Loire Valley with Cheryl day and nicole rucker
september 26 - October 1, 2025
The most dynamic baking duo in the world?! We think so! Cheryl Day and Nicole Rucker, bi-coastal baker besties, will be bringing their talents to the incredible Château de Jalesnes in the abundant Loire Valley!
september 26 - october 1, 2025
6 Days, 5 nights
From $5500.00 USD
The Loire Valley brings out the best in us cooks – it provides such luxurious gifts from the land that baking and cooking in this region becomes a legendary experience. So, having the distinct honor of being there with two of our favorite bakers in the world – Cheryl Day and Nicole Rucker – things are bound to get pretty next level. Cheryl and Nicole have so many incredible workshops planned for you – hands-on and plenty of time to taste your handiwork. And then, well, there’s the region to explore – chockablock full of wine makers, gorgeous cities, and history all around. So many things to do, so many things to bake! A supreme opportunity not to be missed!
What will you do?
Cheryl and Nicole will be geared up to get you into the kitchen to bake – focusing on strong technique and traditional French pastry like Tarte Tatin and Quiche Lorraine. Sweet and savory alike will be explored! This, combined with the Rêverie team’s commitment to beautiful French meals, serving traditional local dishes like Galipettes d’Anjou and Pâté aux prunes, you won’t go hungry and will likely learn more about food than you bargained for. Not only that, but we will taste every kind of cheese you can imagine right alongside some of the most beautiful wines being made in the world. We’ll get a special, private wine tasting by Manon Lavaud of La Tonelle, Saumur’s premier wine shop and some of our favorite folks in France. We’ll leave the château for several field trips, like visiting the Ackerman caves in Saumur, perusing the offerings at the open air market in Saumur, and a night out in one of the most magical nearby villages for a special final dinner.
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While we hope everyone will participate, all experiences are optional.
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Rêverie has carefully selected activities and experiences that we believe represent the best of the region and our own expertise, aiming to provide an optimal experience for the participants.
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Eating and drinking are communal! You’ll have the opportunity to cook food, taste wines and learn from experienced teachers. We can’t wait to welcome you for our workshops!
your guest hosts
Get To Know your guest hosts!
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Cheryl Day
Cheryl Day is a New York Times bestselling cookbook author and a James Beard Award nominee for Outstanding Baker in 2015. She is an unabashed American legacy baker, known for her homespun approachable style, and cofounder of Back in the Day Bakery in Savannah, Georgia for 22 years. Her book, Cheryl Day’s Treasury of Southern Baking received the IACP award in the American cookbooks category and was nominated for a James Beard Award for Baking and Desserts in 2022. Cheryl lives with her husband Griff, her baking soul mate; Story, their beloved dog; and a vast collection of vintage cookbooks in Savannah. Keep up with Cheryl on Instagram at @cherylday, where she lives out her mantra to “Slow down and enjoy the sweet life.”
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Nicole Rucker
Nicole Rucker is Chef / owner of Fat + Flour Bakery and award nominated author from Los Angeles. Formerly the pastry chef of the Gjelina Group (including G.T.A. and Gjusta), Rucker is known internationally for her rustic desserts and has won several awards for her homespun pies. In 2012, she won blue ribbons in the National Pie Championship, KCRW Good Food Pie contest and a Star Chef award for baking. Her book ‘Dappled: Baking Recipes for Fruit Lovers', was nominated for a James Beard Award for baking and pastry books in 2020.
YOUR ITINERARY
*Please note that changes to the itinerary may occur between now and your retreat start date*
DAY ONE
friday 9.26.25
Our private coaches will load you all up at the Gare d’Angers Saint Laud and bring you forthright to the magnificent Château de Jalesnes where your hosts will be waiting for you with open arms (and a cold, fizzy glass of local crémant). From there, you’ll tour the grounds, settle in and be treated to a day of relaxation, luncheons in the grand courtyard and meeting your hosts and fellow guests for the week. Then, we’ll tuck in to a classic Rêverie dinner and toast our place and time together!
DAY two
saturday 9.27.25
After our inaugural breakfast of local pastries, coffee and teas, jammy eggs, fruit and local yogurt – we’ll set off for a morning at the Saumur open-air market. You’ll have time to check out the sweet little city as well, and you can even pop into our favorite wine shop in the Loire Valley! We’ll return to the chateau for luncheon and in the afternoon, we’ll have our first workshop with our hosts - time for the apple to shine! An apero hour leads us into dinner together in the grand dining hall.
DAY three
sunday 9.28.25
Today we’ll journey out once more to begin to explore the extensive wine region we are residing in. First stop, Ackerman caves, premier producer of Crémant, in Saumur. We’ll have lunch in a traditional cave-dwelling restaurant near Saumur before heading back to the chateau to unwind. As the sun sets, we’ll join Manon from La Tonelle for a rooftop wine tasting with the view of a lifetime. Manon brings the good stuff - perhaps even some of her own! And, she usually stays for dinner, so get ready for an inspired love of wine and great stories!
