Day 1

Transfer from Chiusi-Chianciano Terme train station to Osteria dell'Orcia, Bagno Vignoni, our accommodation in the Val d'Orcia, a World Heritage Site, for the next six nights with hosts Silvano and Eliana. Welcome Dinner.

Day 2

Our first wine experience is at a Nobile di Montepulciano vineyard, where we tour the vineyard and the cellars. We taste wine from the barrel, a privilege usually reserved for wine professionals. Montepulciano is our next stop, where you are free to have lunch and explore. Next to the magnificent Renaissance Piazza Grande is one of the last coppersmiths in Tuscany. Dinner at Osteria dell'Orcia.

Day 3

All the best dried pasta is made from durum wheat. What is it? At Spedaletto, a 12th-century castle, we start in their wheat fields learning the differences between ploughing, sowing and harvesting with oxen and today's computerised tractors. We follow the process to the archaeological remains of water mills at Bagno Vignoni and return to the farm to watch the transformation of the grain into flour, which we use to make pici, the traditional pasta of the Province of Siena. After lunch on the farm, we return to Osteria dell'Orcia for a lesson on pasta al forno with Eliana.

Day 4

Today we visit a family vineyard that makes Chianti outside the 'Classico' area. The vineyard owner guides us through the original 19th-century cellar dug into tufa rock, and in a tasting of his excellent wine tells us what makes it different from Nobile di Montepulciano. The afternoon is free to visit the ancient pilgrimage town of Bagno Vignoni just 10 minutes walk from the hotel, bathe in its thermal pool known to the Etruscans and frequented by pilgrims and nobility ever since, or simply relax at Osteria dell'Orcia.

Day 5

A self-sufficient morning at Il Casale making ciaccia, as the Val d'Orcians call focaccia, in a wood-fired oven and pecorino cheese. The flour, oil and milk come from the farm. For lunch we'll eat our bread and cheese. In the afternoon, free time in Pienza. Dinner at Osteria dell'Orcia.

Day 6

Today we encounter one of Italy's best known wines, Brunello di Montalcino. With our sommelier we find out why it is also one of Tuscany's best loved wines. Lunch in Montalcino and free time for sightseeing. We return to Osteria dell'Orcia for our farewell dinner of historical dishes matched to appropriate wines.

Day 7

We bid farewell to the Val d'Orcia and head to the Garfagnana in northern Tuscany. Luckily we arrive at Arezzo in time to lunch at a restaurant with one of the top wine sommeliers in Italy. Arezzo merits a visit in its own right for its churches and art, especially the Piero della Francesca cycle, 'The Legend of the True Cross'. We continue to Hotel Villa Moorings in Barga, north of Lucca. Time for sightseeing in Barga before we go to Francesca's pizza party, where we help roll and top the pizzas and bake them in her wood-fired oven.

Day 8

Now we get involved in making wine. We learn to pick and select grapes at a biodynamic vineyard, see wine in the early stages of fermentation, lunch and wine tasting with the owner, who explains the difference between organic and biodynamic wines. On the way home we stop to see a farmer of primitive maize, see how it’s processed and ground into polenta flour. Back at our hotel, we have a pastry lesson with Beatrice Salvi, whose prowess with the rolling pin you will have sampled at breakfast. Dinner at the hotel will be made of ingredients from her family's farm.

Day 9

This morning you'll make your own loaf of Garfagnana potato bread, a Slow Food presidium, with Paolo, the village baker, in his wood-fired oven. While the bread rises we find out all about farro of the Garfagnana, an even more primitive wheat than spelt, which requires polishing, like rice. Paolo's wife cooks our lunch which we wash down with farro beer made next door. We continue through rugged mountain scenery to Parma, where we eat at one of Parma's most traditional restaurants. Our wine will be the local Lambrusco, usually undrinkable in the rest of the world, but a revelation in its home territory.

Day 10

Making parmigiano reggiano is a much more complicated and lengthy process than pecorino. We arrive at Davide Avanzini's farm in time to witness the dramatic raising of the parmesan. We tour the dairy ending in the farm shop for a tasting. Next we visit the specialist who matures Davide's parmesan — a warehouse full of 50,000 cheeses! Now we cross the Po Plain to our final destination, the rice fields of Lomellina between Pavia and Novara. Free time for lunch and sightseeing in the picturesque town of Vigevano, with its quintessential Renaissance piazza. Our accommodation will be at Locanda da Carla, set in the Ticino Nature Reserve. Dinner at Trattoria da Carla.

Day 11

We thread our way through the bleak beauty of absolutely level rice fields with a backdrop of Monte Rosa and the full panorama of the Swiss Alps. The irrigation system we see around us was designed by Leonardo da Vinci. Cascina Fornace is a small modern rice farm, where we watch the harvest of the ripe golden rice and follow its progress through the dryer and the polishing machine, very like Paolo's farro polisher. The lunch menu at a nearby restaurant includes paniscia, a Lomellina risotto made with the Fornace rice, and another local speciality, fried frogs (alternative available). In the afternoon we visit Caseificio Arioli for a tasting of their gorgonzola piccante, gorgonzola dolce and taleggio. We return to Locanda da Carla for a risotto lesson using Fornace rice and the Arioli gorgonzola.

Day 12

We head north to Gattinara, a wine region since Roman times. Gattinara DOCG is made from the Nebbiolo grape and in the best vintages can rival Barolo and Barbaresca. We tour the vineyards and visit the cellars of Anzivino and Travaglini for tastings with the owners. Lunch at Anzivino where we get to peek at their balsamic vinegar production in the attic. The offices of fashion designer Loro Piana happen to be nearby, and we stop at the outlet shop on our way home. Dinner at Trattoria da Carla.

Day 13

We might participate in a traditional rice harvest (to be confirmed). Remember the film 'Riso Amaro'? It was shot in Lomellina. Farewell dinner at Trattoria da Carla will include the goose salami of Mortara, another little known delicacy from Lomellina.

Day 14

Departure. Transport provided to Milan Malpensa airport with rail connections to most of Italy.

Price

Per person: €4,395 (Euros)

Single supplement: €650 (Euros)

Includes

Friendly knowledgeable English-speaking guide throughout your stay

13 nights in welcoming, relaxing accommodation, en suite bathrooms

Local ground transportation for 14 days

Daily continental breakfast, 9 lunches, 13 dinners

Entrance to wine tastings, cooking lessons, guided visits with producers

Does not include

Airfares

Travel and cancellation insurance

Thermal bath treatments

Wine and drinks, other than those served with meals, additional meals

Personal expenses such as telephone, mini-bar, etc.

Meeting point

Chiusi-Chianciano Terme train station (nearest international airport is Rome)

If you are flying from outside Europe, we suggest you arrive a couple of days early to recover from jet lag so you can fully enjoy your time with us. We are happy to advise about where to stay and eat and what to do before and after your tour.

Dress

Informal. Jeans or smart trousers are acceptable everywhere. Good walking shoes required for grape harvest.

Weather in September

Val d'Orcia: 14–25˚C / 57–77˚F, rainfall 35 mm / 1 in

Lucca: 15–26˚C / 59–78˚F, rainfall 123 mm / 5 in

Lomellina: 13–23˚C / 55–74˚F, rainfall 30 mm / 1 in

Itinerary is subject to change if necessary due to weather or agricultural conditions or other events outside our control.