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RESERVE MY TOUR
THE OCTOBER TRUFFLE FESTIVAL |
Culinary Delights of Andalusia
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RESERVE MY TOUR
THE OCTOBER TRUFFLE FESTIVAL |
Designed by NKS
(Options: Custom Tours)
The rugged mountains, picturesque valleys, and a forest with mature Holm oaks, wild olives and maples providing a shelter for a variety of flora and fauna such as the wild cats, eagles, vultures and wild daffodils. Yet the major cities such as Granada, Córdoba, Málaga and Jaén are within easy reach, making this a perfect base to enjoy the cultural and historical wealth of the area.
This 150 year old Finca has been tastefully restored to a high specification while retaining the charm and original rustic characters with plenty of cosy nooks and crannies for the guests to enjoy. Shying away from the showy extravagance, the setting is very intimate, homey, and idyllic. The cuisine of this region, the home of the world’s finest olive oil, is characterized by its vibrant colours, rich aromas, and full of sensual and complex flavours, featuring the heavy use of olive oil. You will also have the pleasure of cooking seasonally with vegetables and herbs that are organically grown on the Finca’s land or purchased directly from the local farmers. The freshest ingredients are carefully prepared to bring out their virtues - that is Andalusian cooking. 
Your host chef has been a professional chef specializing in the Mediterranean cuisine (and now Andalusian) for over 20 years with distinguished careers in gourmet cuisine in the United Kingdom. His passion for fine food and wine led to embark on his own cooking retreat in rural Andalusia with his wife in 2005. The fun-filled cooking session is casual, informative and very hands-on, usually based around the preparation of three-course menu, mostly classic Andalusian and Mediterranean fare as well as some signature dishes. Olive oil is fundamental to the cuisine of this region and you will learn to appreciate its various flavours in the dishes you will be learning to cook while you are here. His sense of humour and his laid-back style will assist to increase your confidence in cooking and inspire your imagination. 
Arrival Andalusia 
After breakfast, you will arrive at the home of award-winning olive oil, Priego de Córdoba. It is a delightful and picturesque town known as the “Baroque Jewel” in Andalusia. Its glorious Baroque architecture and national monuments such as Iglesia Asunción, a Baroque church with breathtaking white stucco work and statuary, and Fuente del Rey, the 16th century fountain with 139 water spouts are only a few of the examples. We will take a stroll around the narrow streets of “Barrio de la Villa”, or the Arab Quarter, covered with colourful geraniums and well-tendered plants. Also you will have a chance to participate in Olive Oil Tasting - taste the different types of “juice of the fruits” and learn about this extraordinary tree. Priego de Córdoba gives its name to one of the nine Spanish olive oil Denominations of Origin approved by an official regulatory body. We will then stop at a typical Andalusian tapas bar for lunch with fino. Back to the Finca, relax and attend your first hands-on cooking session followed by dinner. 
Córdoba 
Dominated by the snowcapped peaks of Sierra Nevada, is one of the greatest and most important destinations in Spain. We will visit another World Heritage site, the exquisite Moorish Alhambra Palace and garden guided by an expert. You will have a chance to walk around the maze of narrow alleyways in the old Moorish quarter of Albaicín district before settling in at a traditional Grenadian bar for tapas lunch. There will be a plenty of opportunities to do shopping before making our way back to the Finca to revitalize. Later in the evening, a special farewell dinner will be served by your hosts. 
Departure for those on the 4 night program. After breakfast transfer to Granada or Málaga international airport, or Antequera or Málaga train station in hopes that you will return to visit in the future. 
After breakfast we will visit one of the best-known producers of sherry wine founded in the 18th century in Montilla to taste their sherry wine bearing the Denomination of Origin of Montilla-Moriles. The most influential wine expert Robert Parker has acclaimed their vintage wines as “impressive, extraordinary”. Unlike the sherry from Jerez, the wines from Montilla-Moriles region undergo only the natural fermentation process, hence it is a 100% natural product. You will really get to know why the locals say, “if you cannot have one at eleven o’clock, have eleven at one o’clock”. Return to the Finca after a quick lunch stop followed by a lazy siesta. In the early evening, attend your third cooking session followed by dinner. 
The leisurely day begins with a visit to Montefrío, one of the most spectacularly sited Moorish towns near to the border of Granada. The whitewashed town is sitting on two rocky outcrops, each built with a church. The town is also well-known for its goats cheese. We will visit a family cheese maker that has won numerous awards, one of which is the Best Cheese of Spain for its quality. It is all done by hand using the recipe that has been handed down over generations. You will then be taken to a tiny riverside village of Riofrío which is renowned for its fresh trout and ecological caviar. The fish farm in Riofrío is the first of its kind in the world to be certified as organic sturgeon farm by the United Nations. It is also the only fish farm known to have the indigenous specie of sturgeon to Andalusia, which is thought to be extinct in wild habitat. You will have a chance to try a delicious trout dish, smoked sturgeon and of course taste their caviar for lunch. After a relaxing lunch, you will head back to the Finca, unwind and attend your final cooking session followed by dinner. 
After breakfast transfer to Granada or Málaga international airport, or Antequera or Málaga train station in hopes that you will return to visit in the future. 
