Tastes of Aspen Food & Wine Classic
I walked around Aspen for a while enjoying the warm day
deciding what to do with the two hours I had free. Since I’ve been to a few of
these food and wine festivals I know that it’s pretty impossible to do the
Grand Market all at once. There’s just more food and drink than any person can
consume. I decided to make more than one trip and headed downtown for my first.
The Food & Wine Classic market wasn’t nearly as big as South Beach, but there
was certainly plenty to try. I stopped at the British Airways table to find out
more about how the chefs prepare food that works well with the plane’s
altitude. I can’t say I fully understood the process, but it seemed to come
together on my recent trip
to London on that airline.
The Wines of Spain tent included not only a fantastic
selection of Tempranillo, Albariño and other Spanish varietals, but also cheese
tasting.
The Best New Chefs named by Food and Wine Magazine had their own tribute and area to cook
some of their award-winning recipes.
If you see Kay wine not only has an interesting name and
intriguing bottle, but I liked their fruity Cab blend from Italy. For an
entirely different take on “boxed wine,” try Volare, which comes in a
pocketbook case. The Pinot Grigio wasn’t bad and the pocketbook holds the
equivalent of two bottles for $14.99.
Kitchen Aid had their entire Cook for a Cure appliances on
display. These pink items acknowledge the relationship between the cookware
company and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer for the Cure organization.
I didn’t want to eat too much because I had a luncheon to go
to, but did take a few of Green & Black Organic Chocolates to go (love the
real cherry pieces in the Chocolate-Cherry, as well as the Ginger one). The StellaArtois Best of Belgium Press luncheon started with Hoegaarten with an
asparagus, scallops and lobster dish. My friend Lisa was with me and she hard
at work tasting the beer (it’s not my favorite beverage), as well as eating the
seafood. She didn’t seem mind the task and also enjoyed the sushi dish with
Stella, while I checked out the cheese and fruit platter.
Chef Daniel Joly prepared the food for the event to pair
with the beers. I thought the gnocchi with lamp was a great combination, and the
Open Chicken Crepe was delicious. The Stella Artois party ended with a Decadent
Chocolate Dessert and miniature crème brulees. A few bites of two of my
favorites were all I could manage after the morning of eating.
We headed back to the B&B for a short nap before the
Zonin Prosecco tasting at Casa Lua. I really enjoyed the sparkling wine and
wished we had time to sample some more of the company’s Italian wines, but we
had another party to get to.
Fly, Drive and Reside was sponsored by Mercedes, Veuve
Cliquot and Timbers Resorts. We were on the rooftop of the Dancing Bear in time
for a beautiful sunset and lots of champagne. Lisa and I mingled for a while
and enjoyed the scenic views. The night was just perfect, not too hot and not a
chill in the air. It was hard to leave, but I had another party to get to.
Gail Simmons’ Last Bite, Late Night Dessert Party was at the
Hotel Jerome and it was as sweet as it sounds. Even the drinks at the Late
Night Dessert Party were decadent. I went for the Espressotini with Patron XO
Café Dark Cocoa, Patron XO Café and Fonte Espresso. It certainly woke me up!
It was pretty late when I got out of there, but I was on
quite a sugar high and not ready to hit the sack. Before calling it a night,
Lisa and I met up with a friend at Belly Up to hear some great live music. It
was a comfortable venue and I wish I had the energy to stay until the end of
the show and the closing of the club, but I was coming down from the sweets. It
had been a long day and I had an even longer one to come.
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