(Options: Day Cooking Classes, Team Building Corporate Days, Wine and Sherry Tours and Tastings, 

This holiday consists of a mixture of cooking lessons by a professionally trained and talented chef, visits to the local market for shopping, wine tasting, great gastronomic excursions, first class accommodation in a charming boutique hotel in the stunning village of Ronda, with free transport to/from the airport.

Our gastronomic activities will bring you closer to a world of Andalucía flavors, which are healthy Mediterranean and innovatively creative. The hands-on cooking classes focus on Mediterranean cuisine being mainly Spanish but with an Italian influence.

You will be staying in an old Spanish Cortijo that has been lovingly transformed into a comfortable modern hotel with all the facilities that the modern day traveller would expect from a luxury four-star residence in the heart of the natural park of Grazalema. Set in its own 370 acres of ground, the hotel is in the ideal location for you to relax and enjoy this wonderful break. So, if you are a lover of good food and wine and are planning on visiting Spain, this is certainly the holiday for you!

Transfer from the Airport to the hotel.

After settling in, at.7:00 p.m. aperitif in the Hotel, with presentation of the team’s activities.

Welcome dinner in the Hotel Restaurant.

Early departure for Malaga centre. In Malaga old quarter we will be starting the day with the typical "Churro con Chocolate". A must if you are visiting Malaga. Trip to Malaga central Market where we will buy most of the items we will need for our cooking lessons.

Tapas lunch in Malaga

Afternoon back at the hotel where we will start our first cooking class. We will be preparing our dinner.

Breakfast between 9.00 and 9.45 am.

Trip to Jerez de la Frontera. To speak of Jerez de la Frontera is to speak of its sherry wines which have impregnated the whole of its culture, art forms and customs since 1100 BC. We will, therefore, offer you a complete guide to the most significant wine tourism resources of the city with a full guided visit to one of the most famous wine cellars in Jerez.

Lunch in a typical Fish restaurant near the sea.

Afternoon back at the hotel. Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast between 9.00 and 9.45 am.

It's time for our second cooking class.

We will then go for lunch in a fantastic wine vineyard.

After lunch we will then have the opportunity for an extensive visit to the vineyard and learn how they make their fantastic organic wines. Following the visit we will then have the opportunity to try their wines.

Free afternoon at the hotel before getting ready for a beautiful Flamenco show while we are having dinner in a local restaurant.

Breakfast between 9.00 and 9.45 am.

10.00am Trip to an historic olive oil mill, which right up to the present time produces Extra Virgin olive oil in the traditional way. Following the visit we will go to a cheese Factory where they will explain us the full process of  “Goat cheese" making.

Lunch in a typical restaurant on the way to the cheese factory

Free evening with the possibility of an excursion to Marbella and Puerto Banus.

Breakfast between 9.00 and 9.45 am. 10.00am our third cooking class will take place

Tour of the village of Ronda with plenty time for the last shopping.

Surprise evening……………….

Feedback Forms and Farewells!

Transfer back to the airport

Wishing you a fond farewell with hopes that you will return to Spain again!

TWO NIGHT ITINERARY

Day One

After settling in, at 7.00 p.m. aperitif in the Hotel lounge

Brief presentation of the weekend activities

Welcome Dinner in the Hotel Restaurant 

Day Two

Following breakfast in the Hotel terrace (weather permitting) we will then get ready to go and visit a very interesting Wine Estate.

We will be visiting a local wine Bodega described as a heavenly spot, full of history, quiet, isolated and discreet.

After the visit we will then go for a tour of Ronda, following a brief tour of the city we will visit the Ronda wine museum. A full guided visit will take us through this total experience in the wine world. Besides learning how to differentiate between various tastes you will be able to analyse and pick out the more than 56 aromas that have catalogued as being possible in one glass. We will then have the pleasure to taste some of their wines before going for lunch in a typical Restaurant in Ronda centre.

