Leslie Miller Tazzina di Gelato, of Tucson, AZ said it best: “Thanks for the tour and all the advice you gave us. We learned so much from everyone. It was truly a great experience.”
Yes, it was great. Our 2012 Gelato Tour of Italy was a major success. The SIGEP convention was a merchandising mecca offering the perfect opportunity to seek out the best equipment, packaging and gelato ingredients Italy has to offer. At the SIGEP convention, our group of 16 learned new ideas, tasted new flavors from many manufacturers, and talked directly with the experts.
For over 13 years, Ice Cream University – lead by Malcolm Stogo – has been bringing people from all over the world to Rimini—both in the industry and those who are thinking about going into the incredible ice cream/gelato business to see first hand what Italy and gelato has to offer.
After leaving SIGEP, we spent one and a half days in Bologna where the group had a private four-hour workshop at Italy’s finest gelateria – La Sorbetteria. Working with Giacomo and Marina Schavion we participated in using the Cattabriga pasteurizer to create the base and vertical batch freezer to produce the following:
• Producing the finest finished gelato product from scratch
• Making out of sight Gelato cakes
• Learning how to make Gelato stick pops
• From scratch, producing an incredible hot chocolate drink using the most natural ingredients.
• Learning to make chocolate gianduja candy from scratch from the finest chocolate maker in Bologna, Marina.
After leaving Bologna, twe spent two days in Verona, seeing all the sights Verona has to offer.
A special feature of the tour is the eating and wine drinking experience. And of course, Italy’s wine and food culture is absolutely amazing.
Even better, the networking among the tour’s participants in the tour bus and at the fair was somethiung very special, that money can’t buy.
While we are a year away from our next Gelato Tour of Italy, we are now taking reservations for this fantastic trip in late January, 2013. If you have the time and are really interested in learning more about making gelato, you won’t want to miss this opportunity.
