The heel of the boot has mainland Italy’s longest coastline, white-sand beaches, winds from the Sahara desert—and the perfect climate for its centuries-old olive groves. Puglia’s rich agricultural legacy includes the fairytale stone villages of the Valle d’Itria and a hearty cuisine that gave the world burrata and orecchiette. Spend some time in Puglia’s laid-back embrace.
A welcome dinner in traditional osteria, Cibus, in Ceglie Messapica—a hymn to this corner of Puglia with a tasting of local salumi, cheeses, and pasta
Day
2
Trul(l)i and Olive Oil
MASSERIA BELVEDERE
Contrada Belvedere, 72012 Carovigno BR, Italy
+393393218479
Langorous morning with optional time on the nearby Adriatic coast
Puglia is one of Italy’s biggest producers of olive oil, and its centuries-old olive trees are one of the region’s biggest attractions. In the fairytale stone-house village of Alberobello, Intini produces olive oil with indigenous varieties. We’ll lunch and have an insider’s visit of their process and product
Dinner in the masseria, with a lesson in making local specialties such as orecchiette and focaccia barese
Day
3
A Butcher’s Feast in Martina Franca
MASSERIA BELVEDERE
Contrada Belvedere, 72012 Carovigno BR, Italy
+390835332744
A visit to Francesco Carriero farm to see how pata negra pigs are transformed into the famous local salume, Capocollo di Martina Franca
Free time, walks, and drinks in the limestone-roofed town of Locorotondo
Dinner in the greatest of all traditional fornelli, Da Riccardo, to taste an array of region’s best meats: bombetta, straccetti, gnummarieddi, and more
Day
4
Formaggio e Pane
Sextantio Le Grotte Della Civita
Via Civita, 28, 75100 Matera MT, Italy
+393393218479
Roadtrip! Pack an overnight bag (we’re keeping our rooms at Belvedere) and head west into the fabled lands of Basilicata.
Check in at the luxury cave dwelling hotel Sextantio in Matera
Light lunch with cheese and salumi in Latteria Rizzi
Visit and aperitif in a traditional grotta from XVII century
Dinner at the big-plate, big-flavor destination Stano
A night exploring the hill town of Matera
Day
5
Slow Matera
MASSERIA BELVEDERE
Contrada Belvedere, 72012 Carovigno BR, Italy
+393393218479
Check out from Sextantio and head for the hills (of Alta Murgia)
Spend the day in Alta Murgia with our friends the Dicecca brothers to discover the area and its cheeses, flavored with the herbs that grow in these mountains
Lunch with the DiCecca brothers in the hills
Sample Altamura’s traditional bread at Di Gesù bakery
Dinner at Botteghe Antiche in Putignano
Back to our familiar rooms at Masseria Belvedere
Day
6
The Fruits of Il Mare Piccolo
MASSERIA BELVEDERE
Contrada Belvedere, 72012 Carovigno BR, Italy
+393393218479
Leisurely morning at the Masseria with yet another breakfast cooked by our private chef
The town of Taranto holds the jewel of Mare Piccolo, a lagoon where oysters and bearded mussels—two examples of crudo, Puglian raw fish antipasto—are farmed
Seafood dinner in Osteria la Sciabica in Brindisi
Day
7
Formaggio e Vino
MASSERIA BELVEDERE
Contrada Belvedere, 72012 Carovigno BR, Italy
+393393218479
Free time in the morning, under the Puglian sun
Nodini, burrata, and stracciatella are only a small part of Puglia’s unmatched variety of traditional dairy products. We discover it all in Masseria La Lunghiera in Turi for a long instructional visit and a relaxed lunch
Farewell party in Masseria La Cattiva, a young and eccentric natural winery whose founders have been feeding our wine supply lines throughout the week
