Elite Traveler Summer 2020

elite traveler SUMMER 2020 93

Clockwise from left A dish at Aspen Food & Wine Classic; the talented chefs toasting another great year; small plates ready for guests

Aspen Food &Wine Classic ASPEN, COLORADO, USA In the off-season, Aspen can still feel like an unassuming mountain town — until you walk by Prada or notice Gwyneth Paltrow traipsing down the street. But the upscale vibe intensifies one weekend each summer in June when the gourmet crowd descends upon the ski hamlet in a throng 5,000 epicureans strong. This seriously food-centric festival welcomes the world’s premier experts on grub and libations. Expect celebrity chefs (think: Rick Bayless, Geoffrey Zakarian and Food & Wine ’s Best New Chefs) and kitchen-savvy authorities of every stripe. Martha Stewart (who shared her Aperol spritz recipe last year to a full-house audience) will return to a gargantuan program, which features more than 80 cooking classes and wine seminars, plus panel discussions and foodie soirées. Sponsored by a clique of luxury brands and sometimes even countries, the Classic’s veritable living room is the see-and-be-seen Grand Tasting Pavilion, an immense tent that mimics the surrounding peaks. Book the Paepcke Suite, Aspen’s top suite, at the slope-side Little Nell, which is big enough to throw your own food lover’s shebang. New to the program: a non-alcoholic beverage seminar in honor of the mocktail trend. The 2020 festival was canceled due to safety concerns, but it will return June 18-20, 2021. -BH classic.foodandwine.com