2005 Tour Schedule

All tours are open and we invite any and all to join!

It is possible to join any tour for only a portion of the scheduled program.  We invite participants even for one or two days.

To register for a tour below go to Reservations. For tours with a food or wine host go to Reservations then Partners.

 2005 Wine Tours in Italy & Italian Cooking Lessons Overview

Spring brings new Life!

In our Spring series of tours, wine appreciation and cooking classes, we will include vineyard walks, visits to neighborhood gardens as well as the royal gardens of the House of Savoy summer palaces.   We will learn to "forage" in fields and forests for wild greens and herbs that we will use in our cooking classes,   We will also include special Pasqua (Easter) recipes, festivals and rituals and plenty of visits to artisan food producers. As part of our wine appreciation classes we will focus on the work that is done in the vineyards and cellars at this time of year, with participation where and when possible.

Summer everything's in Bloom!

In this series of tours, wine appreciation and cooking lessons, we will focus on what is growing in our garden and nearby fields. Wild herbs, greens and vegetables, as well as summer truffles may be found in the nearby hills and forests. We will weave all we find in to our cooking lessons. In our wine appreciation activities we will highlight that work that is done in the vineyards and cellars during these summer months. We will also weave in to our program what the Italians eat and drink to stay cool during these warm months.  

Fall Harvest & Bounty

In this series of tours, wine appreciation and cooking lessons, we will continue to reap the abundance of the garden and forests. Wild mushrooms and boar may begin to be available from our forests as well as fall vegetables from the garden. September 15 is the official opening of the Truffle season so we may enjoy truffles in late September if we are lucky. In the vineyards and cellars we are preparing for the harvest, and of course this will be a major focus during this series. 

Winter Magic and Truffle Alchemy!

This last of our series for the year is one of our favorites. November is one of the most beautiful times of the year; the vineyards are a brilliant combination of yellow (Barbera), red (Dolcetto) and dark green turning to burgundy (Nebbiolo). The peaks of the Alps in the background are snow capped again and they present the perfect backdrop to the vibrantly colored vineyards. Truffles are in abundance, the famous Cherasco snails are now available and the weather is right for Bagna Cauda! There are plenty of winter vegetables and greens. Plus the new vintage is just being released. Life is good!

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2005 Sample Itinerary

Tour Highlights - 10 day Itinerary

Most mornings you will visit an outdoor market or artisan product or food producer.  The visit to food producers includes participation where possible.  You will visit Cheese Makers, Pasticceria, chocolate makers, grain mill, rice estates, olive oil mills, hazelnut producers, honey producers and ceramics maker.  During visits to the outdoor markets you can choose the guided tour or stroll on your own.  “Foraging” is one of our hallmarks, when we are taught by a local Nonna to find wonderful wild greens, herbs, and vegetables which you will use in cooking lessons.  You will also search for truffles in season, as well as visit the gardens and the vineyards of the Castello di Sinio.  

Afternoons are devoted to a winery visit of both renowned and up and coming winemakers, or a cooking lesson in the castle kitchen as well as the kitchens of local chefs.  In the cooking classes in the castle kitchen, the class prepares many of the evening meals for the group.   

Most meals are included in the tour and are at a variety of the best local restaurants as well as the Castle, all designed to educate and show off the finest of the local cuisine at all levels, from the most humble to the most elevated.   

Local Festivals are a special part of our itineraries and are included as often as possible.  Every thing from strawberries, peaches, pumpkins and leeks to beans, bollito, tulips and truffles are celebrated by villages in the surrounding countryside.  There is nothing that makes you feel more like you are part of the Italian rhythm than attending one of these millennia old celebrations and rituals. 

Cultural highlights are also included such as visits to the former King of Italy Summer Palaces or House of Savoy monuments.  We remember to include time on your own to wander, explore, sit in the piazza and drink in “sense of place”.

