This September will see the welcome return of Flavours of Autumn to Alta Badia, along with a host of other mouthwatering experiences. In this guide, we take a closer look at what’s on offer in 2021 for travellers and food fans.
Alta Badia is becoming increasingly well known worldwide as a place where the mountains can be enjoyed in a relaxed, fun, and stimulating way. It also has a slightly lesser-known side, and this relates to its culinary excellence. However, all this is about to change thanks to the region’s Michelin-starred chefs, who are playing a vital role in educating the culinary world from up in the mountains to down in the valley.
Saus dl altonn – Flavours of Autumn
Wheat, beef and pork, and local cheeses, together with their producers and no less than five Michelin-starred chefs, will be the stars of Alta Badia’s food and wine offerings this autumn.
During the last two weeks of September, five mountain huts in Alta Badia (Ütia Pralongiá, Ütia de Bioch, Ütia Malga Saraghes, Ütia I Tablá and Ütia Gardenacia) will be linked to five producers of top-quality local products, and five Italian Michelin-starred Chefs: Nicola Laera (Restaurant La Stüa de Michil at Hotel La Perla), Paolo Donei (Restaurant Malga Panna), Karl Baumgartner (Restaurant Schöneck), Fabrizia Meroi (Restaurant Laite) and Alessandro Gilmozzi (Restaurant El Molin).
Each of the mountain huts will offer a menu based on the specific product that has been assigned to it, especially for the occasion. Every day, it will also be possible to buy certain products and meet the people who make these local treasures, as they will be making an appearance at their assigned huts. The producers will be able to explain the qualities, and unique characteristics of their products and the Michelin starred Chefs will reveal a few secrets about how to cook with them.
The mountain huts can be easily reached by walking, cycling, or cable cars, which are open until October 3rd.
In the last two weeks of September, it will also be possible to take part in lots of other activities to get to know Alta Badia’s other excellent products.
The activities in Alta Badia include:
- A degustation of honey (14th September)
- An outing at sunset at Gran Cir peak (15th September)
- An excursion to discover the local herbs (16th September)
- A sparkling wine tasting at the Larcenëi meadows (17th September)
- The end of Summer festivity “La Munt de Boé in Festa” (19th September)
- The transhumance in the village of Badia (19th September)
- An experience at Natur Lüch Sossach farm to see their BIO beef meat production (20th September)
- A visit to Lüch Ciores farm with a degustation of goat milk products (23rd September)
- A local beer tasting (24th September)
- “Sonns y Saus de Armentara”, an event dedicated to local specialities held on the Armentara meadows, at the foot of the Fanes-Senes-Braies Natural Park (26th September).
The Mountain Picnic
One of the not-to-be-missed experiences is the Mountain Picnic, which allows visitors to taste the best products of South Tyrol while comfortably lying in a green pasture at 2000 metres above sea level.
What makes this experience so exciting for food fans is the six mountain huts taking part in this initiative will be offering a unique menu based on local specialities and produce. Another nice feature is they’re making it a true picnic experience by providing an ever essential blanket so you can immerse yourself in the whole experience in the gorgeous meadows near the huts.
Ordering a picnic is simple; you can do this by contacting the hut or picking one up directly without needing to place an order in advance from any of the participating huts. We stress participating as we don’t want you to turn up at any old hut only to be greeted by some head-scratching or a blank stare!
Once you have finished enjoying your picnic experience, you need to return the basket to the hut, which is important as this is an area of outstanding natural beauty and should remain that way. The baskets will then be thoroughly cleaned and sanitised so that others can enjoy this incredible experience too. The picnics range in price from 20 to 28 euros per person depending on the menu.
New for 2021: Takeaway DLA Munt, an original Mountain takeaway
Given the current situation regarding the pandemic, it’s safest to be outdoors or in less crowded places and even better if you can be somewhere spectacular. The Mountain Takeaway initiative achieves this with aplomb as it allows guests to enjoy local dishes, either outdoors or in environments chosen by the guests.
This takeaway experience gives guests the opportunity to order takeaways from a wide range of participating restaurants, bars and patisseries in the valley. All they need to do is collect them from the facility and head off to enjoy the various dishes in pre-arranged picnic areas (paying attention to respect the meadows), or at home. The takeaway initiative is also intended to send out a message of sustainability, using strictly biodegradable containers and making customers aware of the need for proper waste disposal.
The Mountain Takeaway is offered by:
- Pizzeria Restaurant Fornella: Pizza with mountain cheese, speck and chives
- Bar Restaurant Biraria L’Murin c/o Hotel La Perla: Murin cheeseburger with french fries
- Adlerkeller Restaurant & Grill: Tyrolean “Grestel” (meet with potatoes and chanterelle mushrooms)
- Maso Ciablun farm: “Tutres” and local Angus hamburger
- Restaurant La Tor: Insalatona “La Tor”: “La Tor” salad: seasonal mixed salads, crispy speck, buffalo
mozzarella, tuna and pumpkin seeds - Restaurant Mathiaskeller: Polenta with porcini mushrooms and mountain cheese
- Restaurant Sass Dlacia: Sausage and cheese with polenta and mushrooms
- Bar Patisserie I Dolci di Ricky: Strudel
- Residence Bistró Ciasa Vedla: Wild berries ice cream
For further information on Alta Badia and the incredible experience on offer in 2021, visit the official Alta Badia Tourism website at www.altabadia.org.
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