Beyond These Wine And Cheese Pairing Tips Go With What You Like
Wine and cheese have gone hand-in-hand for centuries. But since there isnt just one type of wine or a single kind of cheese , getting the right pairing can be a bit tricky. Just as wines can vary immensely in color, acidity, and complexity, cheeses span a range of tastes and textures. The mouthfeel of each cheese variety depends on moisture content, fat content, acidity, and age.
Ultimately, the goal of wine and cheese pairing is to find a bottle that wont overpower the cheese and vice versa. Start with tried-and-true combinations like those listed above to see what works for you. From there, have fun mixing things up to discover a delectable pairing that suits your tastes.
What Wine Is Best With Cheese And Crackers
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Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Zinfandel, Tempranillo and Sangiovese are but a few of the red wines that pair well with aged Gouda and Cheddar, aged Manchego or Pecorino and other similar cow, goat or sheep milk cheeses.
Also, why does wine and cheese go together? When a tannic wine is consumed with cheese, however, the proteins and fat in cheese start to break down the tannin and coat your palate protecting it from the harshness of the tannin. Many white wines have good acidity, which is an astringent and also helps cut through creaminess.
Similarly, you may ask, what cheese goes best with wine?
Which cheese to pair with your favourite wine
- Cabernet sauvignon, merlot and Bordeaux blends – cheddar, gouda and other hard cheeses.
- Pinot noir – brie and camembert.
- Rhône and other southern French reds – a good all-rounder with a French cheeseboard.
- Rioja – particularly good with sheep cheeses like Manchego.
What wine goes with Comte cheese?
The best wine matches for Comté
- Local dry Arbois whites.
- Champagne.
- Aged or minerally Chardonnays.
- Old white Bordeaux – an 18 year old Domaine de Chevalier Pessac-Léognan was stunning with both 2 and 4 year old Comtés at a tasting I did with affineur Bernard Antony a few years ago.
- Alsace Pinot Noir.
Try these pairings for hard and semi-hard cheeses:
Best Wine To Drink With Cheese
No wine conneseuir is deemed that title until youve had yourself a wine and cheese party! Red wine is almost always the first option that comes to mind when you think of this dynamic duo. While a properly aged Pinot Noir with the right cheese can be a treat, there is so much more when it comes to wine and cheese pairings. In fact, many wine experts actually prefer white wine with most cheeses. Find the best wine to drink with cheese.
Dont know much about wines yet to pair with your cheeses? Check out Beginner Wines that You Need to Try for some tips on varieties of wine.
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Meat And Cheese Board Components
Tips for Cheese:
Wine And Cheese Pairing Made Simple
McKenzie Hagan | March 17, 2020
When it comes to wine pairing, the best way to discover what works is to experiment and let your taste buds take the lead. That said, it helps to have a little direction. To help you on your way, here are some basic guidelines for creating the perfect cheese and wine pairings.
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Tips For Serving Wine
- As a rule of thumb, plan on a half bottle of wine per person.
- White wines should be chilled for two hours before being served. Red winesshould be opened and allowed to breathe at room temperature for two hours before serving.
- If youre serving several wines, start with the lighter whites, move through more robustreds and end with a port or sherry.
- If possible, use the correct stemware for each of the wines. The right glass does make adifference. Visit the web site of Riedl Crystal for some helpful guidance: www.riedel.com
Morbier Cheese Wine Pairing
A quality Morbier cheese wine pairing is with Gewürtztraminer, Jura, or Pinot Noir. Morbier is a French cheese that has a nutty, somewhat bitter taste combined with fruity aromas and flavors. Letâs break down the three aforementioned wines and why they work so well.
The widely-appreciated Gewürtztraminer offers tropical and stone fruit flavors, like apricot, mango, pineapple, and a little bit of pepper. The fruit notes present in both the cheese and wine mix well with each other. In addition, elements like mango and honey stand out on the palate against the backdrop of the cheeseâs creaminess.
Jura wine, on the other hand, is bone dry and nutty. Itâs a highly acidic wine that has a spicy minerality to it. Jura offers a more balanced pairing with the darker tastes of Morbier without drawing the palate away from the cheese.
Finally, Pinot Noir is earthy and light enough to match Morbierâs characteristics without being too overpowering. Its mushroom and forest floor elements mesh well with the bitter and nutty components of the cheese.
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What Else Should I Include On A Cheese Board For Wine Tasting
Well, youre in luck, because I took a wine class in culinary school, and I still have my GIANT textbook.
It gave me lots of great ideas for snack and wine pairings for my wine and cheese board, including:
- strawberries pair with pinot noir
- chocolate chip cookies pair with syrah or cabernet sauvignon would also be great as a sweet treat here!)
