Arrival Day of Tasting Puglia+Tuscany started late afternoon at Bari International Airport. While waiting for travelers arriving from Redlands and Tuscon, I got acquainted with our lovely driver Roberto, a quiet gentlemen who would soon reveal his super maneuvers.

About an Italian hour later we were turning onto the dirt road through the olive groves en route to Masseria Il Frantoio, a working farm dating back to the 1500s. As we climbed down from our vehicle under the cypress trees at the entrance of the farm’s courtyard, a light drizzle was just lifting. Our hosts met us with helping hands and instructions about dinner, escorting us to our individual nests.

Our day ended fireside around the dinner table. From the damp courtyard we entered a dining room warmed by two fireplaces, alight with candles and fresh flowers. The curvature of the ceilings swaddled us in a new space. Each arrival from the kitchen was accompanied by a fervent anecdote from Alessandra about the ingredients and their origins.

The luminous atmosphere of that first evening of arrival would foreshadow our time together in coming 10 days. Good friends and family were about to embark on adventure and discovery in new territory.