One of the more favored subjects in my wine courses is wine and cheese pairings.

Well here’s an easy way for remembering how to match cheese and wine.

The darker the wine, the harder the cheese.

The lighter the wine, the softer the cheese.

Let’s begin with wines first. We already know that some red wines are lighter and some are darker.

For instance Pinot Noir is lighter, Chianti or merlot are darker and Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel are even darker still.

One thing that's very different from chocolate pairings is that while white wines are not well suited for chocolate, they are an excellent match for cheeses.

With white wines instead of the colour, lets focus on some of the characteristics of the varieties. That may help you in making better matches with different cheeses.

If you remember from our wine and food pairing post, all there is to wine and food pairing has similarities foods with similar wines.

Pinot Grigio as an example has more of an acidic finish, right? We know that astringency brings out flavor, especially in baked or broiled seafood and chicken.

So that's use that same logic and realize that pinot grigio would be a great match for tasteless cheeses like swiss or provolone.

Chardonnay is usually oaked and due to this has a little bit of a nutty flavor. That nut flavour pairs well with any cheese that might be enhanced by salt.

An excellent choice here might be a Parmesan or Asiago cheese. BTW, salted almonds will add an extreme amount of flavor if you include them on the plate.

Reisling generally although not always is a little more sweet than most wines. So by this point, I presume you are a little before me here. Sweet wine goes well with flavoured foods.

How about a flavoured cheese, perhaps like Gouda? Additionally, any kind of candied or sugar coated nuts or fruit would be the perfect compliment

With reds, again the darker the wine, the harder the cheese. There’s no need to go into a large amount of detail here.

Lets go over cheeses.

When I say the how soft or hard the cheese, think about a cheese like brie as the softest of cheeses and then a soft cheese like swiss, then maybe a cheddar as a semi hard cheese and then eventually a parmesan type cheese as the toughest.

Compare your fave cheeses using this guide at the bottom of the page and you’ll have pretty good idea what wine to pair.

Here’s two tips which will aid in making your cheese taste better. Everyone knows the temperature of your wine makes a serious difference in how you wine tastes. Cheese isn't different. I suspect most of us eat cheese to cold, generally right out of the fridge.

Actually cheese is best at room temperature. Let the cheese sit on the counter about 30-45 minutes before serving and you will be fine.

Narrow slices always give you a better taste than thick slices.

Cubes or pieces may look nice and be simple to prepare, but it is worth the effort to thinly slice the cheese.

Like with wine, folks have different tastes when it comes to cheese. If you are having a party don’t assume that your ultimate pairing of wine is cheese is your guest’s perfect match.

Folks tend to pick the cheese off the tray dependent on what cheese they recognise, rather than if it goes with their wine.

So as the host or hostess, it might be useful to label the cheese or you might even put a card on the table to say something similar to try this cheese with..

Again don’t worry about it.

The thrill of wine and cheese pairing is the mix and matching of different cheeses and trying new things.

Instead of troubling too much, I have made a guide for you to make it really simple.

Wine Cheese

Riesling – Gouda

Chardonnay – Asiago

Pinot Noir – Brie

Cabernet Sauvignon – Cheddar

Zinfandel – Parmesan

Shiraz – Sharp cheddar

Remember shiraz is a spicy wine, so a spicy cheese like Monterey Jack or possibly a jalapeno cheese would be a superb choice.

This chart isn't an emphatic. They last pairing really depends upon what sort of cheeses you like and what assortment of wine you like.

Remember, the fun is to experiment to find your perfect pairing. So we salute the power of cheese!

Enjoy your cheese and wine pairings.

Mark Adams is a pro winemaker, author and frequent speaker on wine. He teaches wine classes so helping people learn about wine throguht the United States.


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