All Good Wine Tours Must Come to an End, Unfortunately.

Well, what can I say? Today is the last day of the tour. How did this happen so fast?! We have seen, done, and tasted an amazing number of things. But....today is the last day of the tour!

We pack up the van for the last time, and make our way back to Rome. But as per usual, I want them to see and experience just a little bit more before they go home. It would be a shame to leave Umbria without a stop in Spoleto, and to top it off, it is simply a gorgeous day!

As usual, my goal in having my clients trek around these charming hill towns is to make them hungry for lunch, and today is no exception. The historic center of Spoleto can be very vertical. Combine that with the fresh air, sightseeing and shopping....and yes, we are ready for lunch! Good thing too, because we're in for a real treat. Today is our Farewell Lunch (sob, sob), so I've organized an elegant and fancy affair at Ristorante Apollinare. We will be in the hands of Chef Michele, who never fails to make me swoon with his delicious menus. Here's our starter. It is beyond amazing.
In Italian, Michele calls this, Tortino di zucchine con salsa di zucca gialla e fiore di zucca farcito di formaggio e tartufo, or in other words:  Zucchini pie with pumpkin sauce and squash blossom stuffed with cheese and truffle. Yes. I know. You can't believe it either! The zucchini pie was so tender, the pumpkin sauce so flavorful, the zucchini blossom so fresh, and then you get hit with the cheese and truffles.....swoon. All I can think is, "This is only the beginning; please don't let it end."

I apologize for the poor pictures, but from left to right, we had, Frascarelli della nonna con crema di pomodoro e pesto di basilico, Filetto di vitello al timo con millefoglie di verdure and Crescionda spoletina agli amaretti e cioccolato con gelato alla vaniglia fatto in casa. So what does all that mean?
The first dish on the left is pasta with grandmother's cream of tomato and basil pesto. Then comes the most delicious and tender veal fillet with thyme and layers of vegetables. It was Amazing with a capital "A". For dessert, we had a local specialty of amaretti and chocolate with homemade vanilla ice cream. That one made my eyes roll back in my head. Seriously. Delicious. I think I simply will never be able to go to Spoleto without paying Chef Michele a visit. 

And now that our Farewell Lunch is over, and we make our way back to Rome....it really is time to say goodbye. They take final pictures with our driver Christopher who has been by our side for the last ten days. 

This group has been SO amazing. They have been funny and fun. They have appreciated everything they see, do and taste. It has been my honor to escort them about Italy. I will miss them; they were such a joy!