Private Parmigiano Balsamic Parma Ham and Wine Tasting Tour

This was one of the most informative tours I’ve ever taken. My friends and I learned so much about Italian food culture, which made us appreciate Italian cuisine even more. Michelle was not only a wonderful guide but also an incredibly warm and welcoming person. I was amazed by the depth of her knowledge and her willingness to share it with all of us. The entire day was perfectly organized—from the 7:30 a.m. pickup to the 4:00 p.m. drop-off at our Airbnb. Everything exceeded our expectations. Highly recommended!

This tour was exceptional! Michele is like a walking encyclopedia of knowledge about the region and is so passionate and has so much pride in the treasures of Parma, Modena and Reggio Emilia. Each stop was fascinating and gave us a new appreciation for the labor and craftsmanship that go into the products they produce. The people behind the products were so kind and gracious with their space, knowledge and expertise. Lunch was at a beautiful winery. This has been our favorite tour of our 17 day Italy trip. It's one we will not forget!

We travel quite frequently and have completed many private and group tours. Michelle is "hands-down" the best guide we have ever had in any country. Having done a few walking food tours as well as a cooking class in other Italian regions, we were ready to dive deeper into the history and the "why" of the Emilia-Romagna region and its world famous specialty foods. We wanted a private day with a knowledgeable local (who spoke fluent English) and after a bit of research found Michelle (Artemilia Tours). We were in Milan for work so we popped on the 1.5 hr. train to Parma early one morning. Michelle and Guido (the wonderful driver) picked us up in a beautiful Mercedes sedan. Michelle who grew up in the area, filled us in on the history of the Emilia-Romagna area as we drove. Her passion for the generational producers of the areas was magnetic. We went first to a small (30 wheels a day) Parmigiano Reggiano producer. We were THE ONLY guests in the facility and got to experience actual production at all stages of the cheese and I can't even begin to detail the knowledge we took away. We ended our time with a tasting and the purchase of several different chunks of 1-3 year aged cheese (they even provided special storage bags so that the cheese will keep after opened). After the PR maker, we drove through the lovely countryside,learning more about the area, to what looked like a large home. In fact, this was one of the very few generational artisanal balsamic producers left in the region. This man's entire three-story, childhood home was filled with balsamic vinegar at different stages of processing. He and Michelle, took us through the home and explained the very regulated and stringent process of producing true balsamic vinegar. We sampled both 10 and 25 year vinegars and left with several certified bottles. From the balsamic maker we went on to Barbaterre to sample their full array of organic wine paired with local charcuterie, cheeses, breads and salads. The wine was so incredibly lovely that we ordered a case sent to the US. We each had 5-6 very good glasses of their wines which Michelle was able to explain in detail and to walk us through the notes of the tastings. After our 8 hour day of eating and drinking, Michelle brought us back to Parma where we then explored on our own for a few hours visiting her recommended places including the fantastic Galleria Nazionale di Parma museum which has AMAZING archeological artifacts and art. Michelle had more than "tour guide relationships" with each of these places: she clearly knew them all and revered their artistry. Her knowledge was deep and her excitement was contagious. Additionally, she had higher education in the history of the area as well as sommelier and balsamic vinegar tasting education. We highly recommend Michelle and her company Artemilia.

We did the Parmigiano Reggiano, Balsamic Vinegar and Parma Ham Tasting private Tour (7hrs) and we had a fantastic time with Guido our driver and Roberta our guide. First, the car is very spacious and extremely clean and Guido is an excellent driver. We were offered complimentary bottles of water which were appreciated since it was 36 degrees on the day of the visit. Roberta is a passionate guide, her knowledge seems infinite and she is very sympathetic. We started with a private visit of a dairy farm to see all the operations from milk to parmigiano regiano followed by a tasting of 4 different ages of parmigiano regiano as well as fresh ricotta, still warm ( far better than anything we can find in the grocery stores). We then proceeded to a producer of authentic balsamic vinegar. Again Roberta was able to explain all aspects of the production clearly and included little known facts and stories that made it fun. We tasted different ages of balsamic vinegar and condiments. Our last stop was to visit a family owned company that produces prosciutto di Parma where we were offered a tasting plate of 3 different meats. This tour lasted 7 hours but it went by very fast because it was so interesting. If you are curious about food and tradition, this is just the tour that you need. We appreciated the fact that it was private ( just Roberta and us) every place we visited, the fact that we did not have to drive ourselves, the fact that we got to taste everything and did not feel pressured to buy anything and most of all the fact that we learned so much about 3 of Emilia-Romagna specialties. We highly recommend this tour.

My husband and I had an incredible day with Michell as we traveled to farms and winery’s near Parma. Michelle is so knowledgeable and passionate about the local foods. She has long established relationships with premier producers that we could never have discovered on our own. And she is also great company. The perfect person to spent the day in the beautiful Parma countryside, visiting some of the world’s most delicious food providers.