La Via Gaia

What we love: Because Claudia grew up in Bergamo and her relatives still live there, we feel most connected to this historic walled city, where we spend most of our personal family time in Italy.

• Explore Lombardy's culinary culture, inspired by the bounty of the surrounding countryside.
• Stay in a truly enchanting retreat atop Bergamo's old town, famous for charming narrow streets and picturesque squares.
• Share traditional specialties like Acquarello carnaroli rice, veal ossobuco and bergamascan polenta, and the distinctive regional cheeses of the Orobic Alps.
• Cruise the hidden gem of Lake Iseo, situated in the Franciacorta wine region, producing some of Italy’s best sparkling wines.
• Settle into Milan’s stylish Navigli neighborhood for a classic aperitivo in a canal-side bar, followed by a traditional Lombardy dinner.

Best of all, experience the cooking classes of award-winning chefs and friends Franklin Becker and Jeff Michaud, as they reveal the secrets of the area’s quintessential flavors, and even arrange a dinner with Jeff's mother-in-law, a true Italian home cook.

What we love: Here is where our daughter Gaia, only six years old at the time, enjoyed the entire 19-course meal at Hiša Franko, and we met our friend Giampaolo Venica, fourth-generation vintner who now hosts our trips in his homey Wine Resort.

• Explore the cafe life in Trieste, stopping to savor a nero (espresso) in this port city known as the “Capital of Coffee”.
• Meet regional winemaking luminaries who produce legendary varietals like Ribolla Gialla, celebrated for its bright fruitiness.
• Gather for a memorable meal from Ana Roš, named one of the world’s best female chefs, at her 3 Michelin-starred Hiša Franko, in the countryside of nearby Slovenia.
• Wander the scenic mountain village of Sauris, surrounded by the dramatic peaks of the Dolomites, known for its time-honored Alpine agricultural pastimes.

Best of all, experience a unique half day in Venice under the enthusiastic guide of Katie Parla and explore the region's cuisine in a cooking class by award-winning chef Jeff Michaud as you learn to make local specialties like frico and Cjarsons a staple of Friuli’s rural cucina povera.

What we love: This relatively overlooked region introduced us to the legacy of craftsmanship in its heritage foods, and the authentic character of Modena Balsamic Vinegar, Prosciutto di Parma, and its delicate fresh pasta.

• Visit the village of Savigno, meeting artisans who carry on family traditions, including Guido, transforming the local Mora pig and Bianca Modenese cow into mouth-watering cured meats and steaks for 3 generations.
• Walk the streets of Parma to discover and taste the gastronomic delicacies that will delight eyes, nose and palate.
• Learn about Italy’s luxury racing automobile at the Enzo Ferrari Museum with classic models on display.
• Become acquainted with the Spigaroli family, makers of Culatello di Zibello and share lunch at their Michelin-star restaurant, dedicated to the Po River territory’s culinary heritage.

Best of all, join the chefs Joe Sasto and Jeff Michaud in 2 pasta making classes and learn how to use a matterello (or wooden pin) to roll out the yolk-rich dough and then shape regional specialties like Tortellini, Tortelloni, and Tagliatelle.

What We Love: Surrounded by the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, Puglia is a farming stronghold where artisans follow rural traditions to produce unforgettable bread, olive oil, cheeses, and wines, with regional specialties like orecchiette, burrata, and capocollo known around the globe.

• Luxuriate at an exclusive Masseria in the Itria Valley. A 17th-century restored villa bordered by private gardens in a valley of vineyards and olive groves.
• Taste culinary heritage in every bite of Pane di Altamura, a celebrated regional crusty bread produced for over a century.
• Explore the maze of alleyways and connecting staircases in historic Ostuni, known as “Citta Bianca” for its brilliantly whitewashed architecture.
• Watch Norcini masters craft authentic Pugliese Black Pig capocollo in Martina Franca, before an alfresco feast at the Caroli family olive mill.
• Be an artisanal cheesemaker at an organic Farm with owner Mariangela, followed by an intimate family lunch.

Best of all, share the skills of master pasta maker Anna Maria Chiarone and Chef Jeff Michaud, learning how to shape and sauce Puglia’s signature orecchiette, cavatelli, and sombrero, accented with food-friendly wines Primitivo di Manduria, Susumaniello, and Negroamaro.

What we love: We launched our La Via Gaia trips here, taking over a farmhouse to welcome our very first guests. Since then this region has became our Summer weekend getaway to enjoy stunning scenery, outdoor activities, and some of our favorite foods.

• Meet Veneto wine masters and learn to appreciate the difference between regional superstars, Amarone and Valpolicella.
• Appreciate the magic of Chiaretto di Bardolino, the rosato/rose famously produced in the Alpine-Mediterranean environment of Lake Garda.
• Find yourself square in in the middle of Verona’s Piazza delle Erbe, the crossroads of city life.
• Spend Sunday Supper with an olive oil producer for the Spiedo ritual of slow spit-cooking meat, among the world’s oldest techniques.
• Visit the beautiful and unique architectural structures of the Lemon Gardens that preserve an ancient local tradition.

Best of all, play a part in making authentic creations with award-winning chefs Jeff Michaud and Greg Vernick in intimate classes designed to give you first-hand experience.

What we love: Every year our family returns here, to the town of Alba known for its white truffles, to drink in spectacular vistas, romantic hill towns, wonderful food, and finely crafted wines.

• Experience robust Barolo and Barbaresco, produced from the intensely aromatic Nebbiolo grape in bottlings from top winemakers.
• Venture into the wild patches of forest on a truffle hunting mission.
• Roam through world-famous wine regions, from The Langhe and Roero's small DOCG wine district to the hills of historic Monferrato.
• Taste the lush, buttery mouthfeel and a depth of flavor of Giorgio Cravero's Parmigiano Reggiano, a fifth-generation cheese refiner in Bra.
• Float above vine-covered hillsides and storybook villages in a sunrise balloon ride over Barolo, the heart of the Piedmont region.

Best of all, learn about Piemonte's unique cuisine in dinners at trattorias, Michelin-star restaurants, and in two memorable cooking classes, held by award-winning chefs and friends, Michael Cimarusti and Jeff Michaud and discover that, here, every meal tells a story.