The Wine Club and Goat Cheese Snack

du Bois
Miami Beach

Once the momentum of the evening had been put in motion at Happy Hour yesterday, those of us who could still stand went to one of the many Wine Clubs that exist here in Miami. I don't know when these Clubs began, but they have a firm hold on social activity here. Basically a Wine Club is a sort of tupperware party of the wine set; the clubs meet at members' homes and everyone brings a bottle (or bottles) of their favorite wine. These wines are kept in paper bags to hide the details and sampled in copious quantities; it is a given that you will consume at least one bottle of wine at these events and the result is not only the possible discovery of a fine, new wine but of a date. There is one club here in Miami that owns the much-admired title of "En Vino Veritas".

I always bring a little something in the way of food to accompany these drinking parties and last night I brought tomatoes stuffed with goat cheese and chives. (I prepared the recipe earlier in the day.) As there were 12 guests at the wine club, I rinsed 12 plumb tomatoes in cold water and cut them in half lengthwise, scooping out the the fruit. They need to be placed flat on paper towels for about 20 minutes to drain. You need to buy the creamy style of goat cheese rather than the crumbly type so common in stores; this assures the consistency needed to fill the tomato shells. The half pound of cheese is placed in a bowl with a half cup of chopped chives, five tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and a generous amount of ground pepper and mashed until all the ingredients form a creamy mixture. A good, old fashioned wooden spoon will do fine. Scoop the mixture into the now dry tomato shells and serve.

It is a welcomed accompaniment to any wine party and allows you not only to bask in the praise of the guests, but to assure something is in your stomach other than the wine.