How to Pair Wine With Cheese: A Beginner's Cheat Sheet
The long-established tradition of wine and cheese pairing didn’t happen by accident. The two developed alongside each other throughout Europe. Vineyards graced the hillsides above fields full of sheep, goats, and cows.
Everything from the quality of sunlight to the regional soil makeup and native flora affects the wine and cheese produced in distinct areas. Today, sommeliers and food experts understand that what grows together, goes together.
Picking the best cheese to have with your favorite glass of wine isn’t all about geographical location or climate, however. The varieties go together because they either complement or contrast deliciously. If you’re a beginner in the world of choosing cheeses and wines to serve together, these recommendations can help you set up a delicious sample to share with guests at your next dinner or party.
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A Quick Primer on Wine and Cheese Pairing
The main goals of any food and drink combinations are complement and contrast. You want options that taste good together, but that can happen for either of those two reasons. Either the wine melds smoothly with the cheese flavor, or one provides a counterweight for the acidity, saltiness, or creaminess inherent in the other. Match the intensity of the flavor so one doesn’t take over the experience of trying both together. Also consider how each feels in your mouth. Drinking wine and eating cheese are textural experiences beyond taste alone.
Even if you don’t understand exactly how tannin levels or aging processes affect things, this foundation can help grow your own tastes over time. Stick with the basics at the start, but feel free to experiment to find your personal favorites.
Pairings By Wine Type – Choosing Cheeses
Start with your own favorite type of wine that you might already have open at home. Whether a crisp white or full-bodied red, it’ll help you develop experience with wine and cheese pairings. You already know you love the drink. Now you can explore exactly why specific cheeses go with it.
If you’re planning for a party or tasting hour, expand to the more common wines readily available in the local shops. You don’t have to spend a lot to create delicious flavors that suit a wide variety of tastes. Add some fruit, chocolate, or charcuterie, and everyone will go home enlightened and happy.
White Wines – Light and Crisp
If you enjoy light wines like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio, you lean toward higher acid, crisp and zesty beverages. Many have citrus and other sour fruit tastes. There are two ways to go when pairing cheeses with these wines.
One option is to stick with an overall refreshing feeling by choosing tangy options like goat cheese. You can also provide contrast by offering fresh mozzarella with a mild flavor. The creamy feel gets cut with the wine’s acid in a way that smooths out the whole experience deliciously. If you’re focused on regional pairings, consider Portugal’s Vinho Verde with a local sheep’s milk cheese.
White Wines – Richer and Fuller Bodied
These white wines are commonly aged in oak barrels, which adds a unique flavor and creates a heavier smoothness to the mouthfeel. Notes of caramel, spice, smoke, or vanilla are common.
Chardonnay is the most commonly known wine in this category. It has a smooth, toasty flavor. White burgundy from that region of France goes well with local Comté, a cow’s milk cheese. They have more fruit-based notes. Both have low acid and heavier, buttery textures, which makes them perfect pairings for creamier cheeses with higher fat contents like brie and gouda.
Red Wines – Lighter and Fruity
Fruity, lightweight reds have fewer tannins, which give you a smooth texture rather than one that creates a dry sensation on the tongue. These are the most delicate of red wines, which makes them ideal accompaniments for softer, creamy cheeses like brie, Camembert, or mild cheddar.
Popular varieties include Pinot Noir, Beaujolais, and Spanish Garnacha. Each has their own unique fruit profiles, with the last including herbals and a touch of pepper. For wine beginners, the subtle differences aren’t as important as the contrast between the wine and the cheese in general.
Red Wines – Bold with Higher Tannins
The strongest, boldest wines available in the common market include Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, and Malbec among other reds. Unlike the options listed above, these have more tannins, which give you that dry sensation. Alongside fruity undertones, you may find chocolate, pepper, or other spicy notes depending on the aging process and barrel material.
No soft, delicate cheeses will hold up to these strong flavors. Instead, choose hard, aged varieties like sharp cheddar, parmesan, and aged gouda. Tuscan chianti goes well with local pecorino. Look for ones with more salt and a crumbling texture. They boast sufficient fat content to balance out the wine’s dryness, but they’re not creamy in a way that will get overpowered.
Sparkling Wines – Bubbles and High Acidity
The classic pairing for sparkling wines is Camembert cheese. This creamy, soft, and delicately flavored cheese contrasts with the zing of bubbles nicely. Champagne and Prosecco are both light, bubbly, and lively on the tongue. You need a delicate cheese to prevent overpowering the subtle flavors. If you’re going for contrast, a nutty Gruyère works well. Just don’t reach for anything with too much salt or funk like blue cheeses.
Sweet Dessert Wines – Sugary and Rich
The sweeter the wine, the saltier the cheese. Why? They both have bold flavors, so focusing on contrast works better than trying to meld the two together into a matching experience. Save that for chocolate. Pair port and ice wine with cheeses that offer the most contrast. Stilton, from England, and Roquefort, which goes perfectly with Sauternes from the same region of France, offer a sharper, salty experience you may also get from an aged cheddar if you’re not fond of blue cheese.
Whether you want to take a world tour of wine and cheese pairings, host a tasting party for your friends, or simply discover a new treat, this beginner’s guide can help. Contrast or complement varieties to build your personal list of favorites over time.
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