Gastronomic Traditions of Italy Tour: Cheese Making, Olive Oil Pressing & More

Abruzzo is dramatic in both scenery and culture. Mountains rise and fall, creating a rugged landscape leading to lush prairies. The turquoise water of the Adriatic Sea sparkles like a gem against the sandy shores of the region. Ancient forests hide medieval towers. Isolated hilltop towns overlook emerald vineyards.  You will arrive in Rome, where your private transfer greets you at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport. 

Olive trees bloom against the backdrop of Apennine Mountains. Sheep and cows graze on vast verdant farmland. In the town of Ortona, you settle into a lavish hotel overlooking the white sand of the Adriatic coast. The town’s origins date back to the 10th century BC as a Frentani settlement. The 15th-century Castle Aragonese towers over the sea, built on a cliff at an altitude of 236 feet. The promenade along the city’s coastline provides an exceptional view of the castle and the horizon beyond. 

More than 400,000 olive trees grow in Abruzzo and your guide will lead you in the morning to the town of Loreto Aprutino, where pre-Roman history dates back to the 4th century BC. The medieval structures that remain were erected in the 11th century. The town rises along the hillside at an altitude of 964 feet, surrounding the protruding structures of Palazzo Chiola and the bell tower of San Pietro Apostolo Church.

A Gothic building with a hexagonal tower houses the contemporary Olive Oil Museum, dedicated to the production of the town’s most famous export. The structure was erected in the 19th century as an olive oil mill. The edifice resembles a castle taken from a storybook. Olive presses and stones used for production fill the galleries. The exhibits provide insight into the history of olive harvesting and olive oil making in the region. Cobblestone streets wind around the hillside beneath the terracotta rooftops of the surrounding buildings. Your guide escorts you to a nearby vineyard and olive grove.

Traverse the rows of vines and trees for an enriching experience through the soil of Abruzzo. You join the olive harvest for the day, helping pull the plump fruit from the tree. The groves stretch for acres. The aroma is slightly sweet and herbaceous. You use a large stick to strip the olives from the branches before grating the olives to rid them of any remaining stems. Your guide leads you to a tasting room where you have the chance to enjoy the creamy texture and rich flavor of the fresh olive oil produced on the property.

Fishermen set out on their colorful boats in the morning. They cast their nets into the water and find the freshest seafood to bring back for locals to enjoy. In the afternoon, the streets fill with the aroma of freshly grilled calamari garnished with garlic and lemon juice. After breakfast, your guide escorts you to Pescara, the largest city in Abruzzo. The city hosts one of the largest marinas in the Adriatic Sea. The Museum of the Abruzzi People offers exhibits highlighting the rich history of the region, which spans more than 4,000 years.

You can wander through 13 large rooms, tracing the lineage of Paleolithic hunters to the customs of Rome, exploring the details of how the past has shaped the region’s current customs, beliefs, and places of worship. There are even galleries dedicated to sheep sheering and cheese making, carnival masks and glinting silver saddle pommels. The town of Navelli was classified as one of Italy’s most beautiful villages. The houses were constructed with golden stone linked by strong arches. Large wooden doors open up to the meandering cobbled streets. The town grew during the medieval and Renaissance periods. The 17th-century Palazzo Santucci crowns the village at the top of the hill, providing views over the village and valley floor.

The turquoise hues of the Adriatic contrast the gold sand shores of Abruzzo. At breakfast, you savor the aroma of a bittersweet cappuccino, accompanied by a freshly baked brioche. After your meal, you make your way to Chieti, one of the oldest towns in Italy. Chieti Alto is the upper level of the city located on the hilltop. According to an ancient legend, Achilles founded the city in the 12th century BC. The Gothic Cathedral was erected in the 11th century AD and maintains a Romanesque crypt.

The foundations of the original structure remain, but the church was rebuilt in a Baroque style in the late 17th century. The National Archeological Museum of Abruzzo in Chieti is located in the Church of Saints Peter and Paul. Substructures constructed in the 1st century AD adjoin the houses of the church. You will continue to the coastline, where soft golden sand creates idyllic beaches for miles along the Adriatic. as you reach the province of Chieti.

In the morning, you may venture out to a nearby gorge for a stunning walk along the landscape. The soft grass leads to the edges of rugged cliffs in the Spirito Sancto Gorge located in Fara San Martino. A small café near the entrance fills with the aroma of espresso. When you step into the gorge, you find steep, craggy walls, and an otherworldly array of boulders, grass, trees, and mountaintops. Cascading water from the melting snow along the mountains shaped the curiously shaped holes around the basin. 

A monumental portico adorns the façade beneath the towering cliff. The chapel was erected in the Middle Ages and maintains an element of inspiration due to its isolated location and excavated frame. In the afternoon, you meet an instructor eager to take you on a journey through the cuisine of Abruzzo during a private cooking lesson, in the town of Fara San Martino. The cuisine has married the traditions of pastoral and mountainous areas, consisting mainly of pasta, meat, cheese, and wine. The flavors maintain a gorgeous richness. 

Today you venture to the rocky slopes along the Maiella leading to the Avella River. The highest peaks of the Apennines climb above the Tre Grotte Valley to a height of 8,858 feet above sea level. The town of Pennapiedimonte was carved into the terraced mountainside. Norman settlements gave way to the 15th-century fiefdom of the Orsini and Colonna families. The settlement was renowned for its stone carvers, exemplified in the location of Pennapiedimonte and the stunning artistry of the architecture. Images of fruit, animals, and faces frame windows, doors, and balconies across the medieval structures of the town.

You can feel the alpine air sweeping across the cobblestone streets. The mountains encircle the town. Vineyards and forests drape the valley below with emerald leaves. You continue to the town of Guardiagrele, located at an elevation of 1,890 feet. The town contains celebrated jewelers and retains the title of “capital of copper and wrought-iron.” A 3,000-year-old bronze sword and decorated sheath were discovered in 1999 in the Comino necropolis.

In the autumn, the vines of Abruzzo fill with grapes. Harvesters traverse the acres and collect the juicy clusters, snipping the stems away and leaving the grape behind. After breakfast, your guide leads you to the farmlands of Abruzzo, near the town of L’Aquila. The farm location provides ample space for the herds of sheep to roam the grasslands. More than 125 wild herbs and flowers grow along the edges of the farmland.

You can have a hands-on tutorial of the cheese-making process on the farm, learning how the cheesemakers boil the water, cook the curds, and shape the wide varieties of cheeses produced on the farm. After you help mix the cheese, your guide brings out an array of aged products produced in-house, including a ricotta peperoncino, a sheep’s milk cheese with a rind of spicy chili. You will continue to the preserved medieval village of Roccascalegna located on a rocky outcrop.

The traditional shepherd’s path around Abruzzo winds through the mountains and overlooks the Adriatic Sea. Sheep have wandered through the hills and valleys, following the best grazing land. Medieval towns continue to decorate the landscape, demarcating trade routes and small stops along the historic country roads. You can indulge in the view of the Adriatic shoreline at breakfast where fishermen continue to operate the trabocchi (old fishing machines). After breakfast, your private transfer will meet you at the hotel and escorts you to the airport in Rome for your flight home.