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| Chiarentana, our home for the week of the tour |
Having been married in
Montepulciano in 2003, and having visited the Val d’Orcia and Valdichiana frequently since that time, we've made a lot of friends in the area, and we’ve worked with those friends to come up with a way to share our love of this region, its food, wine,
and people, with you.
Starting in 2013, my husband,
JR, and I will be leading culinary tours in Italy's Val d'Orcia, about an hour south of Florence, and one of the
most stunning landscapes of the Italian peninsula, famous for Nobile di
Montepulciano wine, Pecorino di Pienza cheese, and pici pasta, among other
culinary delights.
Tours will run in the spring,
and in the fall, and include visits with a local cheesemaker, winemakers, and a
hands-on pasta-making class. The complete itinerary is below, and though spring
is particularly lovely in the Val d’Orcia, one fabulous aspect of our fall
tours is that if the olives at the estate where we’re staying are
ripe, we can participate in the olive harvest there.
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| leccino olives harvested on Chiarentana's estate |
Be sure to practice an
overhead raking motion with your favored arm - you'll want to have a little
extra muscle built up for the olive oil harvesting task. But what an exhilarating one it is,
particularly when you see the deep chartreuse color and taste the piquant
pepperiness of the oil you harvested.
We're pleased to announce
that we have availability for the following weeks in 2013:
October 5-12
October 12-19
October 19-26
Arrival is on Saturday
afternoon after 3pm at La Foce. We'll provide ground transportation from
the rail station in Chiusi to La Foce. The station is about equidistant from
Florence and Rome, so you can fly into the city of your preference, and I'm
happy to help guide you on planning your flight to Italy. Saturday night, we'll
meet for dinner at 7:30pm in the Chiarentana restaurant, where breakfast will
be served each morning during the week as well.
Sunday morning we'll take an
hour-long hike down the strada bianca (white road) that leads from Chiarentana
toward Castiglioncello del Trinoro, a tiny hamlet that we'll visit later in the
week. On our walk, we'll be able to see to Rocca d'Orcia, where later in the
week we'll have dinner at a trattoria that specializes in Bistecca Fiorentina, the
famous T-bone steak from local Chianina cattle. Vegetarians, not to worry, one
of the owners, Marta, is vegetarian, and there are delicious options for you as
well. From our vantage point on our walk, we'll also be able to see Pienza,
famous for its Pecorino di Pienza cheese.
After our walk, we'll head to
the medieval hamlet of Monticchiello, known for its theater company,
charm, and the restaurant La Porta, where we'll have lunch (which arrives in
the dining room from the kitchen via dumbwaiter), and enjoy a stroll through
the town afterward.
From Monticchiello, we'll go
to Pienza, where you'll be free to explore the Renaissance town once
known as Corsignano, the hometown of Pope Pius, who redesigned the town and
renamed it in his own honor. Modesty might not have been his strongest
suit.
We'll stop for a quick visit
at the rustic church of Corsignano on the outskirts of the walled village of
Pienza in order to contrast it against the much more sophisticated town square
of Pienza. You'll have some free time to explore Pienza and take in the views
of the Val d'Orcia, which are vast and stunning. We'll stop for a drink at the
local bar that benefits from those views, and will have dinner in Pienza before
returning to Chiarentana.
On Monday, we'll visit
Montepulciano, famous for its Noblie di Montepulciano wine. We'll visit
the tower in Montepulciano's city hall, a building that was created in the
image of Palazzo Vechhio in Florence. We'll climb the tower for yet another
stunning view on the countryside. We'll stop for lunch, then head to a wine
tasting in the cellars of Crociani, a winery in the historical center of
town, run by the very lovely Susanna Crociani. We'll return to Chiarentana
before heading out for dinner that evening.
Tuesday brings us to the organic
farm Podere Il Casale in Pienza, where we'll watch a cheese-making
demonstration in the farm's caseificio, followed by lunch prepared by the
owner, Sandra, an enthusiastic proponent of the ideals of slow food. In the
afternoon, we'll make a trip by Chiesa della Madonna Vitalena, the small and
oft-photographed church (pictured above),
as well as a side trip to the location where The English Patient was
filmed.
