To know a country is to know its food – and not just what shows up on Instagram.
While recommendations from social media and food bloggers help to scratch the surface, those tips are crowd sourced and already known to the masses. For more unexpected, immersive experiences, it’s doesn’t hurt to have an expert take over.
Luxury tour operator, Scott Dunn’s itineraries stretch across a range of experiences in 90 destinations. Of them, food tours in France, South America, Australia, Courchevel and Kerala have been earmarked for the traveling gourmand.
A vineyard in Australia
Far from run-of-the mill tours, these aim to leave a real understanding of the cuisine and its cultural roots.
In France, they’ll take you on private tastings in Champagne to the smaller, family-run wine estates that don’t export their vintage. There’s three Michelin star dining to enjoy in Paris and a wine tasting-cum-cycle through Burgundy, combined with a private car transfer to an ancient winery of Cistercian monks.
The fields of France
Down in South America, the spotlight falls on the rich red varietals grown in the foothills of the Andes. Visit Chile’s Aconcagua Valley’s Errázuriz Winery – one of Chile’s oldest – and the boutique Von Siebenthal Winery and leave with a renewed appreciation for wines from this region.
In Kerala, come away an expert on this spice-focused cuisine with cooking classes held at the Philip Kutty Farm located in the backwaters of Kerala. The experience is deepened with visits to working spice plantation and a market for a full farm-to-table encounter.