DAY four
monday 9.29.25
Today we bake! Cheryl and Nicole dive deep into a few savory pastries – from vol au vent to savory tarts. Then we’ll lunch on our handiwork! An afternoon of free time to wander and take a stroll through the local woods, or take your first dip in the heated outdoor pool. That night, we have our traditional Rêverie grill party – yard games and French junk food included!
DAY five
thursday 9.30.25
This is a very special day! We have our final workshop with Cheryl and Nicole and then we head out for a big day in the truly wonderful city of Angers! We’ll take in the sights – including visiting our dear friend Richard Ruan’s Boulangerie de Carmes - and you’ll have plenty of time for souvenir shopping. Come evening, we’ll drive out to Montreuil-Bellay to the grotto-side restaurant L’Auberge des Isles, where we will have our final dinner of the week together on a patio bedecked by weeping willows and quiet crickets.
DAY six
friday 10.01.25
Today, we pack up and say our goodbyes! If we’ve done this right, you’ll be saying a lot of long goodbyes to your new best friends as we all board the private coaches and head to the train station to make it to our next destinations.
workshops
The things Nicole and Cheryl can show us! First stop: apples! Tarte tatin, muffins, cakes – we’re going to see just what we can make an apple do. It wouldn’t be a Cheryl & Nicole Mess Around without introducing all the things you might do with pie dough, including making quiche. They’ll explore some real French brunch ideas like spreads for toast - chocolate spread and a milk jam and some quick preserves. Finally, it’s time for a little puff pastry action! These two will guide you in making some vol au vent and share some other savory tricks. We have high aspirations to bring a showstopping main course to life for our final dinner together. It’s going to be legendary!
WORKSHOPS
Everything Apple! - baking with apples, the French way
French-inspired brunch baking! - quiche and breakfast spreads!
Let’s get salty! - Adventurous savory tarts and Vol-au-vents!
* Due to the nature of the experience we wish to provide, we can accommodate vegetarians, but will be unable to accommodate any further dietary restrictions.
explore
We can’t wait to show you around! We’ll venture out first to the charming small city of Saumur for a trip to the open-air market and the bustling streets on a Saturday. We will visit the caves of Ackerman, one of Saumur’s premier producers of crémant - bubbly white wine! We’ll spend a day in the wonderful city of Angers, a city we know and adore. And finally, we will venture out to a stunning small village, Montreuil-Bellay, for an enchanting dinner at L’Auberge des Isles.
OUTINGS
Explore the charming city of Saumur and the Saturday morning market
Visit the Ackerman caves
Get to know the city of Angers, a Loire Valley star
Dinner at L’Auberge des Isles in Montreuil-Bellay
what’s included
Everything! Well. Except for your ride over the ocean and to the Angers train station. But once you arrive, we got you.
Transfers from the Gare d’Angers Saint Laud (Angers train station) to and from the Château de Jalesnes
Workshops and all materials associated
Recipes galore
All meals, unless you go rogue
All wine and beverages, unless you wanna have your own after hours party
Private coach transportation while on retreat
All scheduled tours and events during our week
Chateau lodging, naturally
getting here
Airplane
Guests will fly into Paris (Charles de Gaulle airport - CDG). From there, guests can take a train directly from the airport to Angers, or from the Gare Montparnasse in the Paris city center. We will arrange for pick up at the Angers Saint Laud train station. For a fee, we can arrange private transport directly from the Charles de Gaulle airport or from your hotel in Paris to the Château de Jalesnes.
*Cost of airfare and train tickets are not included in the cost of your reservation. Please let us know if we can offer any moral support or guidance with your travel plans - we’re happy to help!
Car
The Château de Jalesnes is about a 4-hour drive from the Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport outside of Paris. For those comfortable using a GPS and driving out of big cities, this could be a great way for you to get around and have a little more freedom during your stay with us. If you allow for extra time, you can even take the back roads and enjoy that incredible scenery as you follow along the Loire River. Please let us know if you do decide to rent a car so that we inform our car service.
Train
A few direct trains are available from the Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport to the Angers Saint Laud train stations, and several trains leave the Paris Montparnasse train station every day to Angers. If you’d like to travel by train but are unfamiliar with the system, we would be happy to help you book your ticket.
Travel Reservation
If you would like guidance with booking your travel to the Château de Jalesnes, please reach out! We are happy to help make this part of your trip as easy as possible.
Our friends at Coucou French Classes offer some incredible online French language classes - whether you’re looking to brush up on your high school French or looking to learn a few phrases to feel more comfortable with travel, Coucou French Classes is the way! Check out their website for more information.