A partly independent and partly guided tour for a family of three.

Day 1

Arrive in Bologna. Your local guide, Marcello will go with you to the car rental office. Drive yourselves about 40 minutes east of Bologna to hill town of Riolo Terme. Check in at 3 star hotel in Riolo Terme that is very good, centrally located, run by very nice people.

Late afternoon, about 4:00/4:30 mostly demonstration cooking lesson with Chef Nicola on dishes with herbs at his good restaurant in Riolo Terme. Marcello or interpreter will be there to translate. 8:00 Dinner of your creations with local wines.

Day 2

Drive behind Marcello to the house of Luciano, an expert truffle hunter with dogs for a truffle hunt on his country property. Lunch in the country with him with dishes featuring truffles.

Drive on your own to Ravenna, famous for Byzantine architecture and mosaics. Tour on your own. Suggested dinner place: a historic osteria on your own in the historic centre of Ravenna. Marcello will advise you on what to order.

Day 3

Meet Marcello at the Modena exit off the autostrada. Follow him to the parmesan producer to see the whole process of the men making parmesan, how it's aged, taste young and aged cheeses. Fascinating!

Follow Marcello to the balsamic vinegar producer for a tour of the cellars where they age this treasure and taste of 12 and 25 year old vinegars. If you wish, you can also follow Marcello to the Ferrari museum in the Modena area. Lunch with Marcello in a very nice restaurant with wonderful traditional dishes.

Return on your own to Riolo Terme. If you wish, you can stop at the picturesque hill town of Dozza, famous for its murals and its wine display rooms in a castle. Or after a rest, you might want to drive to the city of Faenza, famous for ceramics to visit a ceramic artist's studio.

Dinner at a good restaurant.

Day 4

Drive on your own to Bologna. Meet Marcello in Bologna and go with him to visit the food market outdoors and indoors in the historic centre. Very colourful, shops are stuffed to the gunnels with prosciutto, cheeses, beautiful take home dishes! A paradise if you're a food photographer! Free time for shopping. Un aperitif in a nice wine bar. Light lunch in a nice bar or a pizza in the centre.

Return to Riolo Terme on your own. Late afternoon Marcello will catch up with you in Riolo Terme and you go together to Maria Grazia's home on her family farm in the country for a cooking lesson. Maria Grazia is a cook for a good restaurant. Her husband, Gianni makes olive oil and wine and they have a big herb garden and more. Very friendly family with adult kids and grandkids in and out of the house while you're there. Dinner of your creations with Maria Grazia and family.

Day 5

Breakfast and departure.

Price per person based on double occupancy and 3 people: 1050 Euros (about $1680 Cdn or $1420 U.S. on Dec 29, 2004) for mum and dad and 970 Euros for their son (about $1560 Cdn or $1310 U.S. on Dec 2, 2004).

Includes:

* 4 nights accommodation in nice 3 star hotel with breakfast
* rental car for 4 days (you pay for gas, autostrada fees)
* 2 full menu cooking lessons
* 3 dinners and 3 lunches with local wines
* guide for 2 half days and 1 almost full day as indicated in the itinerary
* truffle hunt & excursions with Marcello as indicated in the itinerary
* book with recipes and maps so you can drive yourselves for the independent parts of your tour

  Cooking, Wine & Exploring in Piedmont's Barolo Wine Country

We designed this tour for a wine loving, food loving couple who wanted to explore in a rented car.

Sunday

Arrive on your own at Locanda del Barbaresco, 4 km out of Alba. This friendly pensione has six rooms each with private bathroom, a big sitting room and bar, and lawns and patio to sit out on. Dinner on your own. (There is a good trattoria right in the same piazza).

Monday

10:30 Visit and tasting at Gigi Rosso winery between Barolo and Alba. This medium size winery is owned by a very friendly, English speaking couple who are an incredible font of knowledge on Barolo wines. Drive up to town of Castiglione Falletto. Light lunch on your own in a snack bar with a great view.

4:00 p.m. Cooking lesson back at Locanda dell Barbaresco with Alessandro, a professional chef instructor at the hotel and restaurant institute who has opened his own cooking school. Dinner of your creations.

Tuesday

Drive to La Morra for visit and tasting at Rocche di Castomagna wine cellars. Lunch on your own in La Morra.

4:30 Cooking lesson in a good restaurant in the vineyards just outside the town of Barbaresco with effervescent owner and chef Esther. Dinner of your creations with wines, including Barbaresco.

Wednesday

Drive to town of Barolo. 10:30 Visit and tasting at historic winery, Marchesi di Barolo, where Barolo began serious production and marketing in the 1840's. Very informative visit to historic and modern parts of the winery.

4:00 p.m. Cooking lesson in the country at the lovely villa home of a great home cook, Marina. Fabulous 360 degree views of the wine country hills! Dinner of your creations there.

Thursday

Your free day as requested.

Friday

Free morning.

3:00 p.m. Visit and tasting in town of Barbaresco at Produttori di Barbaresco, a large co-operative of wine producers that has made a good name for its wines. 4:30 Cooking lesson with Chef Esther at her restaurant outside Barbaresco. Dinner of your creations.

Saturday

Morning on your own at the colourful Saturday street market in Alba. Stands sell everything from pots to underwear. The outdoor food market goes every morning in Alba.

4:00 Cooking lesson with Marina at her villa home in the country. Dinner of your creations.

Sunday

Departure after breakfast.

Price in 2004 per person based on double occupancy: 995 Euros or about $1640 Cdn or $1350 U.S. at Dec. 29, 2004 exchange rates.

Includes:
* 7 nights double room with private bathroom and continental breakfast at Locanda del Barbaresco
* 5 private cooking lessons with full menu dinner after and our selected local wines
* 4 private wine tastings at wineries or wine cellars
* interpreter for 2 cooking lessons with Marina and 1 with Alessandro, 2 winery visits
* fat tour booklet with local maps, restaurant suggestions, wine info. My tour colleague, Elio Sabena owns Locanda del Barbaresco so will be right there to give you help and visiting suggestions. He speaks a few words of English and fluent French and is a very kind, hospitable type.

Not included: If you'd like to try the top level Barolo and Barbaresco wines, these are at your expense. We provide good, medium range Barolo and Barbaresco wines after some of the cooking lessons, along with other good wines like Barbera, Nebbiolo, Dolcetto.

view our Guided sample itineraries