A BIT OF ITALIAN MAGIC

Our second Culinary Pursuit in Umbria was a dream. There’s something truly magical about this land and the people in it. It’s a lesser-traveled region of Italy, often overlooked in favor of its famous neighbor to the Northwest, Tuscany. This spring was our second time staying at the beautifully restored villa Poggio Belvedere in Perugia, Umbria.

Everyone here is connected, the community is close and deeply intertwined not only with each other, but with the land. The traditions of subsistence farming still feel present, not something of the distant past. You can taste it in the food, often simple farmer’s fare made fresh with whatever ingredients are most available. Our host Kaila likes to joke that every family in Umbria makes their own prosciutto. You can taste it in the wine, too. A new generation of young farmers has taken the reigns to start building a name for Umbria on an international stage, confidently placing their bottles next to those from their famous sister to the north, knowing they will stand strong.

Since this was our second visit, we began to feel the pull of the first strands of our own inroads into this community, and the cast of characters we met last year. Marta and Andrea, who cooked our final Supper at the villa, own the local butcher shop, La Carneria. Our driver, Giulio, is Marta’s brother, but he also makes wine with their friend down the road, and joined Andrea to man the grill that last night. Kaila and Ludo, the dynamic hosting duo behind Vero in Italy, feel as much like friends as partners in this adventure.

It was many of our Pursuiters first trip to Italy, which made it that much more fun to invite them into this hidden gem right in the country’s heart, and into a community we knew would welcome them with the true Italian spirit. Almost every group in attendance was celebrating a milestone — birthday, anniversary, or similarly large life event — which made the whole week feel like a flowing celebration as birthday cakes and candles, special toasts, and tender moments seemed to pop out around every cobblestone corner.

This was also the longest Culinary Pursuit we’ve ever planned! We added a few days to explore that neighboring region of Tuscany, to expand our minds and palates with more dimensions of the Italian experience. By the end of the week, we were delightfully fatigued, so, so full, and floating on a cloud of Italian magic long after returning home.

Day One | Welcome

We welcomed everyone to the villa on our first afternoon with an Aperol Spritz bar before heading to dinner in a nearby castle, cooked for us by Chef Giorgio Enrico. Kaila introduced us to the region’s wine styles and surprised the group with a legendary local guest winemaker in attendance!

Day Two | Roots

We stepped out of the villa to tour nearby Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis. It felt fitting to begin our explorations in the home of the patron saint of care for the environment, setting the tone for our travels across farms and vineyards in this agriculturally rooted region. After lunch, we enjoyed an olive oil tasting at Il Potto de Fratini, where the gorgeous design of the tasting room almost overtakes the delicious olive oil. Finally, we ended the evening by returning to one of our favorite restaurants in the region, Maca Muta, where the antipasti of our dreams lives (when not living rent-free in our heads).

Day Three | Dirt

In the morning, Andrea, Michelle, and their dogs took us truffle hunting before cooking us a delicious, leisurely lunch. After two very full days, everyone needed some downtime by the pool before dinner. In the evening, we got our hands dirty again with an incredible cooking class on the villa patio by Chef Alessandra Caprini. Kaila brought us through another wine tasting while we made fresh pasta and sat down together to enjoy the fruits of our collective labor (and a few Aperol spritzes!) against the panoramic backdrop of the Umbrian countryside.

Day Four and Five | Routes + Water

Finally, to Tuscany! We spent a day tasting wines and exploring the gorgeous hilltown of Montalcino, including a traditional Tuscan lunch at a lovely restaurant run for decades by a husband and wife pair. The next day, we were off to Montepulciano to explore the city and taste even more wines! From there, we enjoyed a unique aperitivo at the stunning historic hot springs of Bagno Vignoni before heading back to Umbria for dinner at Lillo Tatini, now run by siblings Marco and Bianca, who took the reigns from their parents a few years ago.

Day Six | Serenade

For our final full day together, we decided to try something a little bit different. Most of us took an e-bike tour through surrounding vineyards (a few looked at the unsure weather forecast and opted to travel in the van on four wheels, with a roof over their heads). Luckily, the weather was on our side and we got a few hours of fresh Umbrian air before heading back to the villa for our farewell Supper. This meal, lovingly prepared and served by Andrea and Marta (and Giulio) of La Carneria Spina, was a highlight of the whole week. We sipped wine and cheersed to time spent together, somehow found room for more amazing salumi, and watched the sun set over green hills in the distance. Kaila arranged for surprise musicians to serenade us over dessert, a beautiful moment that somehow bled into some arguably less beautiful patio karaoke (the wine may have had something to do with that).

The evening ended with a few lingering guests singing “just one more song” with our musicians late into the night. String notes and sung threads drifted into the green valley below while the rest of the villa slept, getting ready to return to the wider world in the morning — after maybe just one more dip in the pool.

Culinary Pursuit: Umbria + Tuscany