Exclusive Food & Wine Adventures in Provence

On the Trail of Michelin Starred Chefs in Provence…

Are you a foodie, obsessed with following in the footsteps of great chefs? 

If not that crazed, do you simply crave good, fresh food and like to have fun?

If so, below is a proposed itinerary that can be taken in whole, or in parts, to allow A Season Away guests to discover the food and wine specialities of the Provence region. Most excursions are exclusive to A Seasons Away and may have certain limitations. For example, cooking with Michelin-rated chefs require a minimum participant size. 

All outings are within a one hour driving radius of Aix en Provence.  The area around this jewel of a tiny city is varied:  the Mediterranean Sea with its coastline and picturesque ports, rolling hills with perched villages and castles, olive groves, vineyards, and white rocky hills.  This countryside or “terroir” offers an abundance of produce ranging from organically grown vegetables and fruits to sought-after wines, from goats cheese to AOC olives and olive oils and to fresh fish only found locally.  

Through a combination of excursions exclusively organised locally by A Season Away, you will have the opportunity to see how these products are made, meet the locals who create them AND cook with the Michelin starred chefs who use them.  Join us on the trail of these culinary masters in Provence…

Aix en Provence

Introductory Day to Aix en Provence:  Join A Season Away on a gourmet walking tour of Aix en Provence, including an historical overview of the town with amusing tales of the aristocratic life in Aix en Provence.  Your gourmet guide will introduce you to the finest food purveyors, their gastronomic heritage, and you will sample many food specialities along the way.  Lunch will be at a tiny locals’ restaurant, run by a Parisian maman, with a typically French “no choice” menu based entirely around that day’s fresh market produce.  Time for shopaholics afterwards! 

Aix en Provence Countryside

Wine Tasting at the Foot of the Sainte Victoire Mountain:  This is the home of painter, Paul Cezanne, and his precious countryside painted so many times, made up of white rocks, terracotta red soil, and vineyards stretching up the jagged Sainte Victoire mountain.  This is also the home of one of the tiniest wine appellations in France, “Palette”, which is also one of the most exclusive in Provence.  Today, your wine guide will take you to at least two wineries which currently are going head to head to produce the best rose and red wines around Provence.   In addition to getting an in depth instruction on proper wine tasting and understanding the unique wines of Provence, you will enjoy visiting an historic chateau as well as a modern winery. See if you can taste the difference.  Lunch will be a typically lazy Provencale meal in a beautiful setting under the shade of plane trees on the terrace of a local restaurant. 

Southern Luberon: Rognes/Lourmarin  

Eating Local with a Michelin Starred Chef: Venture just 30 minutes to the North of Aix en Provence today to cook and meet Madame Reine Sammut, the celebrated female chef and owner of L’Auberge de la Feniere.  Mdme Sammut has earned her Michelin star and she will share with you her passion for cooking using local products from the countryside nearby, including goats cheese, olive oils and organic herbs and vegetables.  After a short welcome in her beautiful garden, perhaps with a coffee taken inside a chic garden tent, you will then be guided to her intimate organic kitchen next to the restaurant, Le Cour de la Ferme.  There you will share a morning with her learning all the tricks of her trade, followed by lunch at “her table”.  Afterwards, you may want to go personally meet one of the local goat cheese producers at a nearby goats cheese farm, or “cheverie” where a memorable visit has been organised for you. 

La Vallee Des Baux 

An Adventure in the Olive Groves: An unbelievable experience awaits you in the Valley des Baux, where most of Provence’s olive oil is produced.  You will have the unique opportunity to spend the day driving a classic French car, a Citroen 2CV.  This car, which resembles a VW Bug, but with flat sides, is very dear to the French culture and is often associated with drives in the countryside (it doesn’t exactly reach top speeds, thus it is perfect for small country lanes and slow cruising).  You will receive an itinerary which will lead you across olive orchards and rolling hills.  Along the way, you will stop to visit oil mills and taste AOC top grade extra virgin olive oil.  Lunch will be arranged at a classic French bistro or, if you prefer, a gourmet picnic basket can be provided.  Today, your world is just one big open road… 

Marseille

Marseille is the oldest city in France, dating back to the Greeks who founded a settlement around a creek in 600 years BC!  Today, it is a thriving port city and Mediterranean melting pot with an old harbor facing the deep blue sea.  Marseille is known for its “fish wives” and raucous fish market and today you will have a taste of the action.  Your gourmet guide will give you a brief overview of the history of Marseille and then we will be met by a chef who will show you the seafood specialities and explain the varieties of fish for sale.  Most importantly, he will find and explain the fish that makeup one of France’s most famous dishes, Bouillabaisse, a fish soup.  This soup must include at least 4 very specific types of fish, including the local rockfish, and also features garlic, saffron and fennel.  Follow the chef back to his cooking school up in a hilly neighbourhood and you will soon discover how to make this soup and enjoy it for your lunchtime pleasure. We are not far from the little shopping streets of Marseille, so after this unique Mediterranean experience, we will guide you back for a little shopping time. 

