Today truly encapsulated the unique nature of Spoleto Study Abroad’s Taste of Umbria program. Students drove an hour south of Spoleto to the tiny village of Trivio, nestled high in the mountains on the edge of Umbria. Less than 100 people live in Trivio year round, and one of these people is a childhood friend of Andrea Muti, Taste of Umbria guide and nephew of SSA founders Jill and Lorenzo.

Andrea’s friend Domenico helps run his family’s agritourism business, called Dolci Giuseppina, named after Domenico’s mother. Students met Domenico’s mother, father, and sister, and heard about how they produce various organic grains and legumes, including spelt, chickpeas, farro, lentils, saffron, and even pecorino cheese.

Students spent the morning touring the farm, driving out through the fields, meeting the animals, and learning the importance of methodical, hand-grown and harvested organic products. Then it was time to make the cheese! Giuseppina demonstrated how to boil the fresh milk and introduce certain herbs to cause the milk to curdle into cheese. The students then had the chance to squeeze the curdled milk into cheese and place it in its pecorino forms.

Then came a gourmet lunch sampling of various Dolci Giuseppina products, including pecorino, fresh honey, spicy sausage, farro salad with lemon and mint, two types of lentil soup, and fresh panna cotta with sugar. After this delicious meal and some time to purchase Dolci Giuseppina products to take home, students headed back to Spoleto for siesta.

Before dinner, they shared their favorite photos from their time in Spoleto, and read aloud from their journals. Their insight into Italian vs. American culture and the uniqueness of this Taste of Umbria experience was highly impressive and moving.

Tomorrow is the last day, and we can’t believe how the time has flown!