Back to the hotel for a little rest before having dinner in the Hotel Restaurant.

Day Three

Following breakfast in the Hotel terrace (weather permitting) we will then get ready for a cooking demonstation of Italian food. We will be preparing our three course lunch which will include (selection of starters, preparation of pesto sauce, Linguine with fresh clams, and Tiramisu).

Following the cookery demonstration we will then have free time before eating what we prepared.

Free afternoon before heading back to the coast. 

TEAM BUILDING CORPORATE EVENTS

Get your team working together while having a great day out in the beautiful countryside by picking olives, grapes or lemons. After the days' work is over, you can relax and build your strength at a feast in a country tavern set amongst the fertile valleys and tranquil hillsides of vineyards and orchards.

If cooking is not your passion, we have a variety of other activities that can be organized from golfing day, boat trips, go-karting, wine tours, sight seeing trips, scuba diving and much more.

Here are just a couple of examples of Team Building Events:

Wine & Cooking Team Building Challenge

Blind Regional Wine Tasting Competition : The group will taste 3 different local wines, a red, a white and a rose. After the wine tasting session, the group will have to taste the wines drinking them from a black wine glass without having the possibility to see the colour of the wine.

Cooking Class Competition: Our Chef will prepare live in front of the group the most popular classic Spanish dish: Paella.

The group will then be divided in smaller groups and each one of them will have to prepare a large Paella dish. We would normally add extra ingredients that are not normally used to prepare Paella,and the groups will need to make sure they only use the correct ingredients. Once all the Paellas have been prepared the Chef with the client Senior Management will have to choose the best Paella. After the competition, the group will be eating what they have prepared.

The meal will consist of a selection of Tapas to start with followed by the Paella they have prepared and a dessert. All served with a selection of local wine.

NON RESIDENTIDAL DAY TOUR OPTIONS:

1. SPANISH WINE TASTING AND TAPAS TOUR (Available Monday through Friday)

Choose from Gaucin Pueblo or Mijas Pueblo

What better way to enjoy life than to sample the local foods and wine in style how the locals do? Here is your chance. This half day excursion will consist of an introduction to wine tasting, explanation of the basic technique to discover the aroma and flavour of local and regional wines (white, rosé, red and dessert wines). Enjoy a selection of gourmet tapas accompanying the tasting and then after a brief tour of the village of Gaucin or Mijas, sit down in the heart of the village to enjoy some of the local tapas to conclude an evening that your senses shall never forget!

Eyeballing the shade of colour of the wine, inhaling, savouring, swirling and swishing; it may look complicated or even snobbish, but the traditional wine-tasting technique is designed to waken all your senses, from sight to scent to taste, to aftertaste. Learn about some of our local and regional wines.

We shall proceed to the village centre to a typical tapas bar and experience the practice of "tapeo". A clever formula that allows you to taste just about everything, not out of gluttony but culinary curiosity! As they say, variety is the spice of life and today you will become a wine and culinary connoisseur to boot. A perfect way to conclude a perfect evening

2. SPANISH COOKING CLASS (Available Monday through Friday) - 10:30am - 5:30pm

Discover the secret of traditional Spanish cooking the rustic Andalusian way, either as a meal or a selection of tapas. Our journey will begin at 10:30am and the day will last about 7 hours. We take you to a beautiful setting amidst the Ronda mountains near Gaucin Village a mere hour away, where one of our chefs shall prepare 5 different rustic dishes accompanied by popular red and white regional wines.

You will start by hand picking your ingredients from the nearby orchard and adjoining countryside and prepare everything with a full hands-on experience. (you cannot get more natural than that!). In the case of bad weather we will happily take you to the local Marbella market where you will select the products we shall be using in this afternoon’s cooking class and in the process why not take this opportunity to buy something for yourself?!

In this class you will learn how to make 5 accompanying dishes and gain a greater understanding of how to use basic ingredients such as olive oil and spices the Spanish way. These will be skills one can implement at home to impress friends and family to a veritable treat and you shall be transformed into a true Mediterranean Chef!

