CALLING ALL CHEFS: Italian flavour to tickle tastebuds

Chefs from across the North West are being encouraged by organisers Grand Tourist to sample olive oils from Le Marche in Italy at exclusive tasting sessions. The olive oil is some of the finest in the world and thanks to luxury travel company Grand Tourist, chefs can win the chance to visit where it is made in the Le Marche region on the Eastern coast of Italy in a cultural and skills exchange. The free tastings are being held at Olio & Farina in Bridge Street, Chester on Tuesday February 5 and at The London Carriage Works in Liverpool on February 6, from 3pm to 5pm.

The Italian olive oil tasting is being run in conjunction with exclusive gourmet events in Chester offering the chance to sample the cuisine of a renowned Michelin starred Chef. Mauro Uliassi will travel from Senigallia, which is twinned with Chester, and cook at The Arkle restaurant at the five-star Chester Grosvenor Hotel for lunch on Wednesday February 6 and for dinner on Thursday February 7, 2008.

Grand Tourist, which specialises in the finest that Europe has to offer, organise exclusive food & wine tasting holidays to Senigallia and the surrounding Le Marche region of Italy, combined with mouth watering Italian food.

Director of Grand Tourist, Janet Simmonds said:

“There is a fantastic culinary tradition in Italy and also across the North West and Grand Tourist is proud to have strong links with the Le Marche region of Italy. There is a fantastic prize for chefs to experience a culinary long weekend, including a technical day training amongst the Italian olive oil groves and vineyards. As Senigallia is twinned with Chester it is particularly appropriate that we should welcome this fantastic olive oil to the North-West. Senigallia, on Italy’s Adriatic Coast is a stunning place to visit with fantastic seafood. As a region, Le Marche is relatively undiscovered, but Grand Tourist offer exclusive packages and insights into the delights there. These events bring just a little of the sparkle and a ‘taster’ of the region to Chester and Liverpool.”

Chester based Grand Tourist offer the finest of European culture; gourmet dining in rural France, hot-air ballooning in Burgundy, private chateaux and garden visits in the Loire. Whilst in Italy the art of Florence, Venice and Rome is there to enjoy. Grand Tourist also offer a range of travel guides for London, Paris, Geneva, Rome and Venice, the European cities visited by the original Grand Tourists. These guides provide ideas for the modern visitor including restaurants, sight-seeing, bars, galleries and museums.

For further information on the olive oil tastings please call Janet Simmonds on 01829 751038 or email janet@grand-tourist.com

Notes:

In the 18th century, the Grand Tour was an educational pilgrimage or a rite of passage for wealthy British noblemen. Starting in London, it was a period of European travel which could last from a few months to many years. During the Tour, young men learned about the politics, culture, art and antiquities of neighbouring countries. They spent their time sightseeing, studying, shopping and having fun!

Just as the Grand Tourists experienced the spectacle of glaciers in the Alps, Renaissance Palaces in Italy and the magic of the Venetian lagoon, these treasures remain to be discovered today. Grand Tourist is here to help recapture the essence of travel as experienced by the original Grand Tourists.

If clients are looking for the elusive quality of travel experience that is so hard to find in today’s hectic consumer-driven world, then talk to Grand Tourist. As well as planning European tours, a Tour of Jordan and the Lands of the Bible is also available.

Director of Grand Tourist Janet Simmonds has more than 20 years experience in the travel industry. She graduated from Oxford University in the early 80’s and spent several years working as a tour operator and running her own travel business in Italy, France and the United States. Later she returned to University to study for a Masters Degree in the History of Art and specialised in the Grand Tour of the 18th and 19th centuries.

For more details on Grand Tourist visit: www.grand-tourist.com