The 2012 Food & Wine Lovers' Culinary Tour in Puglia was a huge success and a ton of fun. After just a few of my posts from this year's tour, so many of you sent requests for information about next year. And I can't wait any longer to tell you about it. Yes, we will be cooking and eating our way through Puglia again in 2013!
We've specially designed a delicious 9-day/8-night food and wine
lover's journey in Puglia for 2013. You'll not only taste the many
delicacies of the region, you'll cook them, too! We've organized events that give you exclusive access "behind-the-scenes," inside professional kitchens and visits to other spots that you won't find anywhere else. More than a food tour, it's an immersion into the culture, lifestyle and traditions of the people of Puglia. We'll meet and work with many Salentine people and, like those on this year's tour, you'll fall in love with how warm and welcoming they are.
Dining with a view of the sea in Gallipoli
Making Pasticciotti with pastry chef Luca Capilungo
We'll cook together during FIVE hands-on cooking classes, learning to make traditional Salentine dishes, pasta, bread and pastries with local cooks, chefs and mammas as special guests and to guide us. Watch an artisan cheese maker at work and then dig into the still-warm freshly-made, creamy ricotta. Sample seafood right out of its shell minutes after it's been
caught. Go into the kitchen of a famous Lecce pastry shop and learn about the sweet side of
Salento, with samples, of course. There will be guided walking tours of Baroque Lecce, the
fisherman's village of Gallipoli, the seaside resort town of Otranto,
the Trulli of the Itria Valley and the "white city" of Ostuni. These
are just a few of the highlights of this trip; there's so much
more...
The tour and what's included:
- 9 days/8 nights stay at four-star resort villa
- Experience Puglia like a local - We will have a
local guide with us the entire trip
- All breakfasts, lunches and
dinners
- Local wines included with all
lunches and dinners
- Private shuttle to and from
the Brindisi
Airport or train
station and to all destinations during the trip
- Welcome private wine tasting and several others during your vacation
- Guided walking tours of Lecce, Otranto, Gallipoli and the Itria Valley
- SIX cooking classes (five
hands-on and one demonstration)
- Cheese making demonstration
with tastings
- Gelato visits & tastings
- Guided visit to a Lecce pastry shop
with a pasticciotto-making lesson and tastings
- You'll be a pizza-maker for a
night – making your own pizza at a Lecce pizzeria
- Three winery visits and
tastings
- Beach time to enjoy the
gorgeous Puglia
coastline and lapis-lazuli sea
- Food Lover's in Puglia recipe book – including some
recipes from the chefs we’ll visit
- Food Lover's Odyssey in Puglia apron and welcome gift bag
- Assistance with making your
travel arrangements to the Brindisi
airport and any pre- and post-tour travel arrangements
Typical dinner at the masseria
Become a pizzaiolo (Italian for pizza maker) for a night
Eggplant Involtini made with our Italian mammas
With our local guide by our side the entire way it will be so much
more than a culinary journey. It will be a truly local and memorable
experience. We'll be a small group, 12 guests are the maximum number for each
tour, so you'll have more personal attention and a more authentic
experience.
The Trulli of Alberobello
Baroque church of Santa Croce in Lecce
Where is Puglia? Puglia is the region at the "heel" of Italy's "boot." We'll
be staying in Puglia's southernmost province, Salento. It's "kissed" (as the Salentines say) on both sides by the deep blue sea - the Ionian to the west & the
Adriatic to the east. Often called the "California of Italy" and
referred to as "Tuscany without the crowds," Salento boasts a cuisine
based on cucina povera (poor kitchen), vegetables, local olive oil &
seafood. The countryside is an endless stretch of olive trees and blue
skies. Salento's capital is the baroque beauty of Lecce, and we'll stay
in a gorgeous and spacious masseria located just minutes from the sea.
Ready to join us and to cook, eat, drink, discover and enjoy Puglia? There are four tour dates available for 2013:
Tour Dates:
- April 27 to May 5, 2013
- May 25 to June 2, 2013
- October 5 to 13, 2013 - Spaces still available but filling up fast
Price: $3,500 per person based on double occupancy
Single room supplement: $800
Deposit: A nonrefundable deposit of $1,000 per person is required to confirm enrollment.