After breakfast on Wednesday,
we'll make pasta in the kitchen of the Chiarentana restaurant. Everyone
will make his or her own batch of dough (with assistance, with assistance!),
and we'll work together to make ravioli for lunch. We'll eat lunch in the
Chiarentana restaurant, then, later in the afternoon, will tour the gardens
of La Foce before returning to Chiarentana for a dinner highlighting their
award-winning olive oils that evening.
Thursday morning we'll be up and at
'em a little early in order to visit the Abbey of Sant'Antimo, where the
monks perform Gregorian chant at 9am each day. The Abbey is conveniently
located quite close to the growing region for Brunello di Montalcino,
which, along with Piedmont's Barolo, is one of Italy's finest wines. We'll have
a wine tasting in Montalcino, followed by a visit to the Fortezza, an
old fortress now converted into an enormous enoteca (wine shop). Dinner on
Thursday will be in Rocca d'Orcia, at Cantina Il Borgo, where meat-eaters will
be able to get that steak I've been mentioning, non-meat-eaters will enjoy a fabulous
vegetarian dish, and we all will conclude the day with more excellent vino.
Friday is the last full day of our
tour. I don't know about you, but I'm sad already. We'll visit the hamlet of
Castiglioncello del Trinoro, precariously positioned upon a hilltop above La
Foce. We'll enjoy lunch at the cafe there, followed by free time at Chiarentana
in the afternoon, and a farewell dinner at the Chiarentana restaurant that
evening.
Saturday morning, we'll gather for one last
breakfast together, and we will provide transportation back to Chiusi that
morning.
Upon booking, we'll send you
additional information about La Foce and the area. When you arrive, you'll find
a welcome basket in your apartment with goodies from some of the wineries and
farms we'll be visiting. After the tour is over, we'll send a photo book to
your home commemorating the trip.
The cost of the tours is
$3,800 per person. A 50% deposit is required at the time of booking; the
remaining balance is due 120 days prior to departure.
Included in the tour fee are
accommodations at La Foce/Chiarentana from Saturday evening through the
following Saturday morning, ground transportation from the nearby Chiusi rail
station and to all activities throughout the week, the welcome basket with
local treats, all scheduled activities including wine tastings, the
cheese-making demonstration, cooking class, continental breakfast each morning,
all lunches and dinners throughout the week, and wine with meals. Airfare is
not included.
If you're interested in joining
us,
please drop me a line at amy {at) tinyfarmhouse {dot} com to let me know - we'd be thrilled to share this area that we love so much with you.
I hope that you'll be able to
join us in Italy at some point - it is truly a magical, gorgeous, friendly,
delicious, inspiring (still feeling that these superlatives aren't quite
enough, though I bet you get the idea!) place.
Thank you!
Buon appetito,
Amy & JR
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| there we are, harvesting olives at Chiarentana |
And now, for the fine print:
*Please note that each tour requires
a minimum of 6 people. Until we have confirmed that we have enough
participants, we will hold your payment. If the week you prefer doesn't book
fully, we're happy to suggest alternate weeks to see if one might work for you.
If the alternate dates don't work for your schedule, we will refund your
deposit in full.
*This outline represents our
planned itinerary, however, there may be times when specific activities must be
shifted to different days, or, due to scheduling conflicts, replaced with comparable
activities.
*There are discounts for
groups of 4 or 6 who are interested in sharing an apartment. Please contact me
if you're interested in this option.
*We
do understand that sometimes circumstances change and may render you unable to
attend after making a deposit. Our official refund policy is that we will
refund 75% of your deposit if you cancel 120 days or more in advance of the
trip. From 119 days to 30 days prior to the trip, the refund will be 50% of
fees paid. 29 days or less until departure, fees will not be refunded unless we
are able to fill your space in the tour. In all cases, we will do our best to
fill your spot(s) so that we may issue a full refund. We appreciate your
understanding.
*We strongly suggest that you purchase travel insurance to cover last-minute cancellation and medical emergencies. Our preferred vendor for this is Travelguard. Please click on the Travelguard icon below to browse plan options:
*We strongly suggest that you purchase travel insurance to cover last-minute cancellation and medical emergencies. Our preferred vendor for this is Travelguard. Please click on the Travelguard icon below to browse plan options:
