Wine Tasting: The Perfect Cheese Pairings for Your Wine
Wine and cheese go together like soup and sandwich. A match made in heaven. They compliment each other and each makes the other better. So if you are hosting a wine tasting party, or just having a few friends over for some tasting and laughs, you must know how to pick the proper cheeses and wine.
It is important to know that cheese and wine both affect the palate. They must blend together and not clash. So for an example if you were serving a value priced Cabernet Savignon, you would perhaps select a good blue cheese to bring out the best in the wine. Making the wrong selection could make a bargain go south in a hurry!
So after your guests have arrived and settled in, serve the wine first. Then pass out the cheese. After your guest have sampled the cheese they will taste the wine again. If you have picked the right combination your guests should remark about how good much better the wine tastes.
I will never be the one to say that there is a hard and fast list of what wines and cheeses go together, nor that you can only drink certain wines with certain foods. Tastes are as different as people. To each his own. If you like red wine with fish, enjoy!
With that being said, I will give you a “starter” list. These combinations will please a lot of palates, but just keep in mind, that you will never please everyone.
For Merlot, you might want to consider a brie, gruyere, parmesan, cheddar, or gorgonzola cheese. These cheeses will be able to complement the Merlot very effectively and each cheese will have a different influence on how the wine will taste.
If you will be serving Sauvignon Blanc, then you might want to consider pairing it with feta, goat cheese, cheddar, parmesan, brie, and asiago cheese.
For Chardonnay, consider pairing it with Gouda, parmesan, gruyere, provolone, and brie cheese. These cheeses work well with Chardonnay and will definitely make the wine taste a lot better.
If you want to serve Pinot Grigio, Edam, goat cheese, mozzarella, and Muenster cheese are the recommended cheese pairs.
This will give you a great place to start. You will want to do some experimenting. Ask around and see what other people like. Keep notes on what you liked and did not like. Eventually you will be the wine tasting host of your neighborhood!
Hosting a wine tasting or party is not about who can pick the most expensive wine. It is all about discoveries. Who can pick the best value and the best combination. Expensive does not always mean better in anything, but especially wine. If you show that you can pick the right combination and the best value, you will be remembered and talked about for a long time to come!
