As Culinary Director of Italiaoutdoors, my passion is sharing the amazing foods and wines of these regions with our guests. Every trip I discover something new, and have fun, enthusiastic people there I can share it with!

After a career as a telecommunications engineer (Bell Labs, then the semiconductor industry), I retired and enrolled in culinary school.  I graduated at the top of my class in 2004. Since then, I have tried on many cooking hats, including leading cooking classes, catering, and personal chef. I have also had the great pleasure of working with chef Jody Adams of Rialto restaurant in Cambridge on many charitable events, working some very occasional shifts in the restaurant, and traveling with her to Italy and France, and various US cities to work and eat.

I currently divide my time in the US between Newburyport, MA and Sugarloaf, ME. Sugarloaf is a community united around skiing and all sorts of outdoor activities - biking, hiking, fishing, golf. I now work full time as a ski instructor during the winters here, and enjoy hiking, biking, and golfing in the warmer months. When not in the kitchen, outside is where you'll find me.

Early in 2010, Vernon approached me about joining our skills to offer unique active culinary and wine tours in Italy. I work to complement Vernon's expertise in recreational programming with and equally strong food and wine program. Our goal is to introduce our guests to the incredible diversity of the regional cuisines and local wines we experience first hand each and every day of our adventures. And each visit I make, I realize how much more there is to discover.

I share recipes, wine information and  tasting notes, and travel experiences on my blog (www.chefbikeski.com) and my www.italiaoutdoorsfoodandwine.com site. This web site will act as a library of information on the foods and wines of the regions we visit - the Veneto, Trentino,  Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Emilia Romagna. My blog will be my way of sharing my explorations into the regional Italian cuisines from both sides of the Atlantic, my visits to Italy as well as how my experiences there inspire my cooking here.