If you look at Salomon’s team, with female big-mountain skiers like Leah Evans and Emma Patterson, you’ll notice these ladies are usually riding the QST Stella 106. The queen of the QST family, the QST Stella 106 has been featured in the pages of our Buyer’s Guide year after year for its consistent performance in steep terrain and deep snow, while also ready to charge the hard pack any day of the week.

A 106-mm platform with traditional camber underfoot, rocker in the tip and tail as well as early rise in the tail, the QST Stella 106 is plenty wide and playful for powder days. Though it has the ability to sink its edge into less-desirable snow for a reliable ride T-to-B. The QST Stella 106 rocks a full poplar wood core and is reinforced with a woven carbon and flax layer to create a strong and damp ski without adding the weight of metal. Depending on the binding you pair with this ski—alpine, pin or a versatile Shift—the QST Stella skis just as well inbounds as it does in the backcountry, with the ability to make quick, tight turns in the trees and steep couloirs as well as holding it wide open.

“These are my favorite so far,” exclaimed our tester. “They rip on pretty much any condition and any terrain. They are a fantastic all-mountain ski. They arc like a traditional groomer ripper and float with ease on pow. They are super maneuverable in the trees, bumps and jumps. They are in the sweet spot of not too stiff and not too soft. It was super easy to gain control of the ski and charge the entire mountain. If I could only choose one ski from the start to the finish of the season, this would be it. The Stella 106 is playful but still allows for big, stable lines through the pow, ice and crud. This ski is a textbook all-mountain ski.”