 Sunday, Day One

We rendezvous mid-morning at our pickup point which is Torino Caselle Airport.  You are welcomed personally by La Vita Vera and then transported by luxurious private mid-size bus to Le Langhe in Piemonte, the heart of the Barolo and Barbaresco wine growing district.  We tour the beautiful but undiscovered historic city center of Torino and stop for lunch at a typical restaurant.  After lunch we go further on to visit the stupendous Stupinigi, the former House of Savoy summer palace and then on to Racconigi, one of their hunting lodges. 

We arrive in the area were you will be making your home during this journey, Le Langhe, and make a brief stop in the village of La Morra, one of the highest spots in the Barolo DOC zone.   Before us are sweeping views of Le Langhe and the Barolo producing zone.  From this perch, we have the opportunity to get a bird’s eye view of the landscape, punctuated by castle adorned, roman & medieval hilltop villages.  Before us is the birthplace of one of the most important wines in the world and a fitting starting point for our exploration in to their origin, history and creation – and the cuisine that accompanies them.  We give you time to wander the village. 

After La Morra we go across the valley to Sinio and our beautiful accommodations in the Castello di Sinio Hotel.  Relax by the pool, enjoy the courtyard or take a stroll through the village.   Before dinner we offer a wine session, designed to give you an overview of the wines of the region and to enhance your wine drinking pleasure during your stay.  Dinner tonight is in the village at the oldest restaurant in the area, Il Commercio, who make excellent pizza in their wood fired over as well as other local specialties, casalinga style.   

Monday, Day Two  

After breakfast in the hotel, we depart for upper or Alta Langhe to visit with Anna, Roberta & Claudio Adami who own this small, beautiful caseficio of dairy cows, sheep and pigs.  They are one of two Langhe cheese producers whose cheese is protected by the “Presidio” of Slow Food, which means it is an endangered species and would disappear from the planet were it not guarded from extinction by this organization whose purpose it is to counter-act the ravages of Fast Food and preserve old family recipes and ways.  Raflazz is a treasure as are the family who run it.  They have 200 sheep plus cows and pigs and make a number of different cheeses, one of which is the famous “Murrazano” a toma from raw milk.  We will watch and participate in their morning cheese-making and tour the ageing room. 

Lunch is here at the Caseficio Raflazz, overlooking the stunning valley of Paroldo, home to the mysterious “Masque”, mischievous spirits that inhabit the hazelnut trees.  Winemaker AnnaMaria Abbona with join us for lunch and present her stunning array of Dolcetti di Dogliani. 

After lunch we return to the hotel to relax a bit.  This afternoon you can choose between a winery visit or a cooking class, held in the Castello kitchen.  Before the cooking lesson we will go on a “forage” to look for the wild vegetables, herbs and greens that are so important to the local cuisine.  The winery visit will be to one of the top producers of Dolcetto D’ Alba located in the stunningly picturesque village of Rodello and who will prove that Dolcetto is one of the fine wines of the world..   

Dinner tonight is at the Castello di Sinio, prepared by the cooking class accompanied and paired appropriately by wines from the region.  When possible we invite a winemaker from the region to join us for dinner. 

Tuesday Day Three  

After breakfast, we depart for Cherasco and the famous chocolate and pastry shop “Barbero”, which has been in existence since 1863.   Giancarlo and his wife own this pastry shop which is renowned throughout the area for its incredible array of pastries and confections using the famous local products of hazelnuts and chocolate.  They are especially known for their “Baci di Cherasco”, chocolate kisses of Cherasco, which we will learn to make. 

Lunch is at one of the wonderful restaurants for which Cherasco is celebrated.  It is also recognized as the lumaca, or snail, capital of Italy.  After lunch choose to stroll around town or take our guided walk of the village.   

We return to the hotel to relax, then late afternoon we depart for Alba, the major town of Le Langhe.   This is a chance to wander and explore this lovely, thriving medieval town.  Dinner is on your own this evening. 

Wednesday, Day Four  

Breakfast is at the hotel, with departure afterwards for Asti and its enormous outdoor market.  Guided tour of the fruit, vegetable, meat and fish market where we will purchase ingredients for this afternoon’s cooking lesson and evening meal.  Then you are on your own to wander and explore the rest of the market as well the historic center of this ancient and beautiful town, center of the Monferrato district.   

Lunch is in Asti at a typical trattoria.  After lunch we head in to the Monferrato hills to a wine tasting at a renowned maker of Barbera d’Asti as well as an award winning Moscato. 

After the wine tasting we go back to our hotel.  Late afternoon we offer a cooking lesson in the Castle kitchen followed by a one hour wine appreciation session.  Relax until dinner which is served in the beautiful vaulted dining room of the castle. 

Thursday, Day Five 

Breakfast is at the hotel, with departure afterwards for a tour of the Roero and then a visit and tasting at Tartuflanghe,   small, family run business which produces artisan food products made with the famous white alba truffles.  We will be treated to a tour of their small factory and explanation of where white truffles come from and how they are preserved and turned in to preparations.  You will meet Domenica, famous in the region as one of the only people and certainly the only woman who was able to deal with infamously skeptical truffle hunters of the area.  We will have a simple, but wonderful lunch made with products of their making.   

After lunch we head back to Le Langhe to visit the very interesting wine museum in the Monastery of Annunziata owned by Renato Ratti winery.  The museum tour is personally lead by the very amusing Massimo Martinelli, winemaker at Renato Ratti.  After the tour, we will taste Renato Ratti's wines, including their Barolo, while still in the very atmospheric monastery/museum. 

Late afternoon we return to the hotel to relax.  Dinner tonight is in Dogliani at the restaurant of Roberto, Gilberto, who are both young and extremely talented cooks.  These local boys, friends since childhood, persuaded the owner of this beautiful building to turn it in to a restaurant, allowing them to be the cooks.  Previously it was a pub!  This is one of the newest fine restaurants in the area and has immediately become one of the most popular by locals and wine producers “in the know”.  It is destined for a Michelin star, but never sacrifices tradition for gratuitous innovation.  The dining room also preserves tradition by retaining the local vaulted ceilings made of red brick and the original old red tiles for the floor called “cotti.  However, they have “modernized” the room and service with warm wall colors and tablecloths, fine silver and Riedel glassware. 

Friday, Day six 

Breakfast is at the hotel, with departure afterwards for Monforte D’Alba.  We will pay a visit to Cascina Borio, a producer of the finest Piemontese beef from an ancient breed of white cattle known Razza Piemontese.  The meat counter is at the farm and only open Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning. 

Their cattle are lovingly tended and fed only grain grown on the farm and then ground on the premises.  This is the only feed the animals eat..   We will purchase the meat for tonight’s dinner.  Afterwards we will stroll through the ancient village of Monforte, once the epicenter of the Cathar uprising, and view the Roman amphitheater, still in use today for outdoor concerts. 

Lunch and wine tasting today is at Podere Ruggeri Corsini, the up and coming estate of Nicola Argamante and Loredanna Adami.  We will taste through their wines from Dolcetto to Barolo and then partake in the wonderful home cuisine of Loredanna.  Afterwards we head to Castiglione Falleto and are treated to a wonderful lesson with Christina Rinaldi, chef and owner with her husband Angelo, of the excellent restaurant Le Torri.   Christina will explain to us the basis of Langarola cuisine and we will prepare two of the dishes that we will have at dinner tonight.  Those that prefer another wine tasting can attend the visit and tasting to Vietti, just across the piazza. 

We go back to our hotel to relax until dinner which is back at Le Torri in Castiglione Falletto with Christina and Angelo and where we enjoy the efforts of our earlier cooking lesson. 

Saturday, Day Seven 

Breakfast is at the hotel, with an early departure to visit to the outdoor market in Alba where we have until noon to wander the town.  The entire town of Alba is one big outdoor market today plus you will find every type of artisanal local food product that you can imagine.  This is the perfect place to scoop up those tastes of Le Langhe to take back home with you and to savor months after when memories of the hills and valleys will make you nostalgic to return.  You can be transported back, if only for one dinner, when you whip up some taglietelle with truffle cream you were clever enough to bring back with you.  There will be a guided tour of the food market, where we will purchase ingredients for this afternoons cooking lesson.   Then you are free to wander on your own. 

Lunch is in Alba at VinCafe in their wonderful downstairs brick vaulted dining room.  Local fine wines accompany the lunch. 

After lunch we head back to Sinio to relax and enjoy the amenities of the hotel.   When there is a local festival or “sagra” we will partake in the festivities – and almost always there is something to celebrate: everything from the wines to strawberries to leeks!  When no festival is taking place,  we offer a cooking class, followed by a one hour wine appreciate session and then dinner in the Castle dining room. 

Wednesday, Day Eight 

Breakfast is in the hotel and then departure for Torino Airport, drop off point.

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Featured Region: Discover Piemonte, Italy!

Piemonte is one of the best kept secrets in Italy; scenically stunning, full of history, beautiful art and architectural treasures, sophisticated cuisine and a wine culture that is one of the oldest and most important in Italy. La Dolce Vita still exists in Piemonte and not least of all, it is a much better deal than the other been there done that regions! There are so many reasons to discover Piemonte and this is the year to do it.

Why Piemonte?

Wine enthusiasts know Piemonte for their world class wines like Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera and Dolcetto. And food lovers know the area for its white truffles. But what many don't know is that the wine producing areas are visually stunning and rich in cuisine as well as wine. This is a land of Roman and Medieval hilltop villages, endless slopes of multicolored vineyards, heartbreakingly beautiful landscapes of steep valleys and hilltop Castles with the distant snow-capped Alps as the back drop

Being one of the wealthiest regions in Italy, Piemonte has never needed to promote tourism. So, although there is a treasure trove of sights to see, there have not historically been loads of services for tourist. That has gradually changed over the last ten years and now a wonderful array of characteristic hotels, restaurants and activities have been created to make your stay comfortable and rewarding. And now we are here to help you discover the best of the best. We are the first tour company to focus on Piemonte and because we live here you can be assured your vacation will be absolutely first class and hassle free.

If you've already "been there-done that" in the major European destinations and want something deeper and more intimate, if you want the opportunity to enrich your life through understanding the culture and meeting the people, you will be thrilled with Piemonte and your time with us.

We specialize in multi-generational trips and special occasions. This is the perfect place to spend quality, fun time with your loved one and friends, with activities for everyone!

We are happy to add on segments to other areas in Italy and are specialists in all the wine regions in Northern and Central Italy, including Le Marche and Liguria.

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LA VITA VERA ITALIA PIEMONTE SAMPLE ITINERARY

The Perfection of Piemonte 7 day itinerary - Sample

We want to make the absolute most of your time here and we know from listening to you that sometimes less is more. Although we include a wider variety of activities each day than most tours and allow you to choose between activities, we still make sure to include plenty of free time to wander villages and cities to explore on your own. We spend less time in dark cellars taking the "canned" cellar tour and more time tasting. Lunches are delicious and authentic but we save the serious lingering for dinner, so that during the day you can spend more time outside seeing the sights. On our drives and walks we include lots of history and relevant information so that the places we visit come alive. We want you to feel like you truly come to know the area. And we try to arrange activities so that some mornings are a bit more relaxed and you don't feel constantly rushed .

On this tour, all the individual wine districts where Barolo and Barbaresco are produced will be visited, including Serralunga, Monforte d'Alba, Barolo, Castiglione Falleto, Cherasco, Barbaresco, Neive & Treiso. The major cities of Alba and Asti are also included in the itinerary.

