On Carlo Alberto’s will, in 1832, the castle originally dating from the end of the 14th century was vastly renovated, with the aim of destining it as a private residence and of using the vast park as a hunting reserve as well as a farm. On a territory spanning 685 hectares, after the reclamation of insalubrious lands, a modern farm was created, with a system of barns, vineyards and wine cellars aimed at the preservation ‘of a good quality of the countryside’. The radical 19th-century renovations of the main building, planned by Pelagio Palagi and Ernest Melano, transformed it into a sophisticated courtly residence, with neo-classical decorations and furniture. Even the village of Pollenzo, which in the past was a Roman village on the river Tanaro, was involved in an ambitious project: Palagi and Melano reconstructed the village from scratch, following an urban scheme according to which the castle and the Albertine farms are connected with the Parish church through the creation of a large porticoed square, characterised at its centre by a monumental fountain. Architectural unity is safeguarded by the shared Gothic Revival features.
Nowadays, Pollenzo castle has been transformed to house the Università degli Studi di Scienze Gastronomiche (University of the Study of Food), including a hotel, a restaurant, a wine cellar for the conservation of precious wines, and finally, it is the headquarters of the Slow Food association.