A blend of four of Barbados’ finest chefs in an extravagant culinary contest based on the world famous Piper-Heidseick Champagne has set up a unique gastronomic dinner treat for Barbadians; a donation from which will be going to the Barbados Hospitality Institute at Pom Marine Hotel.

Contestants for the “Dinner of Extravagance” include Executive Chef of both The Mews and La Mer Restaurant, Nicholas King; Executive Chef at Daphne’s Restaurant in Barbados, Marco Festini Cromer; Ann-Marie Alleyne, Pastry Chef, Pisces Restaurant; and Michael Hinds, Executive Chef and co-founder of Aqua Restaurant & Lounge.

To complete the menu, each participating chef will be given a different Marques of Champagne from Piper-Heidsieck: Cuvée Brut, Cuvée Rare, Rosé Sauvage and Cuvée Sublime with the aim of marrying their Champagne with the course they were chosen to prepare.

The event will take place at the Fairmont Royal Pavilion, Porters, St. James, on Saturday, September 27th, 2008 coinciding with the visit to Barbados of the International Brand Ambassador for Champagne Piper-Heidsieck, Christian Holthausen, who will be on hand to share the secrets of each cuvée.

Participating chefs will compete for a trip to the home of Piper-Heidsieck at Reims in the Champagne region of France. Tickets can be reserved and purchased at Mount Gay Distilleries offices, the distributors of Piper Heidseick in Barbados, at $200 per person.

The story of Piper-Heidsieck begins with Florens-Louis Heidsieck, the son of a Lutheran minister from Westphalia, who worked in Reims, France, as a cloth merchant. While living in Reims, Heidsieck developed a passion for winemaking and began making his own Champagne. Although he was neither a viticulturist nor a native of Reims, he displayed talent and worked at his profession.

On July 16, 1785, Florens-Louis Heidsieck founded his own Champagne House. He developed rigorous quality standards and made sure that only the best grapes were used in his Champagnes. His attention to detail enabled him to create an outstanding Champagne that was highly recognised. Heidsieck even dedicated one of his Champagnes to Queen Marie-Antoinette and was granted the honour of personally presenting her with a bottle.