Pantry · Trino, Piedmont
Lucedio
Risotto rice from a historic Piedmont estate that helped start Italian rice farming.
- Based in
- Trino, Piedmont
Their story
Principato di Lucedio is a rice estate near Trino, in the Vercelli plain of Piedmont. Count Paolo Cavalli d'Olivola bought it in 1937 and grew it to more than 400 hectares, and today his daughter, Countess Rosetta Clara Cavalli d'Olivola, oversees the farming and the restoration of the old buildings.
The history runs much deeper. Cistercian monks founded an abbey here in 1123, and their work draining and leveling the land made Lucedio one of the birthplaces of Italian rice growing. The estate later passed through many hands, including Prince Camillo Borghese, Napoleon's brother-in-law, and has carried the name Principality of Lucedio since 1875.
The estate is open to visitors, and its rice is sold under the Lucedio name.
How it's made
Rice is harvested in late summer and early fall, then stored with its husk and bran intact until just before milling and packing, which helps keep it fresh. The estate grows classic risotto varieties such as Carnaroli, Arborio and Vialone Nano, along with Venere black rice.
Why we carry them
We stock Lucedio because a great risotto starts with great rice, and this comes from the place where Italian rice farming took root. The Carnaroli is our pick for a creamy, well-structured risotto.
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