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Small Group Private Tour Specialist

Plan your Italy adventure with the small group private tour specialist. Escape overtourism and discover the back roads and authentic small towns with us. Kathy and Vernon create your perfect trip, with off-the-beaten path destinations, activities from walks and bike rides to city tours and shopping, and expert-led culinary adventures.

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Food and Wine

Any tour of Italy is incomplete without indulging in the amazing food and wine. But to truly appreciate It requires an understanding of the regional history, culture and geography. All become part of your adventure with Kathy, chef, food blogger, and Certified Italian Wine Professional, and Vernon, mountain guide, MS in European Literature and avid history enthusiast.

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Your Unique Adventure

Not all private trips are custom. Most tour companies don't have the flexibility to deviate from their set itineraries, so there are always compromises. With Kathy and Vernon, your adventure will be as unique as you are, and your itinerary will be personally designed us to meet the desires and varied interests of your group.

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The ItaliaOutdoors Difference


Truly Personalized Service and a Custom Plan for Every Trip

Kathy and Vernon

NO MIDDLEMEN

You communicate directly with Vernon and Kathy. We know your dreams for an Italy adventure, we’ll have it ready for you when you arrive.

No Group Too Small

SMALL FOOTPRINT

Our small footprint allows us to travel like locals and enjoy spontaneous adventures as we explore the path less traveled.

 

Custom Plan

UNIQUE ITINERARY

Each tour itinerary is unique and serves as a framework for an exceptional journey, where a thoughtful plan adjusts to your pace.

 

Authenticity

KNOWLEDGE

We focus on just a few select tours to provide an exceptional level of regional knowledge and an unforgettable authentic experience.

Travel after COVID-19: How do you wish to travel in Italy when we are able to return? In a small private group of your family and friends? Plenty of outdoor explorations? Off the beaten track destinations far from tourist crowds? Private cooking classes, wine tours, small intimate hotels? That's how we've been traveling for ten years. Plan your adventure in Italy with Italiaoutdoors Food and Wine, the custom tour specialist.

Customize Your Adventure - Food - Wine - Walk - Hike - Bike

With Italy's "Best Local Guide 2013"

Read about our tours in Adventure Cyclist August 2015

Our passion is creating intimate, personalized active food and wine adventures that explore an authentic Italy
- its outdoor beauty, its hidden back roads, its small family producers, its traditional wines, at your preferred pace.
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Located in the eastern portion of the Veneto, the Lison Pramaggiore DOC actually spans three regions, the Veneto regions of Venezia and Trevisio, as well as the Pordonone region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The southern end of this zone is the shores of the Adriatic, and it extends up into Friuli-Venezia Giulia between the Tagliamento and Livenza Rivers. The zone includes the plains of the Piave River as well. Located along these multiple waterways that through the centuries provided transport between these fertile regions and the city of Venice, wine production has a long history here. The alluvial plains along these rivers produced the calcareous clay soil that give these wines their distinctive nature.

lison pramaggiore wines cycling tours italy
Winery in Lison Pramaggiore zone


The original Lison and Pramaggiore DOCs were established in 1974, and produced the Tocai di Lison, Cabernet di Pramaggiore and Merlot di Pramaggiore. In 1986, these zones were united into a single DOC,  the Lison-Pramaggiore, which included the original wines, plus several additions. Today, current DOC regulations require that the varietal wines of this region must contain at least 85% of the stated varietal, with the remainder made up of other allowed varieties of the same color.

Whites:

Riesling Italico: A pleasant, dry white. Pair with fish, appetizers, and soups.

Riesling Renano: Floral and aromatic, with a good balance of sugar and acidity. Pairs well with both fish and pork.

Chardonnay: A dry, soft, crisp wine. Match with appetizers and light fish dishes.

Pinot Grigio: A dry, aromatic, distinctive white. Best with fish, soups and appetizers.

Pinot Blanc: A soft and velvety white. Match with appetizers and light fish dishes.

Sauvignon Blanc: A dry, velvety, distinctive white. Pair with pasta dishes with herbs.

Tocai Italico or Tocai Friulano: Full, round with an almond finish. Known since 2006, Friulano, when the use of Tocai was restricted by the EU. Match with grilled or roasted fish, eggs, appetizers.

Verduzzo: Dry, sometimes soft, fruity, slightly tannic. Goes well with appetizers, cured meats.

Bianco: A blend of 50-70% Tocai Friulano with the remaining made up of the other permitted white varieties.

Reds:

refosco wine private tours italy walk bike
Refosco from Lison Pramaggiore

Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso: Dry, full, slightly bitter. Match with red meat, roasts, and game.

Cabernet Sauvignon: Dry, full, tannic. Match with savory meat dishes and game.

Cabernet Franc: Dry, full, tannic. Match with savory meat dishes and game.
Cabernet: Dry, full, tannic - a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

Merlot: Dry, tannic, full-bodied. Match with red meat and strong, aged cheeses.

Malbec: Intense, dark, tannic. Pairs best with red meats and strong aged cheeses.

Rosso: The Rosso is a blend of Merlot (50-70%) and other permitted red varieties (up to 50%). It is also available as a Novello, a new, fresh wine.

Many of these wines are available in sparkling versions, either a fully sparkling spumante or a partially sparkling frizzante. Superiores have undergone a longer period of aging, and have higher alcohol levels. Riservas that have been matured for a specified period, customarily longer than superiores. All of the wines are made at least in a dry, or secco, version some are also available in Amabile (semi-sweet) and Dolce (sweet) versions. There is also a Lison Classico zone, representing a subset of the zone, including the municipalities that made up the original Lison zone -  Portogruaro, Pramaggiore, Annone Veneto, San Stino di Livenza and Cinto Caomaggiore.