Castel Rocchero owes its origins to a military post positioned to guard and defend the communication route that runs from Acqui through the Belbo Valley. The earliest records date back to 967, when the municipal area was owned by Aleramo dynasty, along with numerous other villages. In 1310 the Marquis Bonifacio di Incisa managed to unite Castel Rocchero with his dominion, following the imperial investiture received at Asti. Throughout the centuries the feudal aristocratic families alternated.

The village of Castel Rocchero and its surrounding area is profoundly marked by wine production, with spectacular geometrical and chromatic patterns created by vineyards that extend as far as the eye can see, following the soft contours of the hills. This is a land of Barbera, Moscato, Brachetto, Dolcetto, with dozens of wineries, many of which sell their grapes to the Cantina Sociale.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE

A small palazzo was built where an ancient fortress once stood, built in the 12th century by the Marquis of Monferrato and destroyed in 1496 by citizens of Acqui: once home to the area’s feudal landlords, this is now the town hall. The only original elements remaining are the cross vaults in the entrance, and the barrel and fantail vaults in the other rooms. The imposing neoclassical parish church of St. Andrews lies in the main square.