A night of fine wine and kundiman

In the center of Café Ysabel’s private room stands a grand mirror with a gold carved frame, accompanied by Victorian-styled curtains with indigo flower prints and white lace. The walls are covered from corner to corner in beautifully painted murals of angels. Such lavish decor was the perfect complement to the evening’s featured guests, the Monday Club.

The Monday Club, one of whose founding members is painter Allan Cosio, is a group of 20 retirees, who, for five years, have been meeting on the first Monday of each month to share a passion for kundiman.

The evening was perfect for these haunting and nostalgic songs, including Kundiman ng Luha, Kung Batid Mo Lamang, Ikaw ang Lahat sa Aking Buhay, and Alaala ng Lumipas. Adding their voices to the evening’s presentation were guest sopranos Rachelle Gerodias and Elaine Lee, who sang the popular Mutya ng Pasig and Sa Kabukiran, respectively.

The beautiful music was merely a backdrop to the evening’s star guest: Sierra Valley wines by Ernest and Julio Gallo. The array of wines served, including Sierra Valley’s sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, and merlot, was the perfect accompaniment to a night of leisure filled with song, cheerful chatter, and food prepared by chef Gene Gonzalez.

For starters, guests were served a glass of Sierra Valley sauvignon blanc, richly blended with the juice of passion fruits. This wine cocktail was the perfect accompaniment to a creamy and zesty paté that smeared on thinly sliced French bread. Members of the Monday Club, which include dame of publishing Esther Vibal, culture advocate Tony Pastor, pianist Baby Lontoc, Ana Avellana Cosio, and General Felix and Rita Brawner, looked inspired as they applauded their friends in between sips of white wine.

After the singers took their bows, the first dish was served: Steamed boneless bangus fillet topped with annatto sauce and black mushrooms, wrapped in a soya bean wrapper. On the side, the chef served a kundiman salad of strips of ubod, siniguelas and corn in a pineapple-Balayan dressing. The combination, though quite unusual, was a perfect blend of traditional Filipino flavors. Served with the dish was the Sierra Valley chardonnay, a white, medium-bodied wine with the round bright flavors of citrus lemon and crisp green apple. The fruity flavors of the wine intensified the zesty flavors of the salad and fish, and vice versa.

Afterwards, the guests were served hot ube vichyssoise, bowls of pancit molo floating inside a creamy potage of ube. The soup, though resembling the flavor of cream of mushroom, was a deep purple. I was expecting it to taste sweet, but it was savory with a succulent texture that coated my tongue with thick flavor. I could not help but take a sip from my glass of clear, crisp chardonnay.

The next dish was a hot galantine of chicken in soubise sauce. On the side, chef Gene prepared stewed caramelized shallots and turmeric rice coconut cream, sweetened with raisins and wrapped in a sheet of Baguio pechay. This dish was non-traditionally paired with the Sierra Valley merlot, adding to the dish the elegant flavors of fresh plum, rounded by hints of dark cherry and chocolate. The bitter-sweetness of the wine went perfectly with the intended starkness of the white meat.

As guests scraped the sauces off their dessert plates holding two scoops of manibalang mango sherbet and tablea meringue torte, the evening’s final singer, McDonald’s CEO George Yang went up the stage, singing the Italian song Anima e core. Everyone took the last sips of their wines, and leaned back on their chairs to listen to the serene, resonant voice of George.