This years’ A Taste for Skiing’ in the South Tyrolean region of Alta Badia will be showcasing the best-up-and-coming chefs, sustainable cuisine, along with a host of exciting events including the Gourmet Skisafari, SunRisa, Sommelier on the slopes, and the Wine Skisafari.

2021 has led to changes everywhere, all over the world. With that in mind, this year will be a revival and the opportunity to showcase recent innovations in the food and wine industry. For the 12th edition of A taste for skiing, who better to symbolise this period of rebirth than a group of up-and-coming chefs who’ll be appearing at the event for the first time? This fantastic collection of culinary talent has been brought in from all over Italy, and their presence is sure to rival the pristine snow as the areas major attraction.

For 2021. the A Taste for Skiing concept will be remaining the same as previous years: each of the eight Michelin-starred chefs will be assigned to a mountain hut on the slopes of Alta Badia, creating a recipe that will be offered to skiers throughout the winter season.

The chefs attending the latest edition of A Taste for Skiing were carefully selected, with a slight bias towards the younger, as they will be full of fresh ideas and best able to interpret the concept of revival through their cuisine. The chosen chefs are oriented towards the future and are eager to bring their creativity and philosophy to Alta Badia, using Italy’s top products to prepare their dishes.

In addition to focusing on innovation, A taste for skiing wants to give a clear and concrete sign of a sustainable approach to food and drink. The chefs will be creating their dishes, ensuring a minimum of waste, whilst focusing on protecting our planet.

The local Michelin-starred restaurant La Stüa de Michil will be welcoming the guest chefs, offering tradition and innovation in its dishes. Its goal for the future is to promote Italian products around the world, telling the story of the country’s flavours.

The up-and-coming chef from the closest area to Alta Badia is Riccardo Gaspari (SanBrite Restaurant in Cortina d’Ampezzo), who sees a future full of genuine and coherent cuisine without any form of manipulation.

Heading west, we reach Cernobbio in the province of Como, where Davide Caranchini lives and works as the chef at the Materia restaurant. Davide is a member of the class of 1990 and is very attached to traditions and local products. However, he also loves experimenting, which is born from his constant research. Davide believes that the world of food and drink will be far more focused on natural products, genuine ingredients, and small-scale producers over the next fifteen years.

Contraste is the name of Matias Perdomo’s restaurant. Matias was born in Uruguay and believes that the food of the future will be the essence of the past. He is convinced that we must first understand our past and leave behind superfluous things before we can really build “new traditions”.

Paolo Griffa is the Michelin-starred chef from the Petit Royal restaurant in Courmayeur. At just thirty years of age, he is one of Italy’s most promising young chefs. Our culinary journey now continues towards the south stops off at Pennabilli in the province of Rimini.

Riccardo Agostini’s Il Piastrino restaurant is housed within a historic farmhouse that was renovated in 2020. One of the stand-out features of the restaurant is its Food Garden, a room immersed in greenery, where the flavours of the dishes blend in with their surroundings.

Together with his sommelier-wife, this Michelin-starred chef from Pesaro (who for many years worked closely with Gianfranco Vissani) wants to delight his guests with dishes that reflect the culture and resources offered by the local area. There will be a few surprises for the gourmets out there coupled with plenty of pleasant details that stay true to classic, authentic flavours.

At the other end of the scale is the Marco Martini restaurant in the heart of Rome, which is all about continuous study and research. The Michelin-starred chef Marco Martini believes that the food of the future will one day return to traditional roots. It will go back to warm welcomes and conviviality; that’s why his dishes are packed with the purest flavours, taken from the traditions of Rome and Lazio, but with a distinct international twist.

The collection of chefs ends in the south of Italy, with Caterina Ceraudo (Dattilo restaurant, situated in Strongoli in the province of Crotone, 1 Michelin star and 1 “green star”).

Caterina Ceraudo uses very few ingredients in her dishes, focusing and glorifying simple flavours. Her cuisine showcases respect for food and its natural origin, from birth and growth to the transformation into her dishes.

Skiers can try the dishes at the Ütia Lee, Ütia L’Tamá, Club Moritzino, Ütia Las Vegas, Ütia I Tablá, Ütia de Bioch, Ütia Pralongiá and Ütia Jimmy mountain huts.

The Chef’s Table: A taste for skiing supports social distancing
This winter, the priority for Alta Badia’s  A Taste for Skiing is to make sure all visitors stay safe, and this will be done with the help of all the service providers. Each mountain hut taking part in the initiative will prepare a table dedicated to the event on their outdoor terrace, reserved for anyone wishing to try a dish created especially for A taste for skiing by one of the Michelin-starred chefs.

This will help with social distancing while offering an exclusive and completely safe experience for those who love first-rate gourmet cuisine and skiing down the slopes of Alta Badia.

