When Diane De Filipi sold the Ink House Bed and Breakfast in St. Helena in 2004, she faced the question of what to do with all the hours she had typically spent looking after guests.

"There is life after innkeeping," De Filipi said. "I just decided to take the show -- my brand of hospitality -- on the road."

To Italy to be exact.

During her 16 years running a bed and breakfast, De Filipi had amassed a wealth of contacts and hospitality expertise. "Like many of the 'old guard' innkeepers in the Valley, after struggling through the drop in tourism, it made the best sense to sell and do other things," De Filipi said. "I began a hospitality consulting business in the valley called 'Ask Diane.' There are many innkeepers still trying to dig out from under and preparing for sales from what I understand."

In 2006, as part of "Ask Diane," she organized her first European adventure.

"I called up some of the guests who'd stayed at the Ink House, and said, would you like to do a cooking trip to Italy?"

She'd learned over the years the kind of guests she liked best were not the high end, expensive ones. Her goal was to keep her trip affordable and unpretentious, the same principles she'd applied to innkeeping. Deciding to forego a commission allowed her to keep the price lower. "I tried to make it affordable so that the average guy could come."

The cost was $1,895 per person. "My comparison research shows prices for like experiences averaging at $3,500," she said.

Her group of eight, which included a retired couple from Tennessee and a retired nurse as well as a couple of Napa friends, departed for Italy and "it went off without a hitch," De Filipi reported.

"I tried to remember what was scary about traveling," she said, "and take care of those things."

For this trip, however, De Filipi chose the four-star Villa Campestri about 45 kilometers from Florence, an "oasis of rolling meadows, forests, vineyards and olive trees." The villa includes an "oleoteca," located in the old cellars, where guests can learn about and taste the olive oil produced on the estate from the owner, Paolo Pasquale, who oversees the olive oil production and the oleoteca. "His daughter Viola manages the villa and his son-in-law, Daniele, is the restaurant manager," De Filipi said. "Truly a family business. An interesting point is that the villa stayed in the ownership of the original family for 700 years until the Pasquale family bought it."

Every morning the group joined Giuseppe Zanier, "Chef Jerry," the executive chef for Villa Campestri, in the kitchens. "The classes started at 10; at 11 it was appropriate to start drinking wine," De Filipi said. After a morning of cooking, the group would sit down to lunch and for afternoons they were free "to enjoy relaxing sipping wine by the pool, sightseeing in surrounding villages, going into Florence to explore -- whatever they chose." De Filipi and the "superb staff of the Villa Campestri" made the arrangements as needed. "It wasn't regimented, however."

Over the course of a week they cooked main course entrees, side dishes and desserts: Fresh Artichoke Fritatta, Gnocchi with Campestri Garden Fresh Ragu, Crepes Bchamel, Rustic Tuscan Pate, Spaghetti with Olive Oil and Sauted Herbed Breadcrumbs, Herb Infused Ravioli with Fresh Pesto, Tuscan Crusted Bread Salad, Pumpkin and Spinach Souffl, Faggioli Con Pesto, Torte Di Nona, Pan de Espana, Tiramisu and Almond Biscotti were some of the dishes they tackled.

"It was peasant cuisine," De Filipi said. "I thought I had Italian cooking down, but the cuisine changes from region to region. Italian cooking is really very simple," she said. "It's fewer ingredients, but ones that make a statement. For example, pizza. You won't see a pizza of the 'everything on it' variety. It's simpler, but the flavors come through."

Was it a success?

"The group bonded so much, we've decided to go again," De Filipi said. The original group will depart for Rome in September for another week of cooking. Meanwhile, De Filipi said she enjoyed the excursion so much, she's planning to continue leading them. For one of her upcoming trips she said, "I'd like to put together a 'Napa goes to Tuscany' group of locals."

She intends to keep the cost down as much as possible, she said. "It's all about the passion and looking forward to doing your thing. Everyone should be able to do that."

Everyone also brought home a folder full of Chef Guiseppe Zanier's recipes and De Filipi shared two -- for basic pesto and a tiramisu, the traditional Italian dessert -- with readers.

More information about the Italian cooking tours is available at De Filipi's Web site askdianed@sbcglobal.net