all the dish that’s fit to print
getting away
In today’s busy jetsetter world, arriving to your hotel on vacation can sometimes seem like just another business trip. Instead, why not ease yourself into the mindset of relaxation and the realization that you are away. Put down the iPhone and forget about email, you have arrived. And while arriving… why not do it in style.
pay homage to the cheese pope in switzerland
courtesy of the san francisco chronicle
This month, Gourmet profiles Rolf Beeler, dubbed the Swiss “Cheese Pope.” Beeler is a finisher who works with artisanal cheesemakers around Switzerland to cultivate, age, and coax their products into something transcendent. As the magazine mentions, French Laundry in California and Gramercy Tavern in New York both import his cheeses. And thanks to the cutting-edge buyers at Whole Foods, you can serve Rolf Beeler’s Emmental and Gruyère at your own dinner parties. Trace any of these imports back to its root and you’ll find a farmer who can tell you the name of the cow from whence it came.
Just as lobsters taste better after a day spent on the Nantucket beaches, there’s no better way to appreciate a cheese’s terroir than after a meal accompanied by Swiss wines in the heart of the Alps. The Michelin-starred Jasper at the Palace Luzern and the Jungfrau Brasserie at the Victoria-Jungfrau in Interlaken both feature Beeler’s cheese. The chefs always include Beeler creations in their dazzling cheese displays as well as their recipes. Even if you managed to resist the fondue, you can’t - and shouldn’t – decline a nibble of Hoch Ybrig after dinner.
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summer music festival in lucerne
From Tanglewood in the Berkshires to the Grand Teton Music Festival in Wyoming, Americans seem to be wild about classical music festivals. Soaring sonatas just seem to jive with summertime and fireflies and big open spaces.
Switzerland has its own summertime festival, highly acclaimed within Europe. Indeed, many aficionados see it as the classical music counterpart to Salzburg’s operatic tradition. This year, the Lucerne Festival in Summer will last from August 12 to September 19, 2009. The theme is Nature, and it will open with the “cry of nature” of Gustav Mahler’s First Symphony. The performances are held in what’s known as the KKL, or Culture and Congress Center. This strikingly modern building, designed by Pritzker Prize-winner Jean Nouvel, houses some serious acoustics.
The Palace Luzern is where all the maestros (and divas) stay during their festival run. This grande dame hotel sits on the bank of Lake Lucerne, across from the concert hall, and guests who book the special festival package are whisked over to and from the concert hall by boat. This passage is a good time to meditate on the green Alps and blue lake. Perhaps think about jumping in for a morning swim, or maybe taking a sail tomorrow.
How summery.
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will yodel for spring
One can still hear yodelers calling from the Alps in Switzerland. In a country with such a rich relationship to the outdoors, that’s not surprising.
But who knew that there are three major music festivals a year in Lucerne? The first festival took place seventy years ago, in the gardens of Richard Wagner’s villa. Now an Easter festival, Summer festival, and Piano festival round out the year in this beloved Swiss city.
First up is the LUCERNE FESTIVAL at Easter, from March 28 to April 5. The mix of sacred and secular music, much of it performed in churches around the city, just might lift everyone out of their winter blues. Among the headlining events is the soaring conclusion to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and performances honoring the 200th anniversary of the death of Haydn and the 250th anniversary of the death of Handel. A new spin on a ‘spring awakening,’ for sure.
As an added pleasure for culture-lover, several events will take place at the KKL, the Culture and Congress Center. The KKL was designed by Jean Nouvel, an edgy architect who was awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2008. The KKL has outrageous acoustics and overhangs Lake Lucerne. The spot is so sensational that it may just inspire a little yodeling.
Come home to the Palace Luzern, just across the lake from the KKL. Feast at their Michelin-starred restaurant Jasper and hear a little night music at the bar, where the musicians tend to hang out after-hours. Finally, curl up in the Suite of Arts and wake up to a Swiss spring.
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michelin star for palace luzern
We’re thrilled to announce that Jasper at the Palace Luzern, the grande dame hotel on Lake Lucerne in Switzerland, has just been awarded its first Michelin star. Perhaps it was the red deer burger that did the trick?
Jasper’s cuisine combines the Swiss tradition of locally-sourced ingredients and hearty fare with influences from neighboring Italy, France, and Germany. Listed on the current menu is the aforementioned red deer burger, served on brioche with caramelized apples, as well as the smoked perch, caught in Lake Lucerne (just a few feet away from Jasper’s tables), served with Colonnato bacon over a stew of artichokes and figs.
Each menu features “Spa Food,” such as the healthy “Jasper salad” of pears, grapes, pumpkin seeds, and vanilla bourbon, and “Mood Food,” created to enhance well-being using a variety of ingredients: pineapple to fight frustration, tuna to help the winter blues with Omega-3 fatty acids, and chocolate to kick up endorphins.
We love the clean décor of the lakeside restaurant, which features French limestone, cream-white walls, and suspended lamps of opalesque glass. And we especially love haute cuisine that doesn’t rely on heavy creams and sauces…after dining at Jasper, you’ll wake up ready for an Alpine hike the next morning.
Visit http://www.palace-luzern.ch/en/.
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ampr presents…beauty marshall case 11.12
Case 11.12: Two Timing
VICTIM: One very lonely lovely. Working long days and nights has become the norm for both her and her honey, leaving little time for togetherness.
MARSHALL’S ORDER: Revamp your relationship routine and spend some time with your sweetheart in a serene spa with one of these romantic spa treatments for two:
greening up around the world
As being “green” has evolved from the hot new trend into a conscientious way of life, the luxury travel industry has followed suit.Hotels across the globe have moved beyond posting “Please Conserve Water” bathroom signs to embracing programs, practices, and products that are both eco-friendly and socially responsible. (more…)
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