Out & About July 2017

he Feast of Saint Valentine is a

celebration of romantic love, a day for

honouring our loved ones and one that

invariably finds us indulging together in

the simple, sensual pleasure of food.

Nothing shouts romance like a culinary feast

for the senses.

Bailey Robinson can help you arrange the

gastronomic adventure to satiate even the

most epicurean of connoisseurs, so indulge

your inner bon vivant and fall in love over food

this Valentine’s Day.

The truffle is among the most valuable

foodstuffs in the world. Its powerfully evocative

scent – warm, earthy and musky – stimulates,

bewitches and befuddles the senses like

nothing else.

Head to

Norcia

Italy

this February for the

National Black Truffle Festival and revel in a

romantic Valentine’s Day extravaganza.

Enclosed by 14th-century walls in the heart of

the beautiful Umbrian countryside, Norcia is

one of Italy’s finest gastronomic centres, home

of the Italian black truffle and renowned also

for its wild boar, mountain cheeses, wine and

salami.

Stay at the luxurious Palazzo Seneca, a

converted 16th-century palace and the

ultimate destination for lovers of all the simple

pleasures.

Indulge in sensory heaven with a guided menu

showcasing the region’s specialtiy truffle dishes

at the hotel’s Michelin-starred restaurant,

Vespasia.

Join chef Emanuele Mazzella for a cooking

class and learn how to prepare this delicacy

at home, then walk off the evening’s excesses

and join a professional truffle hunter and his

dog to search for what the composer Rossini

called the ‘the Mozart of fungi’.

The tiny, landlocked region of

Matarrana

north east Spain

is an enchanting, little-

known rural idyll that encourages comparison

to Tuscany.

Home to olive groves, terraced vineyards

and medieval villages, the region’s delicious

wines, cheeses and distinctive dishes can be

savoured at local restaurants that, being off-

the-beaten-track, offer tremendous value.

Stay at La Torre del Visco, a restored 15th-

century tower house set majestically on the

brow of a river valley and a member of Relais

& Chateaux.

The hotel is renowned for its superb restaurant,

serving slow-cooked specialties and huge

breakfast platters, with most of the produce

sourced from the estate’s lovingly-maintained

90-hectare organic farm.

Explore the estate and take a cookery class in

between romantic walks and cosy evenings in

front of the fire.

Alternatively,

Mas de la Serra

is an isolated,

converted farmhouse with fabulous views over

the surrounding countryside.

Your Peruvian hosts, Luis and his chef-wife

Jenny, provide delicious, comforting food with

a South American twist, such as ceviche and

lamb casserole.

If the Pisco Sours don’t inspire your inner

raconteur, perhaps the cellar’s unexpected

stash of single malt whisky will; the hotel’s

owner is Alasdair Grant of the Scottish

whisky-making dynasty.

Galvanise yourself after an evening of

gratifying excess and go hiking or fossil-

hunting, visit the nearby Vente d’Aubert

winery or try a cookery class.

For more than just a taste of South America,

head to

Argentina

, the land of pampas plains,

cattle and gauchos, who are not just horse

whisperers but arguably the best barbecue

chefs on the planet.

The team at Cavas Wine Lodge, a luxurious

boutique hotel and vineyard in the foothills of

the Andes, are consummate hosts.

The cellar is stocked with the finest vintages

and the restaurant is uncompromising in its

pursuit of excellence.

Chef Federico Castro was born and raised in

Mendoza and believes unconditionally in the

flavours, tastes and traditional foods of his

native land.

Five hundred years ago Mendoza was the

southernmost limit of the Inca empire and

today dishes such as steak with chimichurri,

Andean potatoes, salsa criolla and baby goat

with vegetables retain the stamp of this truly

indigenous South American cuisine.

Chef Castro and his team offer cooking classes

while the spa has some stimulating treatments,

Whether you’re looking for a quick romantic getaway to Europe

or a more adventurous escape further afield, Sarah Woodthorpe

has some luxurious suggestions

Cavas Wine Lodge

Black Truffle