Contrada Bricconi

A small stone hamlet above the Val Seriana, reached by a road that takes its time getting there, is where a group of young farmers and cooks have built something close to a closed loop: they grow it, raise it, ferment it, and eventually serve it as a Michelin-starred tasting menu. The cooking is rooted in Alpine tradition but keeps surprising you. The bread course with house-churned butter alone earns the drive up.

Two honors, in evidence: