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Taste of Umbria
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| Staying in Montefalco
Visiting
Spoleto, Assisi, Perugia, Orvieto, Norcia and Deruta as well as
private homes, farms and villas
Call 1 300 65 66 79 (Australia) to reserve a place |
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The landscape comes to your
table in the strong, simple flavours such as truffles from oak
forests, splendid 'pecorino' cheeses from the Valnerina, lentils and farro from Castelluccio
and salami and cured meats made from the truffle-eating wild boar
around Norcia. The Apennine
slopes dominating one side of the Umbrian valley have long held the
reputation for producing Italy's best golden green olive oil.
Our
selection of local cooking classes are based on a variety of recipes
rooted in ancient tradition and some of the finest natural produce in Italy.
In visits to wine cellars, private homes, villas and farmhouses as
well as specialist tastings, whatever the ingredients, the accent is
always on genuine flavours.
The
Sagrantino dry red won Italy's award for the best wine of 1998. This
unusual grape grows only between Medieval Montefalco and the ancient
Roman town of Bevagna. Its production in local monasteries can be
traced back to the early middle ages, and a sweet version produced
from Sagrantino raisins was the favourite of the Vatican for the
holy wine of their mass. |
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A guided discovery of the culinary heritage
of Central Umbria |
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Now *six* Cooking classes based on
traditional regional recipes |
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Representative
meals at selected local restaurants |
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A truffle hunt in the forest near Spoleto |
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Foraging for wild asparagus |
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Cellar tastings of Montefalco's award
winning Sagrantino wines |
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Guided
visits in Montefalco, Bevagna, Assisi, Perugia and Orvieto
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A visit to Deruta, Italy's ceramics capital
since the 14th century |
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An exploration of the local artisan cloth
weaving in Perugia and Montefalco |
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Visit to a local olive oil grower and mill |
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While in Umbria you will be staying at the
Fabrizi estate
located just outside the
walls of the medieval hilltown of Montefalco in Umbria. The accommodation is ideally situated for our
visits to nearby towns and villages. Four of the farm buildings were
converted into high quality accommodation, with a swimming pool. There
are twenty rooms. All have their own bathroom and private entrance.
Meals are held in a pleasant dining room and there are lounge areas in
two of the buildings. There is a garden and terrace with spectacular
views across the Valley of Umbria to Assisi, Trevi and Spoleto. This is
often used as an outdoor eating area but is also a wonderful place to
read or just take in the sun. The rooms are not air-conditioned, but the
thick walls and shady trees keep the temperature pleasant even on hotter
days. The region also produces some of the finest natural produce in
Italy. The estate is still a working farm producing its own wine and
olive oil which are used to prepare the delicious simple meals which are
such a feature of the tour. |
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Please note, This is a preliminary itinerary and will be
altered to accommodate seasonal activities, local festivals
or the availability of guides or lecturers. However the
essential content of the itinerary will remain the same. The
final version of the itinerary will be presented on arrival.
B L T D means that breakfast, lunch, tastings and/or dinner
will be included that day.
Day 1 Sun Rome to Montefalco
L D
You will be met at Rome's Leonardo da Vinci Airport at
Fiumicino at 10.30am. A private air-conditioned coach
will transfer you to Montefalco. After lunch on the estate we
travel up to the medieval town of Montefalco where you will
be introduced to the food, wine and artisan traditions of
the town including a wine tasting in a private cellar.
Welcome drinks and dinner at the
family run enoteca in the town's delightful
piazza.
Day 2 Mon
Markets & Villa
Cooking Class n.1,
Bevagna, B L D
Today is market
day in Montefalco so there is a walk around the town to
experience the atmosphere. The cooking class is at a local
villa just near the marketplace.
You will develop skills in making a complete Umbrian meal
from antipasti, through to dolci, including fresh pasta
in its local variation, 'strangozzi' with its interesting
definition as 'priest strangler. In the afternoon we visit
Bevagna and then travel directly to dinner
on the vine covered terrace of a local winery, one of
the family run smaller cellars that characterize the wine
making traditions of the area.
Day 3 Tue
Cooking Class
n.2 &
Norcia
B L D
In the morning we travel to our cooking
class
in a private home
or small local restaurant
based on characteristic regional food.