Southern Luberon: La Tour D'Aigues & Ansouis

Stretch Your Legs in the Countryside: Put on your walking shoes and enjoy a 1.5 hour guided walk on the beautiful property of Chateau de la Dorgonne.  Along the way, we will stop to learn about the methods of growing vines for wine, understand the different grape varieties found on this organic vineyard, and stroll through olive groves and orchards. A professional wine guide will come along to answer your questions.  On arrival back at the “cave” or cellars, you will have an opportunity to see the inside workings of a celebrated wine domaine.  At the end of this full morning, you will enjoy a traditional Provencal picnic, as seen on the pages of travel magazines, at a linen dressed table, under a shady tree.  Chateau de la Dorgonne also makes a range of tapenades and food products, which will feature on the lunch menu and your wine guide will lead you in a pairing of wine and cheese during the meal.  After lunch, you may enjoy the simple pleasures of exploring the countryside around this part of the Luberon.  And if you must, why not stop by the “glaciere” or ice cream parlour in Ansouis;  probably the only ice cream parlour we know which is perched on a hill overlooking an historic chateau and offering 50 different flavours of hand crafted ice cream made by a Master Ice Cream maker (“Maitre Glacier”)!

Aix en Provence 

A Locals’ Day in Aix en Provence: Today, we rub shoulders with the locals in the weekly farmers market.  We will discover and meet the unique producers in this “garden” of Provence, all while shopping for ingredients to use later in preparation of lunch.  Don’t be surprised if the Honey Man offers you a taste of his lavender honey or if the Olive Man reaches out to you with plump, green olive.  It’s all there for you to taste and enjoy.  Once the shopping is done, we will head to a local’s home in the countryside 10 minutes from town.  There, a chef, who happens to be a Master Pastry Maker with his own cooking school in Marseille, will greet you and welcome you into a traditional stone farmhouse which is now a family home.  Don your aprons and roll up your sleeves as you cook your meal using the ingredients you chose in the farmers’ market.  After lunch, a special treat is in store:  a boules instructor will come to teach you to play this Southern French game of bowling on gravel, using little silver balls.  For those who wish to relax after lunch instead, the terrace is yours to enjoy.

Southern Luberon: Cucuron & Ansouis 

When you are in Provence, you simply must visit an authentic Provence village.  Cucuron is a beauty, centered around a huge pond and 70 foot plane trees which were the backdrop for one of the scenes in the film, “A Good Year” starring Russell Crowe.  Along one side of the pond, or “etang”, is La Petite Maison de Cucuron, run by the Michelin starred chef, Eric Sapet.  A local celebrity and also a jolly, nice man, Eric will invite you into his kitchens for a special morning cooking at his side and then enjoying lunch in the dining room.  Eric often chooses a theme or seasonal ingredient for his menus, such as winter truffles or spring cherries.  So, here you will get a chance to learn about seasonal produce and the diverse ways a single ingredient may be used.  After lunch, you will be re-energised so it is time to head over to Ansouis again, to visit that chateau you saw from the ice cream parlour the other day.  You will be led on an exclusive tour of this perched castle, normally guided by the owner herself.  It’s not every day that you get a chance to glimpse inside the home of a “chatelaine”!

Arles

Organic Cooking Near an Antique Roman Town:  In your search of Michelin starred chefs of Provence, today you will have the pleasure of cooking with Armand Arnal at this starred restaurant, La Chassagnette approximately 10 minutes from Arles.  This is “Camargue” country, a part of Provence known for its salty sea marshes, pink flamingos, wild white horses and of course, cowboys.  La Chassagnette is an old Camargue farmhouse which has been transformed into a modern, sunny space with equally modern, fresh cuisine.  This morning, you will have a chance to tour the organic gardens with the chef himself, harvesting herbs and vegetables along the way to use later in the kitchens.  Monsieur Arnal will share his philosophy with you and explain the way his organic garden works.  Once inside, you will enjoy cooking with him and discover the original combinations of simple ingredients which have earned him his star.  After lunch, head to Arles for a walking tour of the town’s ancient sites such as the Colisseum and Antique Roman Theatre, as well as the trendy interior design shops of this cowboy-chic region.

Cassis

Where Vineyards Meet the Mediterranean Sea: And at any time you wish to refresh yourself, feel free to dip into the Mediterranean sea from the deck of the catamaran.

Southern Luberon

Wrapping It All Up:  A Starry Evening in a Wine Cellar:  Tonight, all your experiences and everything you have learned about food & wine in Provence come together.  Your gourmet guide and your wine guide will greet you in special winery in the Southern Luberon where you will have a brief tour of the cellars to get you into the spirit of the evening.  Afterwards, you will be led in a blind tasting of wines to see how much you have been paying attention! The real treat of the evening is a catered dinner, cooked for you by none other than Eric Sapet, the Michelin starred chef from La Petite Maison de Cucuron.  Only tonight, you don’t have to roll up your sleeves and get into the kitchen.  Just “Saveur” your last taste of Provence as you dream about your next “Season Away” and your next travelling adventure. 

Itinerary Will Include:

• The services of a professional Gourmet Guide
• The services of a professional Wine Guide
• A personal folder for wine tasting notes, recipes and itinerary information.
• The excursions above, based on a group of 8 people.
• Transportation is not included, but directions and navigation assistance will, of course, be provided. (Rental of individual satellite navigation devices may be investigated)
• Shipping of wines purchased may be organized at an additional charge.
• Reservations for dinners in restaurants will happily be made on request.

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