Attending the Medieval Festival of Varzi in the summer is certainly an interesting and enjoyable experience for those who love historical re-enactments. The festival takes place every year at the end of July and always attracts a large number of tourists.
During the festival, the city is transformed into a medieval village, with numerous stalls selling handicrafts and gastronomic products.
The neighbourhoods of the old town come alive with jugglers, flag-wavers, musicians and theatrical performances. There are also archery competitions, fights with wooden swords and everything else that helps to recreate the atmosphere of the period.
The event ends with a medieval dinner and fireworks that light up the sky for an unforgettable evening in one of the most beautiful villages in Italy.
A complete immersion in the medieval atmosphere that Varzi recreates every summer to promote the history and culture of the town and the surrounding area. But also to make known the traditions and customs of the past.
The castle, symbol of the Malaspina family
The Castle of Varzi was built by the Malaspina marquises to defend the town from enemy attacks and to collect tolls from merchants who stopped here on their way back from the ancient Via del Sale, the medieval route that linked the Ligurian Sea to the Po Valley. The Malaspina family controlled the route by imposing a toll on caravans passing through their territory. Although the date of construction of the castle is uncertain, there is a document from 1168 that attests to the presence of a Malaspina residence. The castle has been enlarged and modified over the centuries. It is made up of several buildings and a tower. The first building has two floors with an attic with small windows, the second (15th century) has a pointed arch doorway and the third, the oldest (13th century), is perpendicular to the first. The square tower, 12th-13th century, is 29 metres high.
A good connoisseur
Varzi salami, now a protected designation of origin, has been made from the noble parts of the pig since the early Middle Ages. Pig farming was an important source of income, based on meat and other derived and preserved products. The Varzi area was particularly suitable for pig farming due to the availability of pastures and woods. The pigs were fed on local products such as acorns and chestnuts, which gave the meat a distinctive flavour and aroma.
A tradition that continues
From generation to generation, Varzi has never stopped making salami, using the same recipes and procedures as in the past.
The production area of Salame di Varzi PDO, characterised by an excellent hilly microclimate, includes only 15 municipalities of the Mountain Community of Oltrepò Pavese, of which Varzi is the main centre (consorziovarzi.it). The raw material comes from heavy pigs, born, raised and fed in the traditional way, using only the best parts of the pig. The meat is roughly minced and mixed with sea salt, pepper, red wine and garlic. The mixture is stuffed into natural pig intestines and tied by hand with natural string. The curing time varies from a minimum of 45 days for the smallest piece, the filzetta, to a minimum of 180 days for the double cased sausage.