The class is followed by lunch. In the afternoon we
drive through the Valley of the river Nera to Norcia, the
sausage and salami capitol of Italy. The walled roman
town has been historically famous for its delicious cheeses
and salamis and almost every Italian town has a Norcineria
selling its produce. We stock up on produce to include at
dinner this evening back at the accommodation. After dinner
a talk on the food and wine of Umbria
Day 4 Wed
Olive oil tasting & Cooking
class n.3
B L D
We visit a
local oil mill and walk through the field of olives which
will include a field lecture on growing techniques and a
detailed tasting and comparison some of the area's excellent
extra virgin olive oils. The whole of Umbria beneath 600
metres in altitude has a climate and geography particularly
suited to the cultivation of the olive. The oil is an
essential ingredient of Umbrian cooking and the landscape
displays evidence of years of tradition in the area's
principal agricultural activity. We travel on to a nearby
farmhouse
where we explore the ancient estate, its
traditions and its biological grain farm, cooking lunch by
the enormous fireplace in the original family kitchen using
produce from the fields outside.
Day 5 Thu
Ceramics, Weaving, Perugia
B
D
Deruta has been a major ceramics centre since medieval
times. No culinary exploration would be complete without a
venture into eating's decorative accessories. Here you will
be shown through a selection of some of the 300 outlets
selling plates, bowls and anything else that might be made
of terracotta.
We then travel on to Perugia to a workshop of traditional
fabric weavers still using ancient hand built wooden looms
in a beautifully restored gothic church. The afternoon
in the town is free for shopping or individual sightseeing.
Day 6 Fri Truffle hunt,
Spoleto
B L D
This morning we travel to a mountain forest where we will
accompany a professional truffle hunter and his trained dogs
into the forest on his daily quest for 'black gold'. We
enjoy a simple meal of wine, bruschetta, pasta and truffles
in the hunter's home in the mountain village.
In the afternoon we drive
down to Spoleto and walk across the magnificent medieval
aqueduct into the town. Free
time in Spoleto. and transport back to the accommodation for
dinner.
Day 7 Sat
Ancient Traditions & Wine Tastings
B L D
After
a short drive to a nearby farmhouse we visit a ‘carbonaio’
or charcoal kiln that once provided the local area with wood
coal. They will show us the ancient techniques and we have
lunch on the property. The afternoon is taken up with visits to various local wine cellars where Montefalco reds
have won prestigious awards for the best red wine in
Italy.
Day 8 Sun Wild
food foraging, Cooking
class n.4 &
Concert B L D
Up early this morning to join the locals out foraging for
wild asparagus.
Cooking class & lunch is at a private home. Afternoon
visits to small mountain villages which dot the Umbrian landscape on the
road to Montefalco . We return to the accommodation for dinner In the evening a concert will be arranged. (A
previous concert was Italian Early Music on original instruments at the Sala dei Notari)
Day 9 Mon
Spoleto
B L D
Today we travel to Spoleto, a town rich in Roman and medieval
history. We visit the church of San Pietro Fuori Le Mura which boasts one
of the most outstanding Romanesque facades in Umbria before crossing the
magnificent medieval aqueduct on our way into the city. We explore the ancient
Roman centre of the town including the Roman house and visit the Duomo to
see Filippo Lippi's final fresco cycle. On our way home we visit the fascinating
paleo-Christian basilica of San Salvatore and the mysterious Tempietto at
Clitunno.
Day 10 Tue
Orvieto &
cooking class n.5
B L D
In the morning travel to Orvieto for
a visit to the markets and then a cooking class and lunch.
In the afternoon free time in the town to
explore the town centre with its fascinating array of shops,
cafes and an award-winning gelateria.
Day 11 Wed
Todi & cooking class n.6 B D
Todi is one of Umbria's most popular towns and was once
voted the most liveable place in the world. We spend the
morning at a cooking class followed by lunch with dramatic views overlooking the valley. The afternoon is
at leisure the town's beautiful main square and
surrounding streets.
Day 12 Thu Gubbio
B
L D
This morning we drive to Gubbio, an exceptionally
well-preserved medieval hilltown nestling in a remote valley
in northern Umbria. Free time to explore the town and then
an opportunity at lunch to try the famous white truffles of
Gubbio Afternoon free
time we drive to the monastery of Sant' Ubaldo where the
ancient 'Ceri' that form the focus of
Gubbio's annual festival are kept.