The breathtaking scenery of the natural park and the insight into the secret of Spanish cooking will create a moment you will always treasure full of entertainment and plenty of unique experiences.

3. TRIP TO JEREZ (Available Friday only) - 9am - 6pm

To speak of Jerez de La Frontera is to speak of it’s sherry wines which have formed an integral part of its culture, art forms and customs since 1100 BC, and with this in mind we wish to immerse you in its historical trademarks.

We will start the tour from the Cadiz area first stopping at the largest sherry cellar in Europe. Here you will be treated to a show of equestrian mastery from the Jerez Riding School (the progenitors of the world recognised Spanish Riding School in Vienna), followed by a detailed tour of the facilities. Sample the various sherry wines with some appetizers and learn the famous art of "Venenciar" – how to correctly pour the sherry into a glass. To end the visit you will have the opportunity to purchase any of the wines including their rarest Last Bottles at the bodega.

Following this unique experience you will be transported to the Puerto de Santa Maria (St. Mary’s Port) to one of the oldest restaurants in the Jerez area where you can eat some of the most exotic selective fish and seafood dishes freshly caught that very morning.

Jerez is one of Spains’s largest contributors of Andalucian culture on an international scale and this tour will bring the equestrian experience, seafood delights and sherry wines in unison for you to savour forever.

4. ARTISAN OLIVE OIL & ORGANIC WINE VISIT IN RONDA (Available Monday through Friday)

Your day will begin about 9:30am and end around 5:30pm. This will be a thorougly enjoyable day you will never forget. Get to know the real Andalucía far away from the busy Costa de Sol and the tourist resorts. Our trip will take you 1 hour up the mountainous road by the "Parque Nacional de Grazalema" boasting beautiful rolling forest hills and mountains.

Our first stop will be a historic olive oil mill dating back to the 1700’s and nestled between the "Sierra of Grazalema" (Cadiz) and "Sierra de Las Nieves" (Malaga). It is one of the last surviving mills to produce olive oil the artisan ways of old and whose main attraction must be Juan, the head family member and owner of the mill. He is a true ambassador of his business and will get particularly animated about the intricacies of Artisan Olive Oil making!!

Once the tour is finished you will be able to sample his oil with some country bread and a glass of his home made wine and even have the opportunity to purchase some of his oil and olive oil hand cream which works wonders!

Next we will depart for a local Organic Vineyard 20 minutes away where you will have a tour of the facilities and the learn the differences of this laborious preparation and attention to detail to ensure the highest quality of grape used for the organic winemaking. Lunch will follow where you can soak in the harmonious surroundings and sample the various wines on offer. We conclude with a brief walk through the natural gardens.

If you are able to leave after this wholesome experience where a nice siesta is in order, an optional stop in Ronda is possible on the way back to the resort. Here you will have a brief tour of the city visiting the famous "Puente Nuevo" (new bridge); the symbol and soul of the city, the bull ring (one of the oldest in Andalucia) and the main street for a spot of shopping if so desired.

GROUP SIZE

A minimum of 2 participants is required to run this tour and the tour is limited to a maximum of 10-14 participants. (For the non residential tours, a minimum of  2 participants is required and tours are limited to a maximum of 8 participants)

(The number of participants refers to how many persons are required to run the tour,  not to how many persons you must have in your  party. Please inquire)

HOW TO ARRIVE

Closest Airports: Seville, Granada, Malaga

BOOKING INFORMATION

For further inquiries or to register, click here.

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CANCELLATION POLICY

Please contact us for cancellation policy information. Travel insurance is highly recommended.

CLIENT REMARKS

MAP*

This exciting region is depicted below. You can also access Google MapsTM by clicking HERE.

*In some cases mapping may give clients a general sense of location due to changes in venue. Please inquire about specific location.

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