Douja d'Or
Asti's ten-day wine festival every September, held since 1967: tastings, masterclasses, talks and food pairings spread through the squares and palazzi of the old centre, with Piedmont's wine consorzi and producers pouring.
Why it's special
The douja is the squat terracotta jug Piedmont used to pour and keep wine (Gianduja, the region's carnival mask, drinks from one), and the festival named after it was dreamed up in 1967 by Giovanni Borello, then president of Asti's Chamber of Commerce. It began as a national wine show with a competition behind it and has become a festival spread across the whole centre, where you can taste the Barbera, Moscato and other wines of the region with the people who make them, sit in on a masterclass or just drink a glass in Piazza San Secondo.
Programme · 2026
60th edition, 'Storie di vino, visioni di futuro', spread through the historic centre of Asti.
- The festival is spread out: Piazza San Secondo is the hub, with tastings, talks and masterclasses in Palazzo Alfieri, Palazzo Ottolenghi and the Teatro Alfieri in 2026, and a 'Douja Off' programme at other venues around town.
- Masterclasses have limited places, so book ahead (details on doujador.it).
- The two weekends are the busiest days.
- The Festival delle Sagre usually falls on the first weekend, so the centre is very full then.
In Piedmontese a douja (say "doo-ya") is the old terracotta jug used to decant, keep and serve wine. Gianduja, the cheerful carnival mask of Piedmont, drinks from one instead of a glass. In 1967 Giovanni Borello, then president of Asti's Chamber of Commerce, gave the name to a new wine show for the city, and it has run every September since, growing into one of the main wine fairs in Italy. For many years it went with a national wine competition, whose best wines took home a golden douja.
Today the Douja d'Or is spread across the old centre for ten days. Piazza San Secondo, in front of the Collegiata, is the hub, and tastings, talks and masterclasses fill the courtyards and halls of Palazzo Alfieri, Palazzo Ottolenghi and other buildings. The consorzi of Asti DOCG and Barbera d'Asti pour alongside organic producers, grappa makers and Piedmont's regional wine body, and the Douja Off adds a programme of smaller tastings and shows elsewhere in the city.
The Douja d'Or is part of the Settembre Astigiano, a month that starts with the Palio di Asti and includes the Festival delle Sagre, which usually falls on the festival's first weekend. See what else is on in Asti.
More events in Monferrato in September 2026 →
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Past editions
| Year | Dates | Programme |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 11–20 September 2026 | 60th edition, 'Storie di vino, visioni di futuro', spread through the historic centre of Asti. Fri 11 Sept, 17:00 – Opening in Piazza San Secondo Venues – Piazza San Secondo, Palazzo Alfieri, Palazzo Ottolenghi and the Teatro Alfieri, with tastings of the Piedmontese denominations, producer benches and meetings with the consorzi Douja Off – a parallel programme of tastings, talks and shows at other venues around the city Masterclasses – 30 sessions with more than 700 participants, including a session with the Langhe-Roero and Monferrato UNESCO vineyard-landscape association hosting the Tokaj, Fertő/Neusiedlersee and Pico Island vineyard landscapes Outcome – about 140,000 visits over the two weekends, according to the organisers |
| 2025 | 12–21 September 2025 | A 'Salotto del Vino' in Piazza San Secondo with tastings, showcooking and masterclasses, plus the Douja Off programme in other parts of the centre. |
| 2024 | 6–15 September 2024 | Ten days of talks, tastings, masterclasses, art and music in the squares and palazzi of the centre, under the claim 'Dall'uva ai calici: celebrando il territorio', with Piemonte Land of Wine, the Asti DOCG and Barbera d'Asti consorzi and the organic wine producers' association. |