Kirsch

Appears in

Published 2002

About

If you take a bushel of cherries, allow them to ferment, and then distill them, you get kirsch. Unlike other brandies such as Cognac or Armagnac, which are made from grapes and aged in wooden casks, kirsch is never aged and so is crystal clear. Since nothing is added to it, kirsch is perfectly dry, and for neophytes its 45 percent (90 proof) alcohol content makes it a bit on the fiery side.

The best kirsch comes from Switzerland, the second-best comes from France, and the lowest quality (except that from a few boutique distilleries in Oregon and California) is made in the United States. Lesser-quality kirsch tastes more like almonds than fruit and isn’t worth the bother. My favorite brand, from Switzerland, is called ETTER, but I’ve never found kirsch from Switzerland that wasn’t excellent. You can also play around with using other fruit brandies in a cheese fondue, but kirsch is my favorite.

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Cheese Fondue

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