- candied pecans or walnuts pair with riesling
- pepperoni pair with syrah
- sweet potato chips pair with moscato
- white chocolate pair with champagne
- prosciutto pair with pinot noir
- castelvetrano olives pair with sauvignon blanc
What Cheese For A Cheese Board For Wine Tasting
It might be an unconventional approach, but rather than struggling with cheese decision paralysis, I just did a flight of cheddar cheeses for this board!
Just as there are subtle differences between different varieties of wine, its the same for cheese.
Hard cheeses like cheddar are generally the easiest types to pair with wine, and cheddar works well with both white and red wines.
In particular, cheddar pairs very well with an oaky Chardonnay, as well as Syrah and Malbec.
So, this one platter can be a cheese board for red wine AND a cheese board for white wine!
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Use Food To Bridge Cheese And Wine
In some instances, finding the perfect wine and cheese match can be somewhat of a challenge.
When doing a wine and food pairing, its easier to achieve the perfect balance between the taste of wine and the flavor of the cheese. The food options to consider include dried fruit, jam, crackers, or apples alongside wine and cheese.
This will take some experimentation, but over time, youll be able to determine which flavor is more appealing to your taste.
Create An Elegant Presentation
Take a few extra minutes to organize your meats, cheeses and accoutrements. We like to fold lighter meats into rosettes, cut the cheeses into varying sizes for visual intrigue and turn the sliced salami so that pieces fan out from the front of the platter. Fresh herbs and edible flowers sprinkled on the plate also highlight the season and bring a pop of color.
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Pair Wine And Cheese From The Same Region
To achieve the perfect pair, try to serve cheese and wine that come from a similar area since they have a natural harmony with one another.
If youre having trouble finding a wine and cheese pair from the same region, you can fake it and follow this general principle in whatever you choose.
For example, the American cheddar is a great partner for champagne with French brie, Gewurztraminer thats got muenster from the Alps, Italian Chianti with aged parmesan, or cabernet sauvignon.
The Best Crackers For Cheese
Its no secret that we love cheese . Part of the glorious experience of eating cheese is the vehicle youre using to transport it from the plate to your palate.
Whether you prefer plain crackers that let the cheese be the star, or like to explore complementing flavors and textures, these are 15 of our favorite crackers, crisps, and breadsticks to serve with cheese, grouped by category.
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What Cheeses Go With Red Wine
Strong, aged cheeses like cheddar, sharp Swiss, and gouda go best with red wines. This is for several reasons.
One, red wine tends to have bold and fruity flavors. This makes them great pairs for intense cheese tastes because the cheese needs something strong to match with.
Two, the taste of cheese can sometimes linger on the tongue, and more neutral wines will only strengthen that. Instead, red wines bring prominent fruit flavors to bear which acts as a counterpoint to the tanginess of cheeses.
What Kind Of Cheese To Buy
Salty, hard cheeses pair well with wine, but so do soft cheeses. This being said, an impromptu wine and cheese party should be easy to prepare. So, dont feel like you need to serve all of these. Instead, I recommend choosing at least 3-4 different types of cheese and using the tips below to include a wide variety of choices for your board.
- Choose from different textures including hard, medium, and soft.
- Include cheese from different sources including cows, goats, sheep, or vegan sources.
- Use a variety of flavors by including cheeses coated in herbs, drizzled with truffle oil, or smoked.
Pro-Tip: For an aesthetic wine and cheese board, cut your cheese into different sizes and shapes including circles, cubes, wedges, slices, and more!
The Best Cheese Options
- Gouda The perfect pairing with Cabernet
- Aged Cheddar Lovely with Malbec
- Manchego This option is a sheep milk-based cheese, great for those who are sensitive to cows milk cheese and perfect when paired with a sparkly wine such as red Rioja.
- Ricotta Goes well with Riesling
- Parmesan Delicious with a bubbly Prosecco
- Gruyere A love fest with Chardonnay
- Brie Goes well with many wines, but my favorite pairing is Merlot
- Bleu Cheese Pairs well with a Pinot Noir or a sweet Port
- Feta Slightly sweet wine is perfect with salty feta! I like it best with a bright red or dry Rosé.
VEGAN or DAIRY FREE OPTIONS These are my favorite real-food-based vegan cheese options to include on your board.
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Mac And Cheese Wine Pairing
If you need a great mac and cheese wine pairing, youâll do right with a Chenin Blanc, Riesling, or unoaked Chardonnay. This classic dish is a crossroads of creamy and tangy, meaning it needs these zippy types of white wine to balance it out.
