Monica and Mark Travel to Italy

Day 1 - Wednesday

tuscanytopiemonte1.jpg ThumbnailThe adventure begins

We meet in the city of Cortona this morning where Doumina will take us to our home for the first 4 nights, at Relais Parco Fiorito, a restored 16th century convent.

Relais Parco Fiorito is situated near the beautiful hillside town of Cortona, and we begin our adventure this afternoon within her walls of stone. Our illustrious guide Giovanni will share the treasures of Cortonas' Etruscan sites, and its history, while taking us on a leisurely and informative tour of this beautiful city.

After our tour, we will visit an olive-pressing farm, where Landi and Renato press the local olive oil in the old way. It is a wonderful gift to be able to experience this tradition that is becoming so seldom used in these modern times.

As we head back to the lovely Parco Fiorito, we are invited to stop at the farm of Giovanni Pucci. Here, he raises the famous Chianina, the white cow of Tuscany, from which Toscana’s Bistecca alla Fiorentina has been made famous. You will learn how his family proudly maintains the animal’s excellent bloodlines and ancestry, and produces meat on a small scale rather than the mass production practices that we are accustom to.

Our wonderful dinner of ‘Bistecca alla Fiorentina’ will be prepared in the grand fireplace by our host Roberto Russo, who is well-known locally and abroad for his talents as a chef and cookbook author.

Day 2 - Thursday

tuscanytopiemonte2.jpg ThumbnailBountiful Brunello Tour

A typical breakfast at our Agriturismo will include everything from fresh fruit, yogurt and homemade pastries, to house-cured prosciutto, eggs from the hens outside, Roberto’s olive oil and hearth-fired bread, and of course, espresso, tea and fresh juices.

Today we visit a Small Vineyards Estates, and travel through Montecucco, Val d’Orcia, and Montalcino. We will taste wines along the way and learn of the land and the life of the Tuscans in this beautiful countryside. Our first stop: the picture perfect city of Pienza. Pienza has been the idyllic site of films, such as the "English Patient", and "Romeo and Juliet". Sheep dot the valley floor and Pecorino, the local cheese that is made from their milk, spills from the shops. We can visit the church and see the tiny streets of this beautiful little hill town, taste the cheeses, and a variety of Balsamic Vinegars. You will be amazed by their flavors and variety!

Next we go on to the vineyard Perazzeta, where Alessandro Bocci makes award winning olive oil and wine. A passionate man, he names his wines after those he loves most: his daughter Sara and his wife Rita. His latest great wine is called "Irio", after his father. You will learn about this farmer’s pursuit of the most perfect wine, and how he will throw away twice as many grapes as he presses. Of course you will taste how delicious his work is! After a tasting and a tour, After a tasting and a tour, Sara and Rita will prepare a delightful lunch in the wine cellar, or on the terrace, weather permitting and feast our gazes upon the beautiful valleys.

The countryside here is glorious, and we enjoy more of it on our way back home, we stop at the 12th century Abbey of Sant'Antimo, a beautiful Romanesque church in a picture-perfect setting just south of Montalcino. Dinner is on your own tonight. Our driver is available to transfer you to a variety of restaurants.

Day 3 - Friday

tuscanytopiemonte3.jpg ThumbnailJust Say Cheese!

Today, after another wonderful breakfast in our Agriturismo, we will make our way back into the Etruscan walls of Cortona. We will meet Romano and his lovely wife Agostina, at their typical Tuscan restaurant, La Bucaccia. Romano will quickly become one of your favorite characters in Italy, and he will teach us the art of cheese making. From local sheep’s milk we will make Ricotta, Mozzarella, and the Pecorino that is so famous from these verdant valleys. Along with our cheese making instruction, we will have the pleasure of lunch in his lovely restaurant. It will be a most delicious feast!

The rest of the day is ours to spend as we choose. Leisurely wandering the cobblestone streets of Cortona, shopping, catching up at the internet café, and taking in the magnificent valley views. From Piazza Garibaldi you can see the Chiana Valley, Lake Trasimeno-Italy’s largest non-alpine lake, and beyond. There are also museums to explore such as The Museum of the Etruscan Academy, and the Diocesan Museum, and you can visit the Duomo.

Day 4 - Saturday

tuscanytopiemonte4.jpg ThumbnailSiena

After our breakfast we will arrive early in Siena to enjoy the fabulous Il Campo and one of the most beautiful Duomos in Italy.

Piazza del Campo, or “Il Campo”, as the Sienese call it, is a unique place in the whole of the world, starting with the very particular conformation of the ground, which turns the square into a concave shell. The paving is made of red bricks arranged in fishbone style, divided into a sunburst pattern by nine strips of travertine. The white marble of the fountaint ‘Fonte Gaia’ stands out. There is also the Palazzo Comunale (town hall), and also the tall, slender Torre del Mangia that reaches out to the sky. This is where the famous horse race, Palio di Siena is held and where you can shop for fantastic leather, shoes, and scarves, as well as try some authentic Panforte di Siena.

