As tradition dictates, on the first Sunday of every September, San Giorgio Monferrato is home to the festival 'Quattro passi tra i nostri vini' (A stroll among our wines), where local producers put on wine tastings. Among other things, they have recently come up with a route for off-road bike lovers, taking in the most special places around San Giorgio and the neighbouring villages of Casale Monferrato, Rosignano Monferrato, Ozzano Monferrato and Cella Monte. The day of the festival sees stands go up in the village bearing local products, guided tours of the castle, and a big lunch and dinner put on by the Pro Loco village association.
The route begins in San Giorgio Monferrato, in the car park under the parish church on Via Nazzario Sauro. Go through the village, passing by the splendid thousand-year-old castle with its beautiful views of the surrounding hills. Head for the little church of San Rocco then down to the sports centre and Pro Loco. From here there's a track, Strada Vicinale Parona, which goes uphill briefly then all the way down to the tarmac of Strada San Giorgio Lanza on your left. At the top of the hill, go left again at the signs for 'Grotta della Madonna di Lourdes', a cave with a sculpture of Our Lady of Lourdes, made by Evasio Ganora to thank her for curing him. It's worth stopping here to take in the beautiful view of the town of Casale Monferrato. Get onto an uphill track through vineyards leading to Via Salita Sant'Anna. Proceed here, turning left, to the top of the hill. There's another beautiful view here through the vines. When you come to a fork, go right onto Strada Baldovina. Go along a row of houses and after about 300 m turn left onto a track, running downhill at first through vineyards before crossing a tarmac road. Then it's back on track until the first road on your left.
Here you have a pretty view of San Giorgio, which you'll begin to approach on a steep downhill track then a dirt road, that goes up steeply and is covered in scree. You'll need good balance not to slide here. At the top of the hill you're still in the village you started in. Go down Strada San Lorenzo to the bottom of the valley and village of Chiabotto, along the SP 457 with its heavy traffic. Turn right and after a few metres you'll see the well-known Cantina Sociale di San Giorgio (wine cooperative). Go on along the road for Ozzano. Continue for about another 300 m until, having left the residential area on a bend, on your left you'll see a track over a level crossing. Paying careful attention in both directions, turn left off the tarmac and away from the traffic onto the track. A few dozen metres on, take the first track on your left uphill. Keep left up a pretty challenging slope until you come to tarmac. Get your breath back at the top and turn right onto the tarmac road until a junction. You're now near Ozzano Monferrato. Go left onto the track Strada Calcinara. Once you've gone all the way down the road, go down to the bottom of the valley onto tarmac, turn right and in front of you on the hill, you'll spy Rosignano Monferrato. Take a track on your left a few metres on that will bring you to the foot of Cella Monte. Follow the GPX track through the pretty vineyards to Uviglie castle, which is worth a stop for its viewpoint overlooking the picture-postcard landscape around Rosignano and Cella Monte. Carry on to Cascina Montalbano, then Cascina Costalora.
You have two options here. You can take the official route downhill on the tarmac to Chiabotto, then back up to San Giorgio. But if you're an experienced cyclist, you can take a singletrack through the woods, known by locals by the English name the 'wolf'. The path is barely visible and begins in Costalora if you come to it downhill. You'll find it on your right, in a gap in the greenery near a lamppost. The path requires great skill and care. At the end of the singletrack, you'll come to Minerva dei Frati. Follow the GPX track downhill from here. Once you've gone along the bottom of the valley, still on a track, you'll come onto the SP 42, also known as Strada della Mandoletta. Once you're on the tarmac, turn left and go down past the farm Cascina Faletta to the junction at Pozzo Sant’Evasio. Take a right here and then an immediate left, to climb on Via IV novembre to the centre of San Giorgio Monferrato, your starting point.