Chenin Blanc is a medium-dry white wine that pairs well with mac and cheese. The wine works to cut through thick, cheesy recipes, while the bubbles amplify the soft texture of the macaroni.
Riesling is more fruity and floral, offering stronger peach, lemon, and pineapple tastes. Similar to Chenin Blanc, itâs a dry white with plenty of acidity and a light body. This is a natural counterpoint to the melt-in-your-mouth characteristics of fresh mac and cheese.
Chardonnay–a white wine with medium tannin levels and full-body–offers tropical fruit flavors for your mac and cheese dish. Taking sips of mango-, pineapple-, and papaya-flavored wine between tart bites of creamy pasta is an excellent way to enjoy the evening.
Use White Wine For Your Pairings Whenever You Can
We know that red wine may have more devotees than white but, in this case, you are better off going with varieties of white. Wondering how this could be? Think about some of the fruits you would ideally have with cheese and your mind immediately goes to pears and apples. These are the same kinds of fresh flavors you can expect from white wines. Some of the well-known pairs for white wine are crisp whites of the Jura region and comté and Sauvignon Blanc and goat cheese. We also encourage you to try a combination of cheddar and oaky Chardonnay its a pleasant surprise for your taste buds.
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Pair With Higher Acid Lower Alcohol Wines
Many experts would argue that fuller-bodied red and white wines are too bold for light charcuterie meats and cheeses, but there are always exceptions to the rules. Champagne and sparkling wine are so often considered the best wine pairing with charcuterie due to high acidity, lower alcohol and their affinity for salty dishes. Because Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon has a silky texture, forward fruit flavor, nice acidity, subtle tannins and lower alcohol, its a very versatile red wine with charcuterie. Jordan Chardonnay also has lower alcohol and higher acidity, so it can also work with prosciutto and other salty meats, whereas a big, buttery Chardonnay would overpower the pairing and taste hot . Similarly, a big, rich Napa Cabernet with alcohol above 14% would most likely drown out the meats delicate flavors and taste hot and even spicy at times. If you love red wines, the key is to look for those with lower tannins and alcohols under 13.8%.
Stonewall Kitchen Sea Salt Crackers
Stonewalls thin, crispy, delicately-flavored Sea Salt Crackers are a staple in our pantry. The hint of surface salt is subtle, so you wont be over-salting your guests between the cheese and crackers.
These crackers are the perfect, two-bite size for fitting into the nooks and crannies of a cheese board.
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Sweetness In Contrast To Salt
Very salty and complex cheeses, such as blue cheeses, are generally served with sweet condiments. You may have noticed that orange marmalade, figs and raisins often accompany these types of cheeses. And you can also serve a wine with these same raisin and nutty aromas.
In general, sweet wines are ideal with blue cheeses, because the sweetness embraces the saltiness and tones down the slightly rancid mouldy taste.
Late harvest wines, with the high sugar content in the grapes, go particularly well with blue cheese. Try, for instance, a French Sauternes or German Spätlese or even better, a bold, sweet and complex Auslese or Trockenbeerenauslese from Germany. The prices may be high, but then so is the experience. And if can you get hold of one, a genuine Eiswein is also worth a try.
Actual dessert wines especially if they have notes of dried fruit also pair very well with blue cheese.
Opt For White Wine When Undecided
If youre still not used to pairing wine and cheese, its advisable to go for white wine over red wine. White wine does a great job in being paired with cheese because it mostly tastes like pineapple, apples, grapes, and pears. All these fruits taste good when eaten with cheese.
Therefore, when enjoying creamy cheese, you should pick unoaked white wines because of their crisp and fresh finish.
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Blue Cheese Wine Pairing
Some of the best blue cheese wine pairing options include Port, Sherry, and Prosecco. Blue cheese is a popular selection for dinners and snacking and goes best with sweeter wines.
Port carries flavors like blackberry, caramel, and raspberry, which mix well with the salty, spiciness of blue cheese. Sherry has a more complex taste, including flavors like jackfruit, lemon, and mushroom.
Finally, Proseccoâs aromatic, fruit-centric tastes like pear, apple, and melon cut through the moldâs signature flavor on the first sip. Each of these wines offers a taste that complements or balances the unique flavor of blue cheese.
Wine With Melted Cheese
Its not a cheese style in its own right but melted cheese classics such as fondue and raclette deserve a mention. They arent the easiest dishes to match, but a good bet is a crisp or aromatic white wine from the region where these dishes are popular. Youll find some specific suggestions in this post: the best wine pairings with cheese fondue, raclette and tartiflette.
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