A traverse organised by what grows where. Nebbiolo in Piedmont, the pork and vinegar culture of Emilia, then Sangiovese in Tuscany and Umbria. Four bases, unhurried transfers, and a cycling morning through the vineyards for those who want it.
Arrival and transfer to the hotel in the centre. The afternoon is free under the arcades. Welcome dinner opening with vermouth, and an introduction to the line the group will follow: one grape handing over to the next, from marl to clay.
Morning through the arcaded centre, Piazza San Carlo and the Palazzo Reale, with a stop at an eighteenth-century cafe. Independent lunch. Afternoon free, with an optional visit to a vermouth house or the Egyptian Museum.
Departure for Alba, with the market and the covered stalls in the morning, then arrival at the base in the Langhe for four nights. Afternoon tasting at a grower in La Morra, looking across the communes from the ridge.
Two days across the two appellations, with four growers in total and the slope, the exposure and the soil explained each time on the spot. Long lunches at osterie that cook for the harvest. On the second afternoon, the infernot cellars of the Monferrato.
Bicycles and e-bikes through the vineyard roads between Barolo and Novello, at a distance set by the group, with a support vehicle for anyone who prefers to watch and a picnic at the turning point. Afternoon free at the base.
Transfer across the Po plain to Parma, arriving in the early afternoon. Orientation walk through the ducal centre and the cathedral. Dinner with the local salumi and a Lambrusco drier than its reputation.
An early start at a Parmigiano dairy on the first morning, then a prosciutto cellar in the hills above Langhirano. On the second day, Modena: the Romanesque cathedral, the covered market and an acetaia where balsamic ages in a family attic. Lunches with the producers.
Transfer over the Apennines into Tuscany, with a stop at Montepulciano and a tasting of Vino Nobile in a hillside cellar. Arrival at the countryside base in the Val d’Orcia for three nights.
Montalcino and Brunello tasted in the cellars where it is aged, with the producer pouring, and Pienza with pecorino from a farm where the sheep are milked on site. The second day allows for Sant’Antimo, Bagno Vignoni and time at the estate.
Morning transfer east, with Montefalco and a tasting of Sagrantino, the hardest of the three grapes and the last in the sequence. Afternoon at Bevagna or Spello. Farewell dinner among the vines.
Morning transfer to Rome or Florence for onward flights, with a stop at Orvieto for groups with later departures.
Splendido private tours
