it is said that from rice “you do not throw anything away”!

In addition to a wide range of rice varieties, such as Carnaroli, Baldo, Venus Black, wholegrain Red Rice, Classic (milled rice) and Basmati rice, you will find other rice products: risottos, gluten-free pasta, flours, biscuits, mousse, grissini (Italian breadstick) and grappas. You will also be able to buy natural cosmetics with rice oil.

The Expert Giulia: I am a licensed tour guide for the provinces of Vercelli, Novara and Pavia. I have a great passion for telling the story of my territory in its landscape, cultural and gastronomic aspects: these three provinces are, in fact, the territory where more than 60% of European rice is produced. Impossible not to fall in love with it!

Not just museums: I will guide you to visit some of the most interesting farms in the area. We will discover Carnaroli rice and Artemide Black rice, a fragrant cross between the Venus Black and the Basmati rice. You will be engaged in cooking classes on rice and panissa, in the harvest of blueberries and berries. We will enter the world of the Sensory Analysis of Rice with Sommeliers of this cereal.

Where

Asigliano, Vercelli – 60 min from Turin and 90 min from Milan

When

From Monday to Friday – duration 1.5 hours

Start time

Flexible start time by agreement with the Expert

Language

Italian, English and French

What’s included

Visit to the farm

What’s not included

Transport

Cancellation policy: all bookings can be cancelled within 3 days from the start date of the experience. Read the Terms and Conditions.

What to remember: the Expert will respond within 24 hours. No amount will be charged to the card.

I am a licensed tour guide for the provinces of Vercelli, Novara and Pavia. I have a great passion for telling the story of my territory in its landscape, cultural and gastronomic aspects: these three provinces are, in fact, the territory where more than 60% of European rice is produced. Impossible not to fall in love with it!

After my degree in History of Art and Archaeology and the Master in Journalism and Communication, since 2008 I have been dealing with the cultural columns of Radio City The Radio of Eastern Piedmont, with guided tours between Piedmont and Lombardy for travellers of all ages, with the coordination of the activities of the multimedia Rice Museum of Casalbeltrame and with social media marketing for museums, monuments, accommodation facilities and cultural associations.

The Rice Museum of Casalbeltrame is not a classic ethnographic museum, but a multimedia museum. With audio and video effects, augmented reality, tactile experiences and an engaging narrative, travellers will be able to discover the history of paddy fields, how the fields were cultivated before mechanization and how rice cultivation has evolved to this day. A visit to the museum is a real journey through time, from season to season, discovering how paddy fields change from winter, spring, summer, to the harvest festival and November 11^th, the Feast of San Martin. To accompany visitors, three guides: me in person, ready to answer your questions; one in voice, which tells in a poetic way what the “caminant”, the vagabond storyteller, saw in the countryside; and a technological guide, to deepen rice and its cultivation today with tablets and smartphones.