Head to Minturn and warm up with fondue, a new offering at Wild Mountain Cellars

What could be better than sharing stories about your ski day while enjoying a glass of wine? How about adding some fondue. That’s the idea behind a new offering at Wild Mountain Cellars in Minturn. Matt Deem, who is the founder and owner of Wild Mountain Cellars, and his partner, Barbara Nelson invite you to come in after doing the Minturn Mile or wherever your ski day takes you and try wines and enjoy fondue in a cozy setting along the Eagle River.

The Vail Valley winters have inspired Nelson to host fondue and raclette dinner gatherings at her home because she grew up with family fondue dinners in Colorado. 

“We’ve been thinking about offering fondue to pair with the wines for a few years, and this winter the right components came together,” Nelson said.

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The tasting room is located on Main Street down the block from Alpine Kind and Sunrise Minturn and across the street from the Minturn Country Club. It’s a cozy space with a rustic feel that almost transports you back in time. Settle into this small cabin setting and sip and savor the fondue experience.

“Barbara and I tried a lot of fondue all over and found one that is authentically Swiss, and it’s really delicious,” Deem said. “People have been raving about how good it tastes.”

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“The cheese fondue is a blend of gruyère, vacherin fribourgeois, emmentaler and raclette,” Nelson said. “We begin with a dry white wine, which is currently a Colorado made Riesling, add the cheese, finish with kirsch or cherry brandy and a few spices.” 

The full Wild Mountain Cellars fondue experience includes a wine tasting with three wines of your choice accompanied with emmenthaler cheese and crackers plate. After the tasting, each guest chooses a glass of wine to enjoy with the fondue. Fresh baked bread, roasted vegetables and apple slices are served with the fondue and the cost is $68 per person. 

“We’re also happy to customize flights for your party and various prices,” Deem said. You can also purchase bottles of wine to drink while you are there enjoying the fondue.

If there are people in your party who aren’t drinking, the fondue experience can be for two or three people with bread and the cheese fondue for $22. You can add apples and roasted vegetables for an extra charge.

Deem is an avid skier and many of his wines have names that reveal his love for the outdoors and the sport such as Matt’s Secret Stash and the Perfect Line.

“I would consider these to be my flagship wines, the Matt’s Secret Stash is a petit syrah and syrah blend and is more of a complex wine that has a deep color and is full bodied. The Perfect Line, which is a grenache and syrah blend, has a ruby red color and you get raspberry and red currant flavor,” Deem said.

Chairlift Mingle is another one of Deem’s wines with a ski-theme name that mingles sangiovese, syrah, malbec and tempranillo together to produce a noble and balanced finish with a hint of blackberry before a long, smooth finish.

“Wild Mountain Cellars’ wine tasting room is one of several places people can go after skiing the Minturn Mile, but it is the only wine bar in Minturn where you can enjoy and experience award-winning wines with cheese fondue,” Deem said.  

“People light up when we mention cheese fondue with wine. A group of friends or family share one pot, a flame and the food to be dipped,” Nelson said. “There are always smiles and laughter when sharing fondue and wine.”

“People have really been loving the space, too, saying it’s a really quaint, rustic mountain experience,” Deem said. “We’ve got the big glass doors on both sides of the cabin where you can see it snowing outside and a firepit out front. It’s a cozy and warm setting that’s different from many places in Vail and it’s perfect for a date night, family gathering and groups.”

Reservations are required for the fondue. The Wild Mountain Cellars tasting room is open Thursdays – Sundays, 4 p.m. until close and it is open upon request. If you have a group who would like the wine and fondue experience on other days, Wild Mountain Cellars will accommodate as available. Wild Mountain Cellars will also bring the wine and fondue experience to your home or office. Reservations can be made by email: Wine@WildMountainCellars.com or visit the website, WildMountainCellars.com.