ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours’ Guests Pedal by Vineyards, with Tastings and Stops in Four International Wine Regions

Guided cycling tours of France’s Alsace, Italy’s Piedmont and Tuscany, and Chile’s Central Valley visit the finest wineries of each region.

Ft Collins, CO, June 10, 2011 --(PR.com)-- This season, ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours http://www.experienceplus.com/ cyclists can shift gears in four of the world’s top wine regions this year with stops for sampling vintages and partaking of regional gastronomy.

The regions are France’s Alsace, Italy’s Piedmont and Tuscany, and Chile’s Central Valley.

Alsace – France’s Hidden Wine Country is a 10-day, up to 375-mile cycling journey through the crossroads of French-German culture, departing Strasbourg and after three days in wine country including an exclusive tasting before concluding after more cycling days in Colmar, a wine center in France. The per person double rate is $3950. This region labels its wines by their grapes, so you’ll find some of the world’s best Rieslings as well as Muscat and Pinot Gris.
http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/itinerary.html?tid=942

Italy: Bicycling Piedmont is an 8 or 10-day up to 300-mile ride through fertile valleys of the Po River, by castles and fortified cities built by the kings of Savoy to protect wine merchants from marauding pirates. This is also the locale where Count Camillo Cavour first introduced the idea of a unified Italian state. This tour combines the best of Italian and French cuisine and, among others, samplings of Barolo, Asti and Dolcetto d’Alba to name a few plus a visit to the regional wine museum. A September tour coincides with a cheese festival in Pollenzo, home of the University of Gastronomic Sciences and to the Slow Food movement. The trip begins near Turin and concludes on Lago Maggiore. The per person double rate for the 8-day tour is $3455, 10-day tour: $4350
8 day itinerary http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/tours.html?tid=925
10 Day itinerary: http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/tours.html?tid=501

Maria Elena Price, co-owner and spokesperson, notes that while all ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours emphasize sampling regional products, in Italy the Piedmont’s fantastic wines make it an especially interesting destination for Italian wine and food aficionados.

Italy: Cycling Assisi and the Best of Southern Tuscany is an 8-day or 10-day up to 340-mile adventure that begins in Umbria, traverses southern Tuscany and concludes with a spectacular ride into Florence. This tour visits Assisi, home to St. Francis; Deruta, famous for ceramics; Cortona, made famous by Frances Mayes in her book, Under the Tuscan Sun; and Pienza in the beautiful Val d'Orcia, recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Landscape for its unique blend of human and natural environments. The journey also includes the famous wine towns of Montalcino and Montepulciano. The extended trip loops north from Siena and takes cyclists through the heart of the Chianti wine region including a tasting at the famous Macelleria Falorni vineyards. The per person double rate for the 8-day trip: $3550 and the 10-day trip: $4295. Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti Classico are of course kings in this region as well as the “noble” wines of Montepulciano.

10 Day itinerary http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/itinerary.html?tid=2017
8 day itinerary: http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/tours.html?tid=2024

Chile: Bicycling Chile’s Wine Country is an 11-day, up to 388-mile cycle beginning and ending in Santiago that traverses the Maule and Colchagua wine valleys of central Chile to look at historic vineyards, colonial cities and secluded beaches. For those on a tighter timeline, there’s an 8-day, 360-mile version. Highlights of both include Santiago, Santa Cruz, the Central Valley and a stay at a vineyard in the Colchagua valley. The per person rate is $4395 for 11 days and $3400 for eight days. Wines here include Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc, and of course the prized Carmenere – a grape one of the oldest European varietals and once thought to be lost when all the vineyards in France died from the Phylloxera plague. It was then “re-discovered” in Chile where it had been brought over by French vintners and was never affected by the Phylloxera plague.

8 day itinerary http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/itinerary.html?tid=1624
10 day itinerary http://www.experienceplus.com/tours/tours.html?tid=1625

For photos, interviews and more information please contact:

Sara Widness / 802-234-6704 / sara@widnesspr.com
Dave Wiggins / 303-554-8821 / dave@travelnewssource.com
For a Portfolio of Past News Releases Visit: http://www.travelnewssource.com/
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