Wild herbs, real chickens, and real recipes.

This Sustainable Farm Tour & Northern Italian Cooking Class on the hills of Piemonte is a hands-on food day that starts with the farm itself and ends at your plate. I love that you’re not just watching: you help collect ingredients and learn how Vivi runs her sustainable land. I also love the teaching style, including practical ways to recognize herbs using all five senses. One thing to consider: the house is like many Italian homes, so there’s no air conditioning.

If you want a cooking class that feels tied to place, this is it. It’s a private experience hosted by Viviana (often called Vivi), offered in English, and it’s built around a forage-and-cook rhythm that makes the flavors make sense. The group stays small, timing is flexible once you’re eating, and the value is strong because the price covers the tour, the cooking class, and alcoholic beverages, with gratuities included.

Key highlights at a glance

• Meet Viviana on her own farm in the Piemonte countryside, surrounded by vineyards and working land
• Forage wild herbs together and learn how to identify them safely using all five senses
• Tour the gardens and fruit trees (hazelnut, apricot) plus farm animals like chickens and geese
• Cook family recipes using ingredients gathered on-site, often including pasta alla chitarra or gnocchi
• Eat what you helped make, with the day running long when conversation and dinner hit pay-off

Why Vivi’s Piedmont Farm Feels Like a Friend’s Kitchen

This tour works because it starts with the source, not the menu. You show up at Vivi’s place in the hills of Piemonte, and within minutes you’re walking through her farm world—gardens, animals, and the soil practices that keep it going. It’s not a factory version of Italian cooking. It’s a working home where food is part of daily life.

What I especially liked is how the day teaches through doing. You’ll forage wild herbs, then you’ll use what you found in the cooking. That loop is what makes this feel memorable instead of just educational. And because Vivi explains the properties and traditional uses of the plants, you’re not only tasting—you’re learning what to notice next time you see something in the field.

If you prefer ultra-formal instruction with strict timing, you might find this a bit more relaxed than you expect. The best moments—hands in the dirt, tasting herbs, chatting around the kitchen—can stretch the schedule naturally.

Meeting at Agriturismo Serra dei Costa: How the Day Starts

You meet at Agriturismo Serra dei Costa, Strada Serra dei Costa, 2/A, 12040 Priocca CN, Italy. The experience ends back at the meeting point, and there’s no hotel pickup or drop-off, so plan to get yourself there.

Once you arrive, the vibe is warm and practical. Vivi starts you off with coffee and a tour of her garden area on the hill next to her home. That first walk matters. It sets expectations for how much you’ll be moving—outdoors, hands-on, and close to plants you’ll eventually identify and cook with.

Wear clothes you can actually work in. One of the most useful bits from the experience is that you’re going to get close to the ground. You’ll likely be on hands and knees plucking herbs from the dirt, so comfort and coverage beat “cute outfits” for this one.

Sustainable Farming on the Hills of Piemonte (and the Animals You Meet)

This isn’t just a farm visit. It’s a look at how Vivi tries to live with the land instead of against it. You’ll see chickens, wild plants, vegetable gardens, and fruit trees like hazelnut and apricot. You’ll also meet geese, including the kind that are ready to share their opinions loudly.

Pay attention to the sustainability practices Vivi explains. The key ideas mentioned include enriching the soil through replanting and creating a healthy ecosystem that supports plant growth. Translation for your day: when soil and plant cycles are treated as an ongoing system, ingredients taste better and you spend less time fighting the environment.

This part also helps you understand the herbs later. If you know a plant is thriving because of how it’s grown—or because of how the ecosystem supports it—you’re more likely to treat it with care when you forage and cook.

Foraging Wild Herbs Using All Five Senses

The forage segment is the heart of the experience. Vivi teaches you how to recognize wild herbs by using all five senses—sight, smell, touch, and more—so you’re not relying on guesswork or vibes. The goal isn’t to make you an expert overnight. It’s to give you a repeatable approach that helps you pay attention and learn safely.

You’ll forage alongside Vivi while she explains the plants and what they’re traditionally used for. That turns the “pretty leaf” moment into a “here’s why it works in food” moment. You’ll also learn practical identification cues based on what you can observe in the field.

Here’s the main consideration: you should expect real farm work clothing. The experience notes suggest you wear pants and a t-shirt (or similar easy-to-move layers). You’ll get to the plants directly, and you’ll want fabric that’s comfortable when you’re kneeling, reaching, and gathering.

Cooking Class: Alla Chitarra, Gnocchi, and Farm-Gathered Dishes

After foraging, you move into the cooking phase in Vivi’s home kitchen. The experience is designed so even novice cooks can participate. You’re not just watching a professional. You’re joining the prep and learning methods tied to the ingredients you gathered.

The sample menu includes a main built around homemade pasta alla chitarra or gnocchi, plus fresh vegetables and wild herbs. The tour details also say you’ll learn two to three dishes based on family recipes, typically highlighting wild herbs. In practice, the dish mix can vary a bit, but the consistent theme is that the ingredients come from the farm and the cooking follows that logic.