It will be possible to order the full menu at all the mountain huts taking part in the initiative. The menu will contain the dish from this year’s event and at least one dish from one of the previous editions. To book your A taste for skiing table, you just need to call your mountain hut of choice that is taking part in the initiative and choose from among the dishes that best suit your personal culinary tastes.

Here are a few of the other mouthwatering events that will be taking place at this years A Taste for Skiing:

Gourmet SkiSafari: This eighth edition is planned for Saturday 11th December
The eighth Gourmet Skisafari will take Michelin-starred cuisine to 2,000m above sea level into the heart of the Dolomites. Among the participants there will be Marco Martini (Marco Martini Restaurant, Rome, 1 Michelin star), Caterina Ceraudo (Restaurant Dattilo, Strongoli, 1 Michelin star and 1 “green star”) and the chef of La Stüa de Michil.

These chefs will be treating skiers to their delicious dishes, using top-quality products to highlight the quality of Italian cuisine. The chefs will all be using the best Italian products as the basis for each of their dishes, and skiers will have the chance to try them all by moving between each mountain hut.

There will also be some real works of art on offer, not just art for the taste buds but also for the eyes. It will be a chance for guests to get to know the chefs in person and to learn the story behind their dishes. You’ll be able to enjoy your first ski of the season in the company of some great flavours. The event will take place on the terraces of the mountain huts to enable social distancing and respect the rules in terms of Covid-19.

Sunrisa: Skiing at dawn on fresh snow before tucking into a hearty breakfast at 2,000m
Skiing on fresh snow before anyone else is quite exceptional and also a memorable experience. It becomes even more magical if you do it in Alta Badia in the Dolomites’ heart, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where the best athletes will be going head-to-head at the Alpine Skiing World Cup during the same period. Imagine watching all the action and then topping it off with an excellent high-altitude breakfast.

On Monday, the 20th of December, the ski slopes on the plateau of Alta Badia will open at dawn, giving ski enthusiasts the chance to see the sunrise. Guests will be able to ski down the slopes that have been perfectly prepared the night before by the many snowcats that work in the area. What’s more, there’s the chance to enjoy a hearty breakfast, based on genuine and healthy products, at the Club Moritzino, Ütia I Tablá, Ütia de Bioch, Ütia Piz Arlara and Ütia Las Vegas mountain huts.

Each hut will be paired with a specific breakfast item, such as milk, cereal, eggs or fruits. The various dishes on offer have been created with the support of the nutritionist Dr Iader Fabbri, and they contain the essential ingredients for a perfect breakfast, which will have the right number of calories and correct nutritional value for each leg of the breakfast route between mountain huts.

Sommelier on the Slopes
This special event offers the chance to taste some of South Tyrol’s finest wines in two different mountain huts whilst admiring the Dolomites.

This initiative aims to enhance the winning combination of skiing and excellent local products. There are six dates scheduled between December and April (14th December, 11th and 25th January, 15th February, 8th March and 5th April), each involving skiing on Alta Badia’s slopes, combined with the chance to taste South Tyrol’s finest wines. Participants will be in the company of a ski instructor as well as a professional sommelier. The price of the wine tasting session, including the ski guide, costs just €40.00 per person.

In addition to these events, there are three special editions scheduled for 18 January (Club Moritzino), 1 February (Piz Boé Alpine Lounge) and 29 March (Ütia de Bioch). During these events, there will be four South Tyrolean wines to taste in combination with four dishes. Each event is organised together with the South Tyrol Wine Consortium and South Tyrol’s Sommelier Association.

Wine SkiSafari – A wine tasting session 2,000 metres above sea level
On Sunday 20th March 2022, Alta Badia will be bringing South Tyrol’s finest wines to the mountains for an exclusive tasting session. It is set to take place from 10 am until 4 pm in the Piz Arlara, Bioch, I Tablá and Pralongiá mountain huts.

The aim of the initiative is to round off the winter season in style with excellent food and wine. The tickets, which include tasting all the wines, can be purchased at the participant mountain huts for just €30.00. The event is organised by Alta Badia Brand, together with IDM (Innovation Development Marketing), and with the support of the South Tyrol Wine Consortium.

Other food and wine events
Roda dles Saus is an event dedicated to the traditional Ladin food on the La Crusc ski resort slopes, and it’s held during the week from March 13-20. What’s more, throughout the entire winter season, there’ll also be the chance to take part in the “Breakfast with powder snow” initiative, held at the Las Vegas Lodge.

It will be an excellent opportunity to be the first on the slopes in the morning, as well as enjoying a hearty breakfast with all of South Tyrol’s best products. All the initiatives will be planned and run considering the Covid-19 legislation so as to guarantee the maximum safety of the participants.

For more information on A Taste for Skiing or any of the events listed above, details of places to stay and other amazing things to do and see, visit the official Alta Badia Tourist Information website at www.altabadia.org.

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