Day One - Monday

Rendezvous mid - morning at Malpensa Airport in Milan. You are welcomed personally by Denise and Giacomo and then transported by luxurious private mid-size bus to Le Langhe in Piemonte, the heart of the wine growing area. Our first stop is in the medieval town of Asti for a light lunch and a chance to stroll around for a couple of hours before we head to Gaja in Barbaresco for a tasting. Before the sun sets we check in to our charming restored villa in the picturesque vineyards of Le Langhe. We give you a chance to rest and freshen up before we dine. Dinner tonight is at our friend Marco's restaurant who recently was the chef at a Slow Food acclaimed restaurant and now happily has his own. Bravo Marco! Wine and food pairings will include Barbaresco and Barolo selected by our Wine Director, Jay "Giacomo". We always set the table 3 or 4 extra and certainly will be joined by someone interesting and fun!

Day Two - Tuesday

We start the day with a light language session for those that are interested.

Visit to a fabulous outdoor food and flower market in a nearby village where we will continue our language lesson and purchase the ingredients for our afternoon cooking lesson from some of our favorite suppliers of top quality local products.

Tasting and Wine Appreciation lesson at a highly rated but as of yet not famous winery. Lesson will include the technical aspects of tasting Piemontese wines and Italian tasting vocabulary.

Lunch at a local spot paired with white and red Piemontese wines. After lunch there will be time to stroll around the medieval village and for those who are interested a visit to the Castle which houses a regional enoteca.

Choose between our cooking lesson or a winery visit for this afternoon's activities. Our private bus will drop off those who opt for the hands-on cooking lesson with Denise at Cascina Angetta and then continue on with Giacomo, our Wine director to visit a Producer in Castiglione Falleto Dinner at Cascina Angetta will follow the hands-on lesson and will be accompanied by a selection of fine wines from producers not yet tasted. As always, we set the table for 3 or 4 extra and encourage you to practice a little italiano. Buon Appetito! A selection of fine Grappas is served with dessert.

Day Three - Wednesday

Today's Italian language lesson emphasizes the vocabulary of the wine world. Vineyard walk from Monforte D'Alba in to the Bussia district where we will taste the wines from some of the most famous single vineyards. Expect lots of interesting viticulture history along the way and enjoy the incredible scenery. This is a level one walk with most of the terrain downhill. Lunch at a local spot with the locals - wines included of course! Guided driving tour to Vicoforte with short visits to significant landmarks and then on to Cascina Mollea the winery of Massimo Martinelli, who is the winemaker at Renato Ratti. Choose between the cooking lesson at Cascina Mollea with Denise or a guided stroll through nearby Mondovi with Giacomo. Or just take it easy lounging around in the back yard enjoying the spectacular views. Wine Appreciation class with Massimo Martinelli. Because the kitchen and dining room of Cascina Mollea is an open floor plan all can enjoy what is sure to be very fun lesson with Massimo and Giacomo. Dinner is served with our friends Massimo and Angioletta in attendance - and maybe a couple of others!

Day Four - Thursday

Italian language lesson focuses on vocabulary for getting around town and shopping.

This morning we will take a beautiful relaxing driving tour through the Alta Langa, an elevation slightly too high for vineyards, however this area is famous for its cheeses. We will visit a family that has been making cheeses and salamis for as many generations as anyone can recall. Lunch at the winery of our friends the Lodalis in Treiso, preceded by barrel tastings of his Barbarescos and Barbera. .Winery visits and vineyard lesson at two adjacent Barbaresco producers in Neive, Bruno Giacosa and Moccagatto.

