When I was in the Alto Adige (pronounced awd- ee- jay) region of Italy a few weeks ago, in what used to be the Sud Tirol of Austria, I found myself walking in alpine meadows, listening to the wind in the pines and the lovely music of cow bells clanging softly, feeling very much like Maria Von Trapp in landscape that was decidedly not Italian.  Nor was the food, the language or the way they dressed.

The Sud Tirol was a part of Austria until 1919, when Italy annexed it after the Austrians lost WWI.  The people hoped to be re-annexed by Austria after WWII but they lost that one as well and the Allies left the region to Italy.  

The majority of the people there relate more to their Germanic roots with some lingering resentment over being forced to be Italian, and most of the Italians I met were up from the south on vacation, just like me.  Occasionally we found people who spoke no Italian at all, just English, German or the local dialect, Ladino.    It definitely has more of an Austrian feeling than an Italian one, even now.

We were in the area around the quaint town of Ortisei, just east of Bolzano and an hour north of Verona, known as the Siusi Alps.   The food is strongly influenced by Austria, almost every menu boasted schnitzel, wurst and knudel, or dumplings, and the bakeries had seedy German bread and soft pretzels.

They raise a lot of dairy cows in the Alps, summering them on the high meadows and wintering them down below in the foothills.   The cheeses from this area are all cows’ milk and very swiss-like and the people will happily melt it on bread for you for a cheese toast right out of “Heidi”!

Walking through the alpine meadows, you can stop for lunch at a little baita, or mountain hut, where they serve a hearty beef stew with dumplings or their own freshly made cheese and butter, spread on dense, salted bread and sprinkled with local edible mountain flowers.

The libations were fantastic too!  For a refreshing drink on a hot afternoon, especially just coming off a hike in the mountains, they mix elderflower syrup with cold sparkling water, and later on for a cocktail they just add some prosecco to that with a sprig of mint.  The wines from the region are fresh and crisp, and they have a strong tradition of making grappa and eau di vie, many of them flavored with pine or pine cones.

The next trip you plan to Italy, keep in mind this beautiful mountain region north of Venice and have a grappa and some melted cheese for me!