Tuck into some of the best Italian food festivals

OK. So you’ve already missed Italy’s Ladispoli Festival of the Artichoke, the Monterosso Lemon Festival held in the exquisite historic Cinque Terre village and the Bolzano Gourmet Festival where the South Tyrolean town focuses on apples, wine, and speck, the deep red smoked pork. But do not despair. Italy still has so much left in store for you in 2015 if you love good food.

July 23-26 is the Trapani Street Food Fair where the historic fish market at this Sicilian seaside town is an ideal location for the annual celebration of the best of Mediterranean street food. Enjoy delicacies like fried chickpea fritters, stuffed boneless pork, and tiny whole deep-fried shrimp. Then, on Sun September 6th, and from Friday 11-Sunday 13, in Chiavenna, Lombardy, the spectacular Sagra dei Crotti, famous for its  wine, cheese and brisaola,  is on. The whole historic town, which lies in the shadows of the Alps, becomes one huge restaurant. If you can, try to take part in the Andem a Crott where you create a full meal by choosing four different crotti, enjoying a different food tasting at each. Click here for an idea of what delights you are in for.

September 18-21 the Piedmont town of Bra hosts the bi-annual Slow Food Cheese Festival which celebrates the small-batch cheeses. Expect the best of mimolette, mozzarella and cheddars as well as some more rare tastes. And there’s plenty for yoghurt and ice-cream lovers as well.

October 3-6 try something a little different and head to Milan for the Terra Madre Giovani – We Feed The Planet Festival which combines great food and drink with discussions on sensible  and sustainable growth.

From early October to November 18 is the famous Alba Truffle Festival. Considered by aficionados superior to the more common black variety, the white truffle, exclusive to this Piedmont town, is known as the “diamond of the kitchen”. Expect to rub shoulders with some of the world’s top chefs in town for the auction.

From October 16-25  you can join an expected 900,000 other visitors at the Perugia Chocolate Festival when this lovely Umbrian city for an orgy of all things chocolate. Free samples galore.