5 Tips for Wine and Cheese Pairings
There are few pleasures in life greater than sitting down with friends to chat, sip a good glass of wine (or two), and munch on a mix of delectable cheeses. But why is this? Aside from the obvious that mixing good things often creates better blends (like butter, sugar, and eggs in a cake) there are also other reasons that wine and cheese are often linked together in a holy duo of ‘tasting’. But what wine goes with cheese? Well, the answer is a little bit of everything! There are so many wines and cheeses, there is almost an unlimited number of great combos.
Explore with us today our top 5 pieces of advice on how to pick and design your own pairing to get you started for the next time you come over all peckish or esurient for cheesy comestibles.
The Basics of Pairing Wine and Cheeses
Wine and cheese are often linked hobbies, much like we discussed with wine vs olive oil in a previous article, and the two worlds have a surprising large overlap outside of their initial gastronomic connections. Thousands of different cheeses exist in different complexities, blended from mainly three types of milk (cow, sheep, and/or goat) and aged in a variety of manners. As well like wine, associations exist that are dedicated solely to ‘cheese tasting’, like ONAF (National Organization of Cheese Tasters) in Italy. Cheese is an integral part of many meals; coming before as an appetizer or aperitivo, during the meal as an ingredient in many dishes, or even after as palate cleansers or snacks. Seeing as cheese is a singular ‘food group’ that is nearly as ubiquitous to our culinary adventures as wine is, it seems like learning how to pair wine and cheese might just be worth one’s time. Let’s have a look at 5 of Vero’s Top Tips for creating your own wine and cheese pairings.
#1: Expand Your Possibilities by Complementing and Contrasting
There are two main ways you can pair wine and food: complementing or contrasting various aspects of flavor or mouthfeel. Often, complementing the flavors of the cheese with a wine that has similar flavors can be a good strategy. For example, the peppery flavors of a Schioppettino from Friuli would complement a cheese flavored with black pepper. However, contrasting flavors can also work just as well, and in some cases even better. For example, with the theoretical cheddar above, a fresh, acidic wine might do just as well, because the acidity of the wine counterbalances and cuts through the fattiness of the cheese, leaving a cleaner palate. For example, take botrytized wines like the Sauternes substitute Picolit from Friuli Venezia Giulia. The sweetness and fullness of the Picolit contrast well with a blue cheese like gorgonzola or stilton for a classic and fun pairing.
Durello pairs wonderfully with an aged hard cheese like Parmigiano Reggiano.
We can extrapolate this principle outward into other aspects of pairing, such as texture. Cheeses that have a rich and creamy mouthfeel pair well with full bodied white wines that will complement that creaminess. But another great pairing, maybe sometimes an even better one, is to go with a sparkling wine, where the bubbles contrast with the creaminess and cleanse the palate. Something like this would be to pair a hard aged parmesan with a tradional method sparkling wine like the Durello 36 Month sparkling wine or the Alta Langa Andrea.
#2: Match Intensity
An important part of wine and cheese tasting in general is to consider the intensity of the aromas and flavors of the wine and cheeses, just how strong are they are on your palate? With a lot of pairings it is crucial to make sure that the intensity of flavor is well balanced betwen the two items so that neither flavor really triumphs and outlasts the other. That is, unless your goal is to showcase either the wine or the cheese. But in general, it’s always a good idea to strive for a balance between the wine and cheese (or other pairing items) in terms of intensity of flavor. The overall goal should be that, after eating a bite of cheese, then sipping and swallowing the wine, neither the cheese nor wine flavors are predominant, but rather the mouth is left clean and with a pleasant aftertaste. A well-matched for intensity pairing will leave you always ready for another bite or another sip, never with a tired or overwhelmed palate. Like pairing tangy fresh cheeses with a portuguese white wine blend from Herdade dos Grous or a dry prosecco pet nat like the Codolà from Col del Balt.
#3: Beware of Tannins
Sometimes it might be tempting to pick out and serve your cheese platter with ‘one wine to rule them all’. And usually this wine could be a big and bold red wine, especially if the cheese platter is served at the end of the meal when such a red wine is usually served. However, you should be mindful of the underlying flavors of the cheeses present and how tannic the wine is. This is because some molecules in particularly bitter cheeses can interact with a wine’s tannins and give you an unpleasant metallic aftertaste that really emphasizes the bitterness and can ruin the whole pairing experience.
Places like Italy have hundreds if not thousands of regional cheeses to pick from for a regional wine and cheese pairing.
So, leave those highly tannic wines like a Spanish Tempranillo or a Barolo for hard aged cheeses and, when in doubt, you can play it safe and pair the cheese platter with a white wine. After all, going with a white wine means there will be no tannins, and it is just one less thing that could cause a pairing to go sideways with unpleasant interactions.
#4: Rely on Pairings with Deep Traditions
Honestly, this is true for food and wine pairing overall, not only for cheese. There’s a reason why traditions exist and survive and why many local wines seem to marry wonderfully with regional dishes from where they are from. After all, these classic pairings come about as the result of deeply rooted traditions, palates, and the effect of the terroir and climate that can influence both the food and wine.
Some examples? A Pecorino from Tuscany paired with a Brunello di Montalcino or a Tuma paired with a Barbera d Asti from Piedmont are both great regional pairings. You know, if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it!
#5: Don’t be Shy to Experiment and Try!
We tend to live by this one a lot, especially with our recipes, but at the end of the day, don’t limit yourself with strict rules. Every palate is different and your personal taste should always be the priority. So feel free to unleash your creativity and don’t be shy to try unusual pairings and to experiment with different and less obvious kinds of wines and cheeses. You’ll never know unless you try, and who knows, you just might discover some wonderful surprises through experimentation!
Now It’s Your Turn…
Ready to try your hand at some wine and cheese pairings? There is no better time than the present, and July 25 is National Wine and Cheese Day… what better way to celebrate than start a pairing journey!
We have a great assortment of “cheese friendly” wines for many types of cheeses.
For example, this Portuguese white wine blend and Codolà prosecco Pet Nat pair well with fresh cheeses and a Spanish Tempranillo to go with aged hard cheeses. All 3 are in our Vero Summer Flight Sampler.
Remember tip number five: try lots of wines and cheeses to experiment and learn what you like!
If you work in the wine trade, contact us to learn more about our portfolio.
Otherwise, go to the VeroShop to pick out your favorites. And don’t forget some organic extra virgin olive oil… spice up your cheeses with an extra drizzle of EVOO.
Happy pairing and let us know your favorite pairings in the comments below.
