Porcareccia Chestnut Festival

The chestnut festival in Valle Anzasca

The Porcareccia Chestnut Festival is the traditional autumn celebration that brings life to one of the lower hamlets of Calasca-Castiglione every October, a municipality in Valle Anzasca in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Piedmont. Organized by the Amici di Porcareccia, it is a simple and heartfelt event, born from a small mountain community's desire to gather around the fruit that has defined this corner of the Ossola region for centuries: the chestnut.

Chestnuts, snacks, and local produce

The heart of the day is the roasted chestnuts and the snack featuring local products: roasted chestnuts, local flavours, and specialties from the alpine farming tradition. Here, the chestnut is not a gastronomic trend, but a symbol of a subsistence culture that has nourished generations: in the valley's small villages, there were once communal ovens used in turns by the inhabitants and mills for grinding rye and chestnuts. The Chestnut Festival recalls that world, made of chestnut forests, cultivated terraces, and customs passed down from season to season.

Music and conviviality

The snack is accompanied by lively music, transforming the afternoon into a festive moment for the entire community and for those who travel up the valley to discover these places. It is the ideal occasion to savour the authentic atmosphere of the upper Ossola hamlets, far from the main tourist flows, and to get to know a popular tradition that endures with pride.

A territory to discover

The hamlet of Porcareccia is located between the broad-leaved woods and the ancient terraces of Calasca-Castiglione, on the watershed between Valle Anzasca and Valle Antrona. All around, trails like the famous Via del Pane tell the story of the alpine civilization of ovens and mills, while the valley rises towards Macugnaga and the Italian side of Monte Rosa. Participating in the Chestnut Festival means combining the discovery of a mountain landscape with an experience of taste and community.

A free-entry event

The festival is free to enter and open to everyone: families, hikers, and curious visitors can reach Porcareccia to spend an autumn afternoon together dedicated to chestnuts and Ossola tradition.