Final Payment: The final payment is due no later than 90 days prior to the start of your tour.
For more information: you can read and see many of the tasty things we cooked and the exciting excursions we took on the 2012 tour here: Food Lovers' Tour in Puglia
For even more: to see more photos from the 2012 tour, visit the Facebook page for Food Lover's Odyssey and my section here on Puglia to read more about this food lover's dream region in Italy.
To book your tour ~
Choose your tour date, email me at: chefkathyayer [at] yahoo.com, and
I'll send you the booking form that corresponds to your tour. You will
need to fill out the booking form and send it back to me via fax or
email along with the deposit payment via check or via PayPal.
What guests from the 2012 culinary tour in Puglia said about their trip:
"I felt like a queen for nine days!"
"There is no way we could have had this experience traveling on our own or have found all the lovely people of this region."
"Mamma Giulia and Mamma Anna are stars in the kitchen, loved their old-time cooking style."
"You just want to eat more & more & more; and you do."
"Luca, Luca, Luca! We loved pastry Chef Luca Capilungo!"
"I can't wait to get home and cook a Salentine meal for my friends."
"Every single person we visited welcomed us into their place like we were honored guests."
Picnic in the olive grove
Food Lovers’ Culinary Tour in Puglia
~ 2013 Tour Itinerary ~
Day 1:
- Arrival at Brindisi Airport
with a private transfer to the villa
- Welcome drink and light lunch upon arrival at the
villa
- Afternoon to relax by the pool
- Pre-dinner private tasting of local wines
- Welcome dinner with me and your fellow travelers
- Discuss details of the fabulous week ahead
Day 2:
- Breakfast at the villa
- Guided visit to a local farmer’s market with
tastings
- Walking tour of Otranto and visit to the Otranto
Cathedral – with free time in the city to stroll, shop or dip your toes in
sea
- Lunch at a trattoria in Otranto
- Pre-dinner wine tasting with typical local food
products
- Market-to-table hands-on cooking class based on
ingredients purchased at the market
Day 3:
- Breakfast at the villa
- A day in Lecce
with a guided walking tour, carta pesta demonstration and free time to
shop or discover more of this baroque beauty on your own.
- Lunch at a trattoria in Lecce
- Guided visit to a pastry shop in Lecce with tastings
- Hands-on cooking class – Classic Salentine dishes
- Four-course Dinner based on our creations
Day 4:
- Breakfast at the villa
- Full day visiting the Itria Valley
and the famous Trulli - with walking tours of Alberobello, Ostuni &
Locorotondo
- Lunch in the Itria
Valley of traditional foods from
the Itria Valley
- Dinner at the Villa
Day 5:
- Early breakfast at the villa
- Morning Dolci
di Italia & Puglia (Italian and Pugliese Desserts) cooking class
- Winery visit and tasting
- Lunch at the winery
- Afternoon drive along the Costa del Sud – from Santa
Maria Leuca to Otranto with stops for photo ops
- Dinner along the Adriatic Coast
Day 6:
- Breakfast at the villa
- Pugliese Breads and Pasta – Hands-on cooking class
- Lunch will include some of the pasta and bread
you made
- Afternoon to relax at the pool, the beach or free
time in Lecce
- Pre-dinner wine tasting
- Hands-on cooking class
- Four-course dinner based on your creations
Day 7
- Breakfast at the villa
- Winery visit with tasting
- Lunch with an ocean view on the terrace in
Gallipoli
- Walking tour of the historical town of Gallipoli
- Afternoon free in Gallipoli
- Pizza dinner in Lecce
Day 8
- Breakfast at the villa
- Morning cheese making demonstration and tasting
- Winery visit and tasting
- Picnic lunch will include cheeses from the cheese-making
demo and other local delicacies
- Afternoon to relax by the pool
- Evening stroll in Lecce
- Farewell dinner in Lecce
Day 9
- Breakfast at the villa
- Private transfer to the Brindisi Airport
(Sequence
of classes and excursions may vary. Whenever there are local festivals
or events happening during a tour, we will try to include them to the
itinerary to enhance your travel experience.)
It's going to be a blast!
Join me and let's cook, eat, drink, discover and enjoy Puglia!!
