Fondues and the Cavalcade of Wines

In my circle of friends, the NYE fondue party, originated and hosted by J. and K., has become one of our favorite and most keenly anticipated holiday events. A swiftly moving snow storm provided the right wintry atmosphere for our now traditional celebration. We began, as all great parties begin, with champagne. First up, was one of my favorites from the champagne tasting that Federal Wine and Spirits hosted in early December, Varnier-Fanniere Grand Cru Blanc des Blancs Brut NV. Then we were on to one’s of J.’s favorites, Pierre Moncuit Cuvee Reserve Brut Grand Cru Blanc de Blanc NV. Finally, we finished our aperifif course with the an appearance by the old lady herself, the Veuve Cliquot “Ponsardin”. We had run the gamut from light to full-bodied and were now in the appropriate mood for revelry.

But before the main event, we took a small detour and enjoyed  the aromatic and racy 2008 Petrara, a verdicchio from Borgo Paglianetto. Moving beyond nibbles, we were now ready for - FONDUE! Those of a certain age will remember when fondue was first introduced into the American home, often, as was my case, with less than pleasing results. Yet, recently, fondue has re-emerged from the culinary shadows and is truly a fun way to celebrate with friends. We began with cheese fondue and tenderloin fondue. In years past, J. used to slave over the cheese fondue recipe from The Joy of Cooking,of which the most challenging part was trying to locate kirsch, a cherry eau-de-vie which has all but disappeared from liquor stores. And now, to the rescue, has come Trader Joe’s – yes, cheese fondue in a pouch! And very good cheese fondue at that. Tenderloin fondue is much easier – pour some oil in the fondue pot and cut the tenderloin into appropriate sized pieces. We had agreed that tonight’s wine would be Bordeaux and the Cabernet- dominant blends. At this point, I must add that J. has a very serious cellar. We drank a variety of ’86 and ‘89 Bordeauxs which he had bought when they were released for a small fraction of their current values – and that’s the beauty of serious wine collecting. For ’86’s, we had the Ch. Greysac and Ch. Potensac; the ’89’s included Ch. Pape Clement, Ch. Leoville Barton, Ch. Pichon Baron and Ch. Lynch Bages. We both thought the Greysac to be quite good; I also favored the Pape Clement while J. favored the Pichon Baron. Midnight was now approaching – time for the chocolate fondue. This was my contribution. I used both Callebaut Semi-Sweet and Bittersweet chocolates. I served the fondue with pistachio, dried cranberry and white chocolate biscotti, my version of Nick Malgieri’s “Supernatural” brownies, strawberries and Satsuma mandarins. The Ball descended on Times Square and it was officially 2010. Happy New Year to all!

This post was written in collaboration with J., who, in addition to being my first wine mentor, is the perfect host, bon vivant and cellar master extraordinaire. Much thanks.