La Cucina di Cristina
Website: www.aiolina.com
Contacts: 340 3727676 – 0577321004
Email: [email protected]
Here at Aiolina you will be able to participate in a hands-on cooking classes specializing in “La Cucina della Nonna” which loosely translated is Grandma’s Kitchen. We believe in using only local products so as to showcase the fabulous treats of this area. You will learn the secrets of the cooks of the area, making authentic regional Tuscan specialties.
Cristina, your host, comes from an Italian restaurant family in San Francisco so has been behind the burners all her life. She has learned from professionals and from locals. All of this has led her to want to show her passion in the kitchen and she has been doing this for small (2) and large (76 was the largest!) groups for the past 15 years.
During your hands-on cooking class, Cristina will introduce you to the wonderful Tuscan culinary traditions.Taking inspiration from the wide range of possibilities, this course focuses on well-known and well-loved Tuscan recipes.You will learn the importance of fresh, high-quality, locally sourced ingredients when cooking and creating dishes from scratch. Although we use local ingredients to us, examples of substitutes that you can find when you are back home will be given. Our focus in this class is to teach you how to make rustic recipes such as coccoli, crostini neri, ribollita, pappa al pomodoro, malfatti, pork and chicken in many different forms and other dishes that are the heart and soul of traditional Tuscan cuisine. Each dish has a history that will let you appreciate it even more.
Equestrian Center - Borgo Cignano
Loc.Cignano, 15, 53019 (Siena) Italy
Website: www.chiantihorseriding.it
Contacts: Anna Maria Baldi – 3662850098 – 0577 321001 – [email protected] – [email protected]
Description: Borgo Cignano, an oasis of peace in the Chianti
Located on the hills of the Chianti Classico, Borgo Cignano is an equestrian center surrounded by centuries-old vineyards and olive groves, a short distance from open-air museums such as Castellina in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti and Radda in Chianti, as well as from three sites declared World Heritage from Unesco: Siena, San Gimignano and the Val d’Orcia. Suitable for children as well as adults, the Center offers lessons in both English and American riding. We teach approaching the horse, training lessons for intermediate and advanced riders, and programs for horse riding in the countryside. You will be followed every step of the way by our team of professional guides and instructors, from the choice of the cap and the boots, to the saddle, it will be easy to let yourself be won over by the horses that are able to work with all riders and their varying degrees of experience. Maintaining a relationship of respect for animals is a priority of our staff who take care of our friends with passion, constantly pampering them. The most important part will be discovering the beauty of a territory that jealously preserves its landscapes, traditions, the culture of wine and good food, its history, the charm of the dirt roads and the magic of the cities of art. On the chiantihorseriding.it website, as well as on our Facebook and Instagram pages, you can find all of our offers for horse riding and trekking; daily wine and horse tours, horse riding trips of two or more days, trips to discover villages and castles that distinguish the Sienese countryside, as well as following the Via Francigena to the sea. All journeys are customizable. Borgo Cignano in addition to enjoying a particular location stands out for meeting its guests with tailor-made experiences to get to know Tuscany in the most suggestive and authentic way, from the saddle of a horse.
Sara Testi Hiking, Walking and Tour Guide in Siena & Tuscany
Website: www.supertuscanguides.com – www.saratestiguide.com
email: [email protected]
“I’m Sara, I live in Vagliagli and I have been working as an environmental guide since 2003. I am lucky enough to do a job that I love. I enjoy meeting people from all over the world and speaking English and French is a real blessing in a territory like ours! Being able to talk, listen, laugh (a lot!), sometimes cry with emotion and of course … walk! I am always walking, whenever I can.
I carry in my heart my degree in Cultural Anthropology, the studies on the agricultural landscape, the sharecropping, my beautiful and harsh Chianti, the older people who are able to tell me if the sky will bring rain or snow. I just can’t live without cheese, telling the story of cypresses, heart-to-heart hugs, speaking in Tuscan and joking. I collaborate with a group of colleagues, all guides by profession and passion. We are the SuperTuscanGuides: friends first of all. We met at work and we liked each other. We work with the same spirit and the same intentions, and above all, with respect for the environment, yours and ours.
Would you like a nice hike with a Chiantigiana DOCG?! Contact me, I will help you to organize your perfect experience, designed just for you!”
Andrea Anichini - " A man from Chianti Classico" - Private Chef at Your Home
Website: www.amanfromchianti.com
Contacts: 329 2511574 – [email protected]
Facebook e Instagram: A man from Chianti Classico
“For years I have been a home cook around the world. I was born and I live in Vagliagli. I do cooking classes, I organize events, even with my moving pizza oven. I use only quality ingredients starting from organic flours from ancient grains.
I have been organizing dinners around the USA, during winter, for about 10 years.”
Vademecum Tours: Guided Hikes and trekking in Tuscany
Website: vademecumtours.com
email: [email protected]
“Vademecum Tours is a way of experiencing Tuscany that stands out from the hectic realities of mass tourism, offering you a relaxing journey while slowly discovering the region through time and history. The idea was born in 2017 by Alessandro Maggiorelli and his deep passion for nature, history and being outdoors visiting places, meeting people and discovering hidden beauties. Our main goal is to enhance your experience in the area by guiding you to discover the wonders of Tuscany through an excursion on foot or by bicycle, or through an educational activity, in the way that children learn to know and respect nature while having fun. The intent is to let you experience the Tuscan landscape by letting you get in touch with all that is extraordinary here, from the wildest nature to the historic country churches, from local fauna and flora to traditional customs and traditions. “
Team:
Alessandro Maggiorelli Environmental Hiking Guide
Born in the heart of Chianti, where he lives and collaborates in the development of trail networks. He began hiking as a child in the Dolomites and Graian Alps. A former student of Biology, in 2016 he became an Environmental Guide and began working the tuscan territory by founding Vademecum Tours. Since 2017 he has been a guide at the Botanical Garden of the University of Siena, and since 2019 a teacher in training courses for environmental guides and a guide at the Biodiversity Museum of Monticiano.
Serena Castignoni Environmental Hiking Guide and a Geologist.
Member of the Italian Alpine Club for a long time, she inherited her love for nature and the mountains from her Piedmontese father. She has a degree in Geology and in 2006 she became an Environmental Hiking Guide who works both on the territory and in the museum field. Since 2014 she has been a guide at the Botanical Garden of the University of Siena, and since 2019 a teacher in training courses for environmental guides. “