Wine with Cheese
Where matching cheese with wine is concerned, it’s like religion and politics – no one agrees!
Cheese varies in moisture content, fat content, texture and flavour – wine varies in acidity, sweetness, body and structure. The flavours of cheese can range from nutty, earthy, sweet, savoury, fruity, tangy and creamy – sometimes all at once! Cheese can sometimes include fruit, be smoked, or be coated with different herbs and spices. And a cheese can be made solely from, or a mix of cow's, sheep or goat's milk.
Pairing cheese with wine then, is not as easy as you might first imagine. There are hundreds of different cheeses in the world – some sources claim well over 1,000, but they can be divided into the following types below. It's not a definitive list, so if you have cheese that doesn't appear here, refer to the type of cheese it is and make your choices accordingly. Most of all have fun in trying out your own wine matches with cheese – just as there are many kinds of cheeses, there are also may kinds of wine - experiment and be adventurous and you may well hit on a real masterpiece!
The following are therefore some suggestions to help make the task a little easier.
It is often a good idea to serve the cheese course Continental style, before the dessert, so that your palate doesn’t have to travel from savoury to sweet and back again.
Cheese in general tastes better at room temperature than straight from the fridge because the cold suppresses the flavour and affects the texture of cheese. The act of bringing cheese to room temperature is called tempering, and this allows the aromas and flavours to develop.
Depending on the cheese you choose, it’s often better to have a white wine to accompany it, as research demonstrates that the tannins present in red wine can react with the acids in cheese, making the wine taste bitter and metallic.
You can choose to either contrast the flavour and texture of the cheese with the profile of the wine, or harmonise with it. For example, a crisp white wine will contrast with a soft cheese by cutting through the creaminess, and a buttery one will harmonise with it.
Sparkling wines can be a real hit, because their high acidity cuts through the creaminess of cheese. If you think about the cheesy nibbles often on offer with sparkling wine aperitifs you will see what I mean. That said, If you prefer red wine with cheese, then red burgundy and Pinot Noir in general is one the most cheese friendly red wines of all.
Matching local cheeses with the wines of that area is also a good idea – if it's made together, it goes together!
Single Malt Whisky can be a revelation to accompany cheese – There are different styles of Whisky, ranging from the light and floral to the heavily peated.
Try a light, delicate Whisky with hard cheeses and a smoky one with blue.
Hard Cheese
e.g. Cheddar, Parmesan, Grana Padano, Pecorino.
It's worth noting that some cheeses, like Gouda, can be hard or semi-hard depending on the type, and some cheeses like Cheshire can be hard and crumbly.
Hard cheeses can cope with more tannic wines, and for many people nothing seems to go as well with strong hard mature cheeses than a well-chosen, full-bodied red. You don’t want anything too tannic or aggressively oaky here though to avoid that metallic clash.
Of course it depends how strong your cheese is; Cheddars can range from quite mild to very strong, and the stronger the flavour of the cheese, the bigger and bolder you can go with the flavour of the wine - a soft Merlot with milder Cheddars and a Cabernet Sauvignon with more robust examples. Soft and mature wines that have been gently oaked like a Rioja Reserva or Gran Reserva, a well-rounded spicy Shiraz from Australia, and savoury herbaceous reds like a Chianti Classico are good red options. Other Sangiovese wines can also work well, as can a classic Saint-Émilion.
For white choices look to oaked Chardonnays chock-full of nutty and creamy tropical fruit flavours, and rich Alsatian Pinot Gris.
Champagne is good with Cheddar, or go partisan and try a bottle of English sparkling wine. For a different sparkler try a Franciacorta from the Lombardy region of Italy. Staying with Italy, Prosecco with Parmesan is a winner!
Tawny Port is a classic pairing with hard cheese – the combination of the savoury salty cheese with the rich mellow Port is hard to beat!
Semi-Hard Cheese
e.g. Comté, Gruyère, Emmental, Edam, Manchego, Raclette.
These have firm, dense textures.
Chardonnay with milder semi hard cheese for a white choice and Merlot for a red. Pinot Noir is great with Gruyère.
Comté is a cheese from the Jura in eastern France; it's hazelnut character pairs well with wines from that region.
Manchego is a great with Rioja and Tempranillo in general.
Champagne again for bubbles and Cava with Manchego.
Riesling, be it dry or off-dry is a match made in heaven with Raclette! And if you are a fan of White Port – try it with Swiss semi-hard cheeses.
Semi-Soft Cheese
e.g. Jarlsberg, Fontina, Morbier, Stinking Bishop.
Creamy and smooth, these have a harder texture than soft cheese and Riesling is a great match.