From the experience descriptions, you may see classes that include:

• pasta methods like gnocchi (and sometimes pasta alla chitarra)
• vegetable-focused dishes with herbs gathered earlier
• soups using garden vegetables and herbs
• desserts such as tiramisu in at least some editions

Plan to taste your way through the cooking process. Even when you’re not doing every step, you’ll learn what matters—texture, timing, seasoning, and how herb flavors behave once they’re cooked.

One more practical note: the kitchen experience can feel like a full meal session, not a quick class. The cooking time can expand when everyone is talking and eating together, and that’s part of the charm.

Eating What You Helped Make (and Why It’s More Than a Meal)

This is a “farm to table” experience in the real sense: you forage, learn about the plants, then you eat those flavors in your food. That makes the meal more than a payoff. It’s the final lesson.

You’ll sit down with what you prepared, including dishes built from wild herbs and fresh farm vegetables. Alcoholic beverages are included, so the meal can feel like a proper countryside dinner rather than a demo with snacks.

What stays with me after experiences like this is the mental map it creates. After a few hours, you stop thinking about Italian cuisine as a menu of famous dishes and start thinking about it as seasonal ingredients and family technique. That’s why an herb you identified in the morning suddenly makes sense on a plate at night.

Some people even get an extra token to keep the story going. In one account, Vivi sent participants home with seeds to plant back in their garden. Even if your experience doesn’t include that specific extra, the underlying takeaway is still the same: you’ll leave understanding what to look for and how to think about ingredients beyond supermarkets.

Price and Value: What $170 Buys You Here

At $170 per person for about four hours, the price might look high if you compare it to a standard cooking class in a city. But the value changes when you factor in what this day actually includes: a private tour of a working sustainable farm, a guided foraging experience, cooking instruction, and the meal itself with alcoholic beverages. Gratuities are included too.

You’re paying for three things that are expensive to replicate:

1. Access to someone’s home and working land, not a staged venue
2. Hands-on foraging and ingredient collection, which takes time and knowledge
3. Teaching around herbs and sustainable practices, not just recipes

It also helps that this is described as private—your group participates, not a big shared crowd. That usually means more attention from Vivi and better pacing, especially during foraging when you need to slow down and look closely.

If your priority is an Instagram-friendly cooking demo, this may not be your best match. If your priority is learning how food is grown, gathered, and cooked where it comes from, this is a strong use of money.

What to Pack and Who This Fits Best

This experience is for people who like learning with their hands. You should feel comfortable being outside and working close to plants. That means shoes with decent grip, clothes that can get dusty, and layers that handle warm afternoons and cooler garden shade.

Also consider the home setup: the residence does not have air conditioning. If you’re sensitive to heat, time your trip wisely or plan to bring a light layer you can switch into during breaks.

This works especially well if you:

• want something off the main tourist circuit
• enjoy herbs, plants, and practical food knowledge
• like countryside stays where you meet farm animals and see gardens up close
• travel with kids or adults who don’t need a strict museum pace (the class is described as suitable for both novices and experienced cooks)

It might be less ideal if you dislike kneeling, foraging, or any muddy-garden contact. This is not a seated tasting only kind of day.

Language, Style, and How the Class Feels in Real Life

The experience is offered in English, which makes the herb teaching and farm explanations easier to follow. Vivi’s communication style comes through in the descriptions as passionate and committed, with a focus on how to recognize and use plants, plus how sustainable farming fits into the bigger picture.

The pace is also human. You’re guided through steps, but you’re also encouraged to ask questions. In one account, the group lost track of time while talking and eating—so don’t block your evening with a hard appointment right after.

And the experience includes alcoholic beverages. That doesn’t mean it becomes a party tour, but it does mean the meal feels celebratory and relaxed.

Should You Book This Sustainable Farm Tour and Cooking Class?

Book it if you want a cooking class that starts in the fields and ends with you understanding what’s on your plate. This is one of those experiences where the teaching sticks because you gathered the ingredients yourself. The herb foraging instruction, including learning how to recognize plants using the senses, is a standout advantage for anyone who likes practical skills, not just recipes.

Skip it if you need air-conditioned comfort, dislike kneeling and foraging, or want minimal mess and minimal time outdoors. This day is physical in a gentle way, and that’s part of its charm.

If your travel style leans toward authentic local life—gardens, animals, family recipes, and sustainability—this is a very worthwhile way to spend a few hours in Piemonte.

FAQ

Where does the tour start?

The meeting point is Agriturismo Serra dei Costa, Strada Serra dei Costa, 2/A, 12040 Priocca CN, Italy.

How long is the experience?

It’s listed as about 4 hours.

Is the tour offered in English?

Yes, it’s offered in English.

Is this a private experience?

Yes. It’s private, and only your group participates.

What can I expect to cook or learn?

You’ll learn to make two to three Italian dishes from the host’s family recipes, with a focus on wild herbs. The sample menu includes pasta alla chitarra or gnocchi and fresh vegetables with wild herbs.

Is hotel pickup included?

No. Hotel pickup and drop-off are not included.

What’s included in the price?

Included items are the private farm tour and cooking class with host Viviana, alcoholic beverages, and gratuities.

Is air conditioning available?

No. As is common in many Italian homes, this residence does not have air conditioning.

What’s the cancellation policy?

Free cancellation is available. You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund, and changes within 24 hours of the start time are not accepted.