Last weekend, Kirk and I spent the weekend at Beaver Creek (in Avon, CO). It was a great date weekend (remember the relationship habits I’m working on?), with only a little snowboarding and a lot of fun.
After a few runs on the slopes, we warmed up with drink and checked out the X Games schedule for the day. We realized on Friday that we were less than 2 hours from Aspen and it was a great opportunity to check out a cool event. When we called the day on the slopes early, we decided it was worth it the drive to experience the event!
The event was packed, so we had to park in downtown Aspen and take a bus to the event – which meant we really only had a half hour to enjoy once we got inside. It was short, but we had plenty of time to watch the snowmobile longjump and soak in a little of the atmosphere.
After our little side trip, we headed back to get ready for the big event of the weekend. The Grand Tasting is the “big event” of the Beaver Creek Food & Wine Festival. I was so excited to get the chance to taste food from some of the best chefs in Colorado – and the event was advertised as cocktail attire. And Kirk and I love to dress up!
Pictured below: Smoked Sturgeon Rillette (Chef: Alex Seidel); Duo of Skuna Bay Salmon (Chef: Riley Romanin); Autumn Pizza Sliders (Chef: Thomas Nolan); Potato Gnocchi (Chef: Fabio Viviani); Brussel Sprout Salad (Chef: Naomi Pomeroy)
The food was all fantastic and so many options for vegetarians and pescatarians! Two of the chefs went out of their way to make their meat-options work for me! The chefs were all very friendly and heavily involved in both prepping the tastes and interacting with the crowd. It was a great way to see their personalities while enjoying their food. Double win!
Pictured below: Serenity Cocktail (featuring Makers 46); Braised Baby Artichoke Salad (Chef: Tyler Cyre); The Fountain of Youth Cocktail (featuring Tito’s Vodka)
The biggest disappointment of the evening is that the dress code was rarely followed and not enforced. Instead of cocktail attire, many people were wearing jeans. It was disappointing, as it would have made the whole event feel completely different (and special). An older couple from Cuba stopped us during the evening to tell us how much they appreciated us dressing up (Kirk was in his white dinner jacket!). They had been attending the event for over 30 years and watched the dress change throughout that time. They told us we made their night by bringing some of the old elegance back – which absolutely made our night as well!
Overall, we loved the event and hope to make it a yearly tradition! And we will keep dressing the part – even if we end up being the only ones.
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Questions for you:
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Do you enjoy dressing up for events?
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Did you watch any of the X Games on TV this weekend?