We take the short drive to Alba to partake in the most cherished of Italian rituals: the evening Passegiata (literally translated as walk). You will see that EVERYONE is out strolling through the town to meet and greet, catch up and maybe gossip a little. You are own your own until the shops close at 7:30, at which time we will meet in the Piazza of the main church (Duomo) for a half hour guided walk through town. Dinner tonight is town at one of our friends restaurants, but it's hard to choose; shall we go see Franco, Umberto, Mauro or Alma? All are wonderful. Some are in the guidebooks, some not, but all deserve to be! Tonight you order what you want! Fantastic wines chosen by Giacomo accompany our dinner.

Day Five - Friday
 

Italian language lesson focuses on vocabulary of food and cooking. Restaurant Italian can improve your dining out experiences.  Departure for a winery visit to Barolo, the home of Italy's most important wine. Optional castle tour. Today we will discuss the different varietals grown in this zone, the differences in terroir and the different wines that Nebbiolo grapes become. We visit another very small high quality producer here in Serralunga .Lunch is  in Serralunga.  Then we enjoy a panoramic winery tour of the Rivetto family estate complemented by a "get your camera ready" view to add to your vacation photo album. Walking tour of La Morra where you will enjoy some of the best views over the Langhe. More great sunset photos for that album. Later stroll through the town on your own. Dinner tonight is in Barolo with the wines of  Barolo  to accompany our meal.

Day Six - Saturday

Today we have a special treat of going foraging with two local ladies who will teach us how to spot wild asparagus, mint, San Pietro and other wonderful wild field treasures that the Italians so adore.  Then on to the magnificent Alba outdoor market. We buy the rest of the ingredients for our last cooking lesson this afternoon.

Lunch in Roddi, with unparalleled views.  Winery visit and tasting in Monforte with a Slow Food acclaimed producers. Cooking lesson at La Villa Favorita or winery visit in Grinzane Cavour. Dinner tonight at La Villa Favorita of a magnificent dinner using all the things we've foraged. Wine by Giacomo and company by Roberta, the proprietress of La Villa Favorita.

Day Seven - Sunday

We bid a fond farewell and then bus trip to Malpensa Airport. Come back soon! Arrivederci!! Alla prossima!! Ciao!!

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VINEYARD WALKS  IN ITALY | Tips for Walking in Vineyards

The People
Vineyard walks are an integral part of our program and we do two or three each week. They provide wonderful opportunities to encounter local farmers working their vines and a unique window through which to see the real life of the area. Regardless of the season there is work to be done in the vineyards to ensure their health and happiness and it is here that these farmers feel most at home and relaxed. Because we are catching them in their element they are often in an expansive mood and we end up being the happy recipient of many a tale of family history and lore, wine intrigue and triumph.

The Vineyards and the Countryside
Walks in the Langhe, we think, are more beautiful than any other area of Italy. The villages are closer together than other regions, separated by rather deep valleys of vineyards and woods. From many of the 22 villages in this area you can see all the rest, their hilltop position set off with a castle or cathedral. Because these hilltop villages are closer together the time commitment to walk from one to the other is not so great, leaving plenty of time for a stroll around the village itself or that chat in the vineyard with the farmer.

We are very familiar with the pathways between the vines from one village to the other and do walks that are chosen for their beauty and interest. These are pathways carved by Romans, Celts and Savoyards - even Napoleon was here! You will enjoy the magnificent landscape with its stunning views and vistas of castles, vineyards and snow-capped Alps in the distance.

The Vines
For the wine enthusiast, we will take advantage of the occasion to stop briefly and examine the soil, point out the different varietals, trellising and pruning methods, and discuss the historic and current viticulture philosophy.

Tips for Walking in Piemonte
While these walks are not strenuous or lengthy, they will give you a little exercise and the opportunity to walk off lunch and the last tasting and put you in the mood for the next! The duration of the walk is usually 1&1/2 to 2 hours and sneakers are a must. Hiking boots are not necessary but if you have weak ankles you might want to consider the new very light-weight kind as the ground between the vines can be rather uneven. Most people would call this a level 2 or 3 walk due to fairly steep inclines however, as we said, the duration is relatively short.

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