One of the highlights of June is attending the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, and this year was no exception. We were especially excited to see several Colorado restaurant-industry luminaries sharing their expertise at the festival.

The first seminar we attended was “The Women Behind Italy’s Most Coveted Wines,” led by Bobby Stuckey, founder of the James Beard Award-winning and Michelin-starred Frasca Hospitality Group in Boulder, and Carlin Karr, the group’s wine and beverage director.

“This has been a seminar topic we have recommended for several years,” said Karr, who also serves as president of Les Dames d’Escoffier Colorado. “We’re excited to highlight the amazing women vintners and winemakers in Italy.”

“These women winemakers are a force of nature,” Stuckey added. “They are the trailblazers of the Italian wine industry.”

The wines proved every bit as intriguing as advertised. The biggest surprise was an orange wine.

“This comes from the most iconic vintner in the world,” Stuckey said. “It’s on the border of Italy and Slovenia. I brought orange wine to Food & Wine in 2006 and other somms were surprised.”

The wine was Gravner Ribolla Venezia Giulia Bianco 2016, made from white grapes fermented with their skins in underground clay amphorae before aging in oak barrels.

Though its amber hue might suggest oxidation, the wine we tasted was vibrant with delicate floral aromas and flavors of spring fruit and berries.
“This wine is great with osso buco or pork with peaches,” Stuckey said. “We eat seasonally and we should drink seasonally too.”

After tasting six wines from Italy’s remarkable women vintners, we headed to a private brunch at The Limelight Hotel, where glasses of sparkling Rosé greeted guests at the door.

Hosted by Roseblood, a luxury Provence wine label from Château d’Estoublon, the event drew food and wine professionals from across the country.

Inside the kitchen, we found familiar faces from Colorado Springs. Tina Luck, wife of chef Brother Luck, and Ashley Brown, executive chef at Four by Brother Luck, were preparing brunch.

“Brother has me cooking too,” Tina said with a laugh.

Meanwhile, the chef known for appearances on “Top Chef: Colorado,” “Beat Bobby Flay” and “Chopped” was DJ-ing on the patio.

“I’ve worked with Roseblood for a few years now and love creating food around their wine,” Brother Luck said. “We sell Roseblood at Four. For this brunch, we brought many of our signature dishes, like compressed watermelon salad and Colorado green chile, as pairings.”

Like many attendees, Luck spent part of the weekend attending seminars and industry discussions.

“AI was a big discussion all weekend,” he said. “Many conversations I ended up in throughout the festival were about how it will shape the future of our industry and what it’s doing now. It’s a cool time to see it all become reality.”
It’s a conversation worth revisiting someday, perhaps over a glass of Italian orange wine or a flute of Rosé.

On the Mesa returns

One of Colorado Springs’ most anticipated summer food events returns Aug. 21 when On the Mesa takes over the scenic grounds of Garden of the Gods Resort & Club, 3320 Mesa Road.

The grazing-style dinner, set against sweeping views of Garden of the Gods and Pikes Peak, brings together some of the region’s top restaurants, chefs and beverage purveyors for an evening of food, wine, beer and spirits. Guests can sample specialties from a variety of culinary stations while enjoying live music and the resort’s spectacular sunset setting.

The event runs from 6 to 10 p.m. and is part of Goodwill of Colorado’s Enchanted Weekend, an annual fundraising celebration that supports programs and services that help individuals and families throughout the region.

Tickets are $195. For information and reservations, visit anenchantedweekend.com.