The wine tips for your cheese fondue

Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the food lovers of online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat and what to cook. This time our chefs serve you: the golden wine tips for cheese fondue.

Dark, cold evenings call for comfort food, something that is cozy, snug, and deliciously warming. For example, a steaming pot full of gooey, melted cheese. And of course, with plenty of wine.

Traditionally, cheese fondue is accompanied by a mountain of bread, cornichons, and green salad. Raw vegetables, cold cuts, mushrooms, and even slices of ripe pear dip well too.

Of course, a good glass of wine goes with it. Well, actually a cup of tea is the best; much lighter and a more conscious choice. But cheese and wine just taste too good together. We'll be sensible again tomorrow. Don't just grab any bottle: not every wine thrives at such a cheese feast. Therefore, use these golden fondue tips so that it can never go wrong again.

In it
If you make the fondue yourself, the wine also goes into the cheese. That wine influences both the texture and the flavor of the fondue. A slightly acidic wine allows the cheese to melt well and creates a homogeneous mixture, while a somewhat ‘fattier’ wine increases the chance of curdling.

Do not use red wine when mixing. Red gives an unattractive brown color and, if you're unlucky, even a metallic taste. Drinking red wine alongside is of course fine.

Of course, you don't pour top wine into the cheese fondue, but you also prefer not to use cheap stuff. A bad wine remains just bad when mixed with melted cheese.

With it
Do not serve your wine too cold. Strongly chilled drinks would cause the cheese in your stomach to solidify faster. Hence the warm tea. A higher temperature allows for easier digestion and a less bloated feeling.

Also, do not add any bubbles. Carbonated drinks – including soda and beer – also seem to not make a happy marriage with melted cheese.

Traditionally, we serve – not too cold – white wine. Fresh with a nice acidity, as a counterbalance to that heavy Swiss fare. Red is also a great alternative. Just choose one with a lot of fruit, without oak aging and sufficient acidity.

Best match
Personally, I don't like too tight, dry wine with cheese fondue. One with some floral and tropical notes in the nose I find much nicer. And a nice spicy mountain wine from the region is completely in style. Think of a Fendant (Chasselas) from Switzerland, a Roussette, or Apremont de Savoie. But also Pinot Blanc/Weissburgunder, Riesling Spätlese and an unoaked Chardonnay make a nice match. If you go for red, then fruity Gamay, Blaufränkisch, or another Pinot Noir-like is the best choice.

Where
Fendant/Chasselas among others at AH.nl | € 12,99
Roussette de Savoie among others at Ton Overmars | € 12,50
Weissburgunder among others at Grapedistrict | € 9,99
Gamay among others at Gall & Gall | € 8,49
Blaufränkisch among others at Anderewijn.nl | € 13,00

Text: FavorFlav