alpino is a blend of acacia honey and the essential oils of mountain pine. extracting solutions and unguents from the buds of mountain pines is a long established tradition in the herbal medicine pharmacopeia of the dolomites. the plant’s leaves are needle-shaped and it grows at altitudes of 1800 to 2000m asl. due to the harsh conditions of its mountain habitat, its vertical growth is stunted, and it does not reach much above the rocks. that makes it possible for us to reach the terminal buds, which are full of resin. harvest day is a holiday. the first week of june we hike up the mountain early in the morning, and by midday we’ve gathered up about 3,000 little buds. lunch is at malga bodrina at ton, where the entire harvesting group, 4-6 people, sits around the table with the herders for a meal consisting of polenta, game and the typical local sauerkraut. 

accompaniments

dissolved in a beverage, preferably an infusion of mountain herbs, or in warm milk, it is particularly recommended for sore throat and irritations of the oral cavity, which it refreshes. useful, to be kept at hand and used as is against hacking coughs.