Pungent Stinky Cheese pairs well with wines that have bolder fruit flavours and high aromatic intensity, like Riesling, Viognier, Marsanne, Roussanne and White Rhône blends. Also try exotic Gewürztraminer and for something different choose a Colombard!
Soft Cheese
e.g. Brie, Camenbert, Burrata [literally means “buttered”], Feta, Boursin.
These work well with wines with more acidity. Crisp Chablis is good with soft cheeses, especially Chaource, as is a glass of Champagne; Blanc de Noirs with Truffle Brie is divine!
Greece is the home of creamy and tangy Feta, so look to its homeland and pair with an Assyrtiko or a wine equally high in acidity like a Sauvignon Blanc.
Grüner Veltliner is the perfect partner for herby Boursin.
If your preference is for less acidic wines, rich, full bodied Chardonnays are also an excellent choice as their creamy, buttery character has a natural affinity with cheese, especially soft cheeses. Try a reasonably priced white Burgundy, perhaps from the Maconnais like a Poully-Fuissé or St-Veran, the Côte Chalonnais such as a Montagny, or a new world Chardonnay.
A Camenbert baked in the oven, studded with garlic and rosemary is fabulous with a light-bodied red like Pinot Noir or Beaujolais.
If you enjoy Triple Cream soft cheese and you want to push the boat out, look no further than an Ice Wine from Canada; their acidity is a perfect foil for the luxuriant richness of the cheese – there's even one from China!
Blue Cheese
e.g. Roquefort, Stilton, Gorgonzola, Dolcelatte, Danish Blue.
Blue cheeses LOVE sweet wines. These flavoursome, rich, tangy and salty cheeses are a marriages made in heaven with the sweetness of dessert wines because sweet compliments salt. Sauternes is a well-established match for Roquefort, but you don’t have to spend a fortune and can try a wine from one of Sauternes' neighbours instead, like a Barsac, Cadillac, Loupiac or Ste-Croix-du-Mont. Or from one of the satellite regions of Bordeaux, like Mombazilliac. Try also Muscat de Beaume de Venis from the Rhône, Jurançon from south-west France, a sweet Chenin from the Loire, or a Vendages Tardive from Alsace.
Soft and creamy blue cheeses are nice with Crémants – there are plenty to chose from. And Italian blues like Gorgonzola and Dolcelatte are great with the sweet Italian sparkler Moscato d'Asti.
And of course, Port is also a classic match with Stilton, especially Tawny Port. But if you enjoy sherry, try an Amontillado or a rich Oloroso. And don’t forget the sweeter styles of Madeira.
Goat's Cheese
There are many different types of goat's cheese, and they can be mature like Crottin de Chavignol, fresh like Buche de Chèvre and Rosary Ash or even Blue, and the flavours range from very mild to full on powerful and goaty.
Fresh examples are good with crisp wines that have high acidity and no oak – like a Riesling or unoaked Chardonnay.
The semi-soft creamy and tangy Bûcheron hails from the Loire Valley, and pairs nicely with a slightly sweet and fruity Vouvrey.
Sauvignon Blanc is THE classic partner for goat's cheese . The crisp, aromatic and herbaceous qualities of this wine suite the chalky texture of the cheese. If the cheese is pungent, try a full flavoured Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand or Chile, but if it’s milder and less piquant, choose a French Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire like a Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé or a Menetou-Salon. And don't forget Bacchus – England's answer to Sauvignon Blanc!
For bubbles lovers, Prosecco is lovely with soft and creamy goat's cheeses.
Washed Rind and Smear-Ripened Cheese
e.g. Epoisses, Reblochon, Taleggio, Vacherin Mont D'Or, Munster, Port Salut.
Crisp and fresh white wines work well as they cut through and contrast with the intense flavours of these distinctive strong cheeses. Sauvignon Blanc, Albariño, Vermentino, Verdicchio or Grüner Veltliner.
Reblochon is made in the Haute-Savoie of south-eastern France, so try one of the fascinating wines from the Savoie region using Roussane [known locally as Bergeron] or the unusual Jacquere grape variety.
Woody and fruity rind washed cheeses go well with both red and white wines – choose red or white Côte du Rhône, Pinot Noir or a red Côte de Provence.
Pungent Munster is a great match with Alsatian Gewürztraminer and Pinot Gris.
Smoked Cheese
e.g. Smoked Cheddars like Applewood, German and Austrian Smoked Cheeses.
Bold and savoury smoked cheese needs a wine that can stand up to it's intensity, so more robust wines are called for. Zinfandel's smokey qualities echo the characteristics of the cheese beautifully. The piquant profile of smoked cheese also pairs well with Merlot, Malbec and savoury red Italian wines like Chianti. For a white, choose a rich Viognier or buttery Chardonnay.