Authentic Southern Tuscany:

• Arrive in Chiusi, a stop on all train routes between Rome and Florence, about one hour from each. Group transfer to Palazzo Bandino at 2 pm.
• Settle into your charming room with modern bathroom.
• In the later afternoon, you'll meet your host Gabriele and your fellow adventurers to visit Palazzo Bandino's own wine cellar, where you'll learn a bit about local wines and see how they are bottled.
• Your introduction to authentic southern Tuscany begins with dinner at Palazzo Bandino.
• Overnight at Palazzo Bandino.

• Breakfast.
• You'll have a relaxing start today at Palazzo Bandino, where Gabriele will tell you about the history of his family and their ancestral estate.
• Your first hands-on cooking lesson with chef Benocci concentrates on antipasti, such as bruschetta, crostini, fettunta and other types of canapes, as well as morsette, the delicious almond cookies that Tuscans dip into their vin santo dessert wine.
• Lunch based on what you've cooked, accompanied by tastings of Chianti, Nobile di Montepulciano, Brunello di Montalcino and vin santo.
• Afternoon excursion to Pienza, the purest Renaissance town in the world. Entirely rebuilt between 1459 and 1462, it was the brainstorm of Pope Pius II and today is memorable not only for its architectural purity but also for its exquisite food shops. You'll want to stock up on truffle-flavored cheese, wild herbs and other delicacies as you stroll through these pristine 15th-century streets.
• You will have dinner at a local restaurant tonight.
• Overnight at Palazzo Bandino.

• Breakfast.
• Morning outing to Montalcino, the stately town within a castle that produces one of Italy's most prestigious wines. You'll visit a local winery whose Brunello 1997 was rated the world's #22 wine in 2002 by Wine Spectator. Here you'll taste a fascinating selection of wines and light foods that best accompany them.
• On the way home, you'll stop at a haunting countryside abbey, allegedly built by Charlemagne. If you're lucky you'll hear the monks singing vespers as they have done for hundreds of years.
• Transfer back to Palazzo Bandino for a hands-on cooking lesson featuring the classic southern Tuscan hand-rolled pasta called pici, followed by succulent whole fish baked in a paper crust.
• Dinner based on what you've prepared, accompanied by fine local wines.
• Overnight at Palazzo Bandino.

• Breakfast.
• The rest of the day is free for you to use as you like, perhaps with a visit to Palazzo Bandino's wonderful new spa, Sensi Divini. You are entitled to one 90-minute session, during which all services (except private massage and Raxul) are completely free of charge. They include an inside hot tub with lumbar and spine massage as well as waterfall massage, outside hot tub, Kneipp therapy (alternating hot and cold water jets massage your feet as you walk on a bed of smooth river stones), combined musical therapy and chromotherapy shower (realigns all seven chakra points), Finnish sauna, Turkish hammam, and Raxul (private hammam with personalized settings). If you prefer to skip the spa, you can visit the local Etruscan Museum, where you'll learn about Europe's most mysterious culture, forerunners to the early Romans, or you can stroll through Chianciano's open air market. One of the liveliest in the area, it includes everything from the tiniest espresso pot to the most praised truffles.
• Lunch is at a local restaurant.
• Transfer back to Palazzo Bandino for a cooking lesson featuring secondi piatti, main dishes such as roasts, braised or grilled meats, alongside the thick handmade noodles called pappardelle, perhaps served with traditional sugo alla boscaiola.
• Dinner based on what you've prepared, accompanied by fine local wines.
• Overnight at Palazzo Bandino.

• Morning visit to the venerable hilltown of Montepulciano, home of the renowned nobile wine. You'll stroll through the charming streets of this town, which somehow manages to be quite monumental, despite its small size. You'll also pay a visit to the weekly market, and then stop to see a masterpiece Renaissance church that sits alone on a hilltop just outside town.
• Next you'll visit an olive mill (in late October through November you'll actually see the process of an olive becoming pure cold-press first-run extra-virgin oil).
• By now you will welcome a light lunch, served at the frantoio and featuring an array of local specialties made with olio extra vergine d'oliva.
• Transfer back to Palazzo Bandino for an afternoon hands-on cooking lesson featuring fresh vegetable dishes such as artichokes and tomatoes stuffed with herbs and cheese, followed by a luscious Tuscan dessert.
• Dinner based on what you've prepared, accompanied by fine local wines.
• Overnight at Palazzo Bandino.

• Breakfast.
• Full-day excursion to Siena. On the way you'll drive past San Gimignano to see its world-famous skyline, dubbed "The Manhattan of Tuscany." You'll be on your own in Siena, to wander among the medieval streets, visit the exquisite cathedral or the wonderful Town Hall, do some shopping or just relax at a cafe.
• Late-afternoon transfer back to your lodgings.
• Farewell dinner and presentation of your cooking program certificate at Palazzo Bandino.
• Overnight at Palazzo Bandino.

• Breakfast.
• Transfer to the Chiusi-Chianciano train station.