My first ever wine and cheese pairing was a fun and interesting experience for me. I have gotten a cheese board at a winery before, but I didn’t focus on how the flavors complement one another. At first, I wasn’t sure whether to eat the cheese first, then drink the wine -- or vice versa. I tried both methods but decided to try the cheese first, chew a bit, and then try the wine. This method worked very well for me and I was able to fully capture the flavors from both the wine and cheese. To pick out the cheeses, my friend and I went to Eats Natural foods and picked the cheeses that intrigued us most since we wanted to try something different. From there, we used winefolly.com to figure out which wines would pair well with the cheeses that we chose.
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Yellow - Norweigan Jarlsberg
White - Cablanca
Yellow w/ brown seeds: Somerdale Red Dragon Cheddar |
Name: Schmitt Söhne Riesling
Variety: Riesling, Silvaner, Miller-Thurgau, and Kerner
Region: Rhone Valley
Country: Germany
Year: 2017
Price: $5.99
Shop/Wine Critic Review: “Whiffs of saffron and pollen lend a savory tone to this
medium-sweet wine. It's easy-drinking yet vibrant, with notes of orange peel,
lemon and dusty minerality. Racy acidity offers levity on the finish” (Wine Mag).
My Review:During my initial tasting, this Riesling was light, refreshing, and great for the price! This wine was crisp with hints of honey and a lime finish. This Riesling was perfect because it wasn’t too dry nor too sweet -- it was a nice in-between. Pairing Riesling with the Norwegian Jarlsburg was a good match because they complimented each other really well. As for the cheese, the Norwegian Jarlsburg is a nice swiss that was semi-hard, sharp, and creamy. The Jarlsburg paired with the Riesling was a delicious combination because both really pulled out the flavors in each. For the wine, the lime flavor really expressed itself and the sweetness was mellowed when paired with the cheese. As for the cheese, it became creamier once it came into contact with the sweet and bold wine. I don’t believe that either overpowered one another, but rather they worked together to create a wonderful and tasteful combination. I really enjoyed the Riesling, however, I don’t think I would purchase the cheese again. It was too rubbery without the wine paired with it.
Name: Beringer White Zinfandel Moscato
Variety: 85% White Zinfandel and 15% Moscato
Region: California
Country: United States
Year: Non-Vintage
Price: $5.99
Shop/Wine Critic Review: “Beringer White Zinfandel Moscato has crafted award-winning
wines and this White Zinfandel Moscato is no exception. This wine is crisp and refreshing
with enticing floral notes, mouth-watering fruit flavors, and moderately sweet palate.
For a more indulgent side of White Zinfandel, enjoy this dual varietal medley on its own
or as the perfect complement to a meal” (Wine Chateau).
My Review: I was pleasantly surprised with this White Zinfandel Moscato because it was semi-sweet, packed with flavor, yet very cheap. The flavors that came forward were honey, strawberry, cherry, and a small hint of tannins which resembled a sour apple taste. This wine was interesting because it’s labeled as semi-dry on the back of the bottle, however, I thought it was quite the opposite. For this wine, my friend and I chose to pair it with a Somerdale Red Dragon Cheddar. This cheese was definitely my favorite amongst the three because despite being stinky, it was so flavorful! The cheese was creamy with flavors of mustard and honey, plus texture was added through mustard seeds. This cheese, paired with the Zinfandel Moscato was very good and they both compliment each other well. The cheese definitely cut the sweetness of the wine and brought out more acidity. As for the cheese, it mellowed out the mustard flavor and made it more mild. I think they complimented each other well and I would definitely buy both of these items again.
Name: Lindeman’s Pinot Noir
Variety: Pinot Noir
Region: South Eastern
Country: Australia
Year: 2017
Price: $4.99
Shop/Wine Critic Review: “A good, value-priced New World-style Pinot. Raspberry
and cherry flavors are framed by faint caramel, while on the nose, cherry
and plum notes dominate. Not complicated, but solid” (Wine Mag).
My Review: This pairing was definitely my least favorite out of the three. The wine, Lindeman’s Pinot Noir, was awful and It was hard to do the tasting. The smell included flavors of cherry, tobacco, oak, chocolate, dark licorice. When I tasted it, the wine was high in tannins and all I could taste was an oak flavor. The Cablanca cheese was very good and I’m kind of sad that I wasted it on this awful wine. It was recommended by the seller that we leave the cheese out for an hour or so and that’s what we did. The Cablanca cheese was creamy, sharp and slightly helped out the wine. The cheese made the wine less dry, sort of cut the tannins, but didn’t add any good flavors to it. The wine didn’t add any type of flavor to the cheese because it was so bad. I think these two did not compliment each other well and I wish I had picked another wine. I’m definitely willing to try Pinot Noir again because I think the cheapness of the wine affected the quality.
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| Cassie and the Inquisitor |
My friend/roommate, Cassie, that I did the tasting with.
We had a good time trying these new wines and cheeses together!
Name: Beringer Dry Rosé