We will spend this evening with Roberto, who will impart his knowledge as chef and cookbook author, and transform your culinary thinking with a fun and informative pici class. We will then dine on our creation of an authentic Etruscan "poor man’s" dinner and Antonio Sanguineti, will join us to provide a full Small Vineyards wine tasting!

Day 5 - Sunday

tuscanytopiemonte5.jpg ThumbnailSlow food, fast cars

Today, we transfer in the morning by mini van to Piemonte and get situated in our beautiful Hotel San Georgio, www.locandasangiorgio.it. This afternoon, we tour the SLOW FOOD UNIVERSITY, and sit down for a lecture on what Slow Food is. The wine Bank, located in the historical cellars of the Agenzia di Pollenzo, is a centre of storage and refinement for the best wines of Italy. WOW! At the same time it is also a museum of Italian wine, offering visitors the chance to discover our oenological heritage and to taste the wines from some of the most prestigious wineries. A great chance to taste the best wines from around Italy in a expertly renovated setting which has retained all its historical character and charm.

In the beautiful tasting room of the Winebank we offer you a sweet experience. Enjoy different types of chocolate from Cherasco, with five sweet wines and grappas. A new challenge to see how chocolate can be matched with, sipping nice dessert wines.

Dinner at San Giorgio tonight is fabulous. So much food, and impossible to resist.

Day 6 - Monday

tuscanytopiemonte6.jpg ThumbnailTouring the Langhe

Today we concentrate on Small Vineyards Estates. This morning, Tre Donne, ONLY 3 km away is a great hike. We can trek or ride over to the estate of these three women who are the wine sensation of Italy.We will do a tasting before heading out to tour some of the other estates. We tour the Langhe area, La Mora and Mon Forte. We have an excellent opportunity to see the countryside and taste Barolo and Barberesco wines. We stop for you to grab a snack along the way. Tonight, after a long day of being welcomed into family estates, we sit down to a fabulous and relaxing dinner at La Luna Nel Pozzo.

As much as Alessandro Lequio loved his daughters, there was no way he was going to hand over the family vineyard to women. (According to his wife, Donna Bruna, Alessandro actually cried for half an hour when their third and final child, Daniela, was born!) Four generations of fathers had handed the estate down to their sons, and even though he handn’t had a boy, Alessandro would be damned if the family business was going to be run by the fairer sex. “Marry a good winemaker,” he would tell them. Just as stubborn as their father, the sisters all staunchly refuted this notion, and assured him that he would be handing the estate over to them one day… In the end (and presumably tired of arguing), everyone agreed to a “do-or-die” wager, and literally bet the ranch: Deciding he could trick them into failure, Alessandro agreed to give the gals everything if they could pass three years of his rigorous tests, culminating in a single vintage of wine which he, himself would judge.

To everyone's surprise, the Sisters never gave up… and moreover, they actually won more awards in their first year of production than Alessandro had in his entire career! True to his word, their papa changed his tune and turned the estate over to his daughters. He was so deeply impressed, he even allowed them to change the name to 'Tre Donne' – which means “three women."

Day 7 - Tuesday

cortona.jpg ThumbnailGrappa, grappa, grappa

Otherwise known as Moonshine, or gasoline, we will see how this unbelievable liquor comes to fruition. A visit through the distillery and a generous tasting of 6 different Grappa's will finally answer the questions everyone asks..."How do you make this stuff?" The main ingredient of grappa is pomace, which consists of the grape skins, seeds and stalks that are left over from the winemaking process. These are taken through a second process of distillation, which extracts the remaining flavours from the pomace before the waste is discarded. After you will breath fire, and you can decide if it is for you. We visit Alba and enjoy some shopping. Alba is a wonderful city. Charming and medieval, with old houses and stone towers known for its excellent wine. The city is in the heart of white truffle country and each fall truffle lovers the world over converge on the town for its annual truffle fair. Alba is also home to wine favorites such as Barolo and Barbesco. To the south of the town are the chalk and clay hills of the Langhe, covered in vines, Oaks, and Hazelnut trees. A view from this area explains the culinary gifts that nature has bestowed upon Alba.

Maybe you want to grab a Panini or a lite snack, while here in Alba. but our farewell dinner will be fabulous. We dine tonight on all of what makes Piemonte famous at Gagliardo. Where typical Piemonte Food is taken to a Modern Level of spendid.

Day 8 - Wednesday

dsc_5912.jpg ThumbnailFarewell

After a lovely morning breakfast, we say our farewells. Transfers to bus, and train stations for everyone. What ever destination you continue on to, you can get there from here.

Please contact me for dates and prices at

whyman1@aol.com

My guests say:

"Doumina gives you an up-close insiders view of the treasures surrounding the enchanted hill town of Cortona. You like olive oil? Meet a farmer who picks his olives, and the man who presses them. Art your thing? Listen to the passionate sermons of her guide, and real-life descendant of Cortona's own Luca Signorelli. Want to eat the way the heartiest Tuscans do? For breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you will. Guaranteed."

Tim Stark
Organic farmer/Writer Gourmet & Conde Naste

"...with Doumina, all i needed to do was enjoy myself! It was just amazing!"

Karie Hoffman

Il mio stato