We went to a supper hosted in conjunction with Sips & Suppers, a fundraiser benefiting Martha’s Table (marthastable.org) and DC Central Kitchen (dccentralkitchen.org) where local chefs prepare meals at the hosts’ homes.

At the dinner we attended, the chefs were Scott Drewno from The Source (wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants) and Erik Bruner-Yang from Toki Underground (tokiunderground.com).

The chefs decided to do a Chinese New Year themed meal.  (Chinese New Year is on February 10 this year.)  Jim was responsible for pairing the wines, which was surprisingly difficult because Chinese food does not pair well with wines, as a rule.  The spices used in Chinese cooking often overwhelm the delicate flavors of the wines.  But, as usual, he succeeded splendidly!

The courses (and paired wines) were as follows:

Appetizers consisted of XO financier in a butter emulsion and shrimp salt, grilled rice cake tater tots with seasonal pickles, toasted nori and chickpea flour, fermented pork salad, garlic chive dumplings with pork, king crab and mustard, and a “wonton soup” duck dumpling served with roasted chicken broth.  The wine was a 2002 Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs champagne.

The first course was an Eight Treasure Chawanmushi served with pickled Acadian red snapper, apple and charred garlic chives.  The wine was a 2009 Louis Latour Corton Chardonnay.

8 treasure chawanmushi with picked acadian red snapper with apple and charred garlic chives

The second course was Chili XO longevity noodles served with prawn and bay scallop takoyaki.  It was served with a 2006 Vietti Barolo Brunate.

chili xo longevity noodle with prawn and bay scallop takoyaki

The main course was a roasted Peking duck served with pork rib, five spice broken rice and Satsuma.  The wine was a 2001 Rudd Estate Oakville Estate Proprietary Red.

roasted peking duck with pork rib, 5 spice broken rice and satsuma

The pastry amuse-bouche was a tangerine sorbet served with a crushed fortune cookie.  The accompanying wine was a 1990 Rayne Vigneau Sauternes.

tangerine sorbet with crushed fortune cookie

And the dessert was a deconstructed sticky cake served with a five kernel streusel and pandan ice cream.  And the paired wine was a 2004 Girard Late Harvest Zinfandel.

deconstructed sticky cake with five kernel streusel with pandan ice cream

The food itself was delicious, with the Peking duck as one of the highlights (yes, I freely admit that I am very partial to duck).  Still, the duck was amazing even given my bias.  Other highlights were the “wonton soup” appetizer (more duck, I know) and the tangerine sorbet (no duck there).

The company was also great fun.  The guests mostly consisted of people we didn’t know but connected with only a degree or two of separation.  It was easily one of the most fun fundraisers we have ever been to!