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| Photo by Freeimages.com/Arto Myllys |
For 2016, DuVine Cycling + Adventure Co. is leading off its collection of Europe bike tours with new farm-to-fork and celebrity “chef on wheels” experiences.
Also on the agenda is a Challenge & Race series for advanced cyclists, and a 20th Anniversary Burgundy Bike Tour led by Andy Levine, DuVine’s founder.
The “Back to Burgundy - The 20th Anniversary Bike Tour” will kick off September 2 and run through September 5, with special tastings with some of the company’s favorite producers, private lunches, and dinners in a local farmhouse and Michelin-starred restaurant. Guests will stay at the Hôtel Le Cep.
For foodies, the company is offering new truffle-hunting and harvesting trips in Italy and welcoming back Chef Seamus Mullen for a “chef on wheels” tour in the south of France. The “Provence Chef on Wheels Bike Tour” will run this Memorial Day weekend and offer guests the chance to choose fresh ingredients at local markets with the chef, as well as take in the scenery that inspired the likes of Van Gogh and Cézanne. In October, the “Piedmont Truffle Bike Tour” will kick off just in time for truffle season as guests join a local truffle hunter and his dog on a hunt, learn how to cook Piemontese delicacies with a Michelin-starred chef, and pedal into Alba’s annual truffle festival. Oenophiles will also have a chance to taste Barolo, Barbera, and Barbaresco wines. Finally in late autumn the “Tuscany Harvest Tour” will explore ancient Etruscan villages during the annual harvest of olives, porcini, truffles, chestnuts and more. Highlights include cooking a seasonal dinner with DuVine’s local friend Lina and sharing a wild-boar lunch with a bestselling author and boar-hunting expert.
For advanced cyclists, the Challenge Series will offer six- to seven-night tours in the Alps and Italian Dolomites designed to test travelers’ skills. Also this summer DuVine is continuing its TDF Mount Ventoux and TDF Alps to Paris Tours.