Curator and co-founder of the fourth Mountain Gourmet Ski Experience Heston Blumenthal has invited his friends Sat Bains, Claude Bosi and Jason Atherton to join him in Courmayeur this weekend for three days of skiing, mountain experiences, rustic regional cuisine and two dinners created and preapred by the chefs and their teams in mountain venues as the true highlights of the event.
In all, 15 British chefs will be creating two dinners on the mountains of Courmayer.
Blumenthal said: “This year I have invited two new hugely talented guest chefs, Claude Bosi and Jason Atherton, to join Sat Bains for another unique collaboration & incredible alchemy for our 2 mountain dinners. Courmayeur quickly became one of my favourite ski haunts as it offers such amazing hospitality in its mountain restaurants: big plates of regional antipasti, bowls of homemade pasta, great wines and grappa. I realised it was my perfect holiday. Over the last 3 years, I have invited a few of my chef friends to join me and now they too have the same ski fever. We are back again for Mountain Gourmet Ski Experience mark four.”
A select group of international guests will arrive in Courmayeur this weekend. The first evening will be dedicated to Aosta Valley and mountain cuisine with an an informal reception at the Grand Hotel Royal & Golf in the heart of historic Courmayeur, prepared by the Michelin starred local chef Maura Gosio, where guests can get to know each other and the chefs whilst sampling local produce and Aosta Valley wines.
The gourmet dinner on the second night will showcase each of the three chefs’ unique style & UK restaurants, adapted to the mountains, through a seven course tasting menu and fine Italian wine pairings, an interesting contrast with the final night celebration dinner at Rifugio Maison Vieille, where the chefs, on Heston’s request, will prepare the food they love to share at home with their families.
Both venues are on the Courmayeur skiing domain and are accessible by cable car, with the addition of an exhilarating snowmobile ride to access Maison Vieille, both will also present their own signature course to complement the menu produced by the UK chefs and local cheeses & meats produced by artisans will be offered outside Maison Vieille.
The daytime will be dedicated to discovering Courmayeur’s ski slopes with guides or instructors and an option, on the last day, to try driving a dogsled with team of 4 dogs, or experience the revolutionary Skyway Monte Bianco cable car with a walk on the Mont Blanc glacier, or a ski down with a mountain guides 18kms down to Chamonix on the Vallée Blanche glacier.
Lunches are relaxed light affairs in Heston’s favourite cosy mountain venues, with menus and wines selected by the chefs for the occasion, focusing on the best simple produce and tastes, paired with excellent local wines.
The Mountain Gourmet Ski Experience represents a unique opportunity to see how the 3 different approaches of Sat Bains, Claude Bosi and Jason Atherton will combine for the two feasts. Claude and Jason are attending the event for the first time, guided by Sat Bains who has been present since the event’s inception and they will all seek to showcase local culture and mountain ingredients as well as their own inimitable signature creations.
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