Day 13 Fri Assisi
B L D
We spend the day in Assisi, the
home of St Francis, Italy's favourite saint. Lunch is in a
characteristic restaurant with low vaulted stone ceilings
and enormous fireplace. Their speciality is polenta. Dinner
at the accommodation is followed by a talk with slides on
the apocalyptic fresco cycle by Luca Signorelli.
Day 14 Sat Spello & Trevi B L D
We travel to the delightful small hilltown of Spello and
include a
guided visit to the Baglioni Chapel decorated with superb frescoes
by the Umbrian Renaissance master Pintoricchio. The rest of
the morning is free in the town to explore the ancient roman
backstreets and modern art shops. Lunch in Spello on a
terrace overlooking the landscape. A visit to nearby Trevi
on the way home. One of the most picturesque towns in the
Umbrian valley.
Cocktails and farewell dinner
at the accommodation.
Day 15 Sun Transfer B
7am Transfer to Rome's
Leonardo da Vinci airport at Fiumicino, with an anticipated
arrival at 10.30am. The tour officially ends at the airport. |
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The cost of the tour is EURO 3550 (
AUD 5680). A deposit of
EURO 300 per person is required to reserve a place on the tour. This
deposit is non-refundable unless the tour is cancelled. A limited number
of single supplements is available at an additional cost of EURO 850
for single use of a double room (AUD 1350).
The full balance is due 60 days before departure. The tour is costed on
a minimum of 10 people travelling and is limited to 24 places. Subject
the final number of participants and exchange rates the price may vary
slightly. You will be notified immediately of any change. |
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Transfer from
and to Rome's Fiumicino Airport |
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All land travel within Italy by air-conditioned
coach |
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Accommodation and
breakfasts
for 14 nights |
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12 days full
board, 2 days half board |
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6 restaurant meals of
regional specialities and wines
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6 cooking classes based on
fresh local produce |
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A truffle hunting excursion
and lunch in the foothills of the
Apennines |
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Visit and lunch at a traditional charcoal burner's home |
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Visits to the area's best cellars
including tastings of Montefalco's award-winning
Sagrantino wines |
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A concert in one of Umbria's
evocative venues |
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Admission to all sites included in the itinerary |
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Lectures on the food & wine, art and history of
Umbria |
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Services of tour leaders throughout the tour |
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Airfares |
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Entry fees to places other than those specifically mentioned in the
itinerary |
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Personal transport costs, phone calls or tips |
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Travel insurance (a pre requisite of the tour) |
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Laundry |
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Extras ordered at meal times |
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Each day will include a visit to a café where what you order will be at
your own expense. |
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A series of lively and informative background
lectures on the history and culture of the region will be given during
the tour. Topics to be covered include:
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An introduction to the Umbrian menu |
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The wines of Montefalco |
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A field lecture on
olive cultivation & olive oil production |
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A field lecture on truffles |
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Meals:
Dinners at the guesthouse in Umbria will be full two and three course
robust meals including the excellent local award winning wine and all
beverages.. Any additional courses, special wines or extras ordered will
be at your expense.
Cooking Classes: The *six* cooking classes will be based around
the standard Italian menu of ‘Antipasti’, primi’ ‘secondi’, and ‘dolci’.
The lessons are hands on and we eat what we make at the end of the
lesson. Your first lesson will be based on the myriad varieties of
‘antipasti’ or entrees, that are the obligatory introduction to any
Italian meal. These may consist of pizza, or bruschetta, or a lentil or
grain soup. Much use is made of local and seasonal foods such as the
pecorino sheep’s cheese and fresh vegetables. Your second class will be
a lesson in the preparation of various pasta courses called ' i primi
piatti' or first course - usually carbohydrate, including the local
pasta variety known as ‘strangozzi’ or ‘priest strangler’, lasagne, and
a ravioli or stuffed pasta dish. Gnocchi could also be included in the
pasta lesson. Basically the recipe is the same, the final result is all
in the treatment or cutting of the pasta. The third lesson will be based
on the last’ dolci course where you will make a local version of strudel
called ‘rocciata’ and a sort of chocolate pudding called ‘crescionda ‘. |
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You will be accompanied throughout the
tour by a local team of intelligent and gracious local Italians including Analita
our official Umbrian tour guide, Cristina, Carol or other local Umbrians who will travel with you most days, and
featuring father and
son Piero and Giuseppe Fabrizi who own and run the excellent
accommodation at Montefalco. The team has collaborated now for over
ten years and will ensure events run smoothly for your holiday
experience. |
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