De Bolonha: Emilia Excellence Food Tour

This tour was a bit of a splurge, but it was a very efficient use of 7 hours on the last day of our vacation. My daughter and I were given private tours at all of the places we went and it was truly an incredible experience. Tasting different ages of parmesan cheese and then getting to sample 50 year old balsamic vinegar. How else are you going to do that?? Just amazing. Also got to purchase everything we tasted at a fraction of the price it would cost in the United States. If you're a true foodie, you need to do this!

The actual tours were excellent. We had three stops - a parmigiana reggiano factory, a winery and a small producer of traditionale balsamic vinegar. The selection of stops was excellent and all the guides were very knowledgeable. However, the transportation was less than stellar. Although we booked a private tour but were asked the day before if we would share with another couple. We didn't really feel like we could say no. Then the vehicle was too small for all the passengers to be comfortable on the long drive. Plus the driver spoke almost no English and made multiple wrong turns which was frustrating. Certainly the trip to Modena was worthwhile but the logistics could have been better.

We wanted something that encompassed a lot of the specialities of the region and this on paper appeared to fit the bill. It did not disappoint! Francisco our driver was friendly informative and very patient driving us from our Hotel to every venue. The Parmigiano Reggiano tour was fantastic, very interesting and Alice the guide was very clear and knowledgable. The tasting was great. Next was the Balsamic tour which was also interesting and the tasting included great tips for using it in everyday cooking. The final tour was less interesting for us personally because we have done many vineyard tours in France and USA but this one was done in a very smart way tasting in the beautiful hotel that adjoins it. The sublime ending to a fabulous few hours was the set lunch on the Hotel terrace overlooking the beautiful rolling hills. The food and wine was gorgeous and really was the icing on the cake. Can highly recommend