Wine and Cheese Pairing #1

I started out this journey by taking Professor Boyer's advice and going to a local wine shop, in this case- the vintage cellar. Upon arriving I asked an employee recommendations for wines that could pair well with cheeses. 

The first wine I got: 


Name: Burgo Viejo

Variety: Rioja

Region: Alfaro

Country: Spain

Year: 2018

Price: $10

My Review: This has been the best red wine I have had! Tannins are low and it's a sweet wine. I am getting fruity/blackberry vibes. My friends- who are not big red wine drinkers- also said that this was a light wine that seemed more drinkable than others they have had.


With Irish Cheddar: This is an ok pairing. The Irish cheddar is a strong flavor which is being paired with a lighter sweeter wine. While this was the first wine I put down on this list- it is the last one I paired stuff with. Looking back- this wine has more tannins than I thought, and they get highlighted with the cheddar flavor.


With Smoked Gouda: I think this is also an ok pairing. The cheese is also sweet and lighter flavored so I expected it to go better, but since the cheese has such a light flavor, it really doesn't seem to "pair" with the also light flavored wine.


With Manchego: This is my favorite pairing with this wine. Manchego was a cheese that my brother recommended that I had never had before- so it is a new flavor, but that does not mean it is super strong flavor- just unique. The cheese is slightly salty and lingers in your mouth longer the gouda. The sweeter wine actually does pair well with this.



Name: H3 Horse Haven Hills

Variety: Merlot

Region: Washington State

Country: USA

Year: 2018

Price: $15


My Review: This was my least favorite wine out of the three. It is the most full bodied wine out of all of them, but still maintains a strong fruity taste. It has the strongest tannins.


Irish Cheddar: The Irish Cheddar really settles down the strong flavor of the merlot. This was one of the first pairing's I tried with the wine and it really made me like the merlot a lot more. By its self- the merlot is not my cup of tea- but with the cheese, that's a whole different story. My friends agreed that the Irish cheddar suits the merlot best because we all thought that the merlot had the strongest flavor.


Smoked Gouda: The Gouda really doesn't bring out much of the flavor in the Merlot. Since it isn't really a salty cheese- it doesn't tone down the strong flavor of the wine- and as a result the wine seems to overpower it a bit.



Manchego: This was my least favorite cheese- and the Merlot paired with it ok. This cheese has the most distinct flavor- and the merlot has the most distinct flavor- so they balance.





Name: Chateau De Varennes

Variety: Ganay

Region: Beaujolais-Villages

Country: France

Year: 2019

Price: $16


My Review: This is the wine that the employee at the store suggested. It is similar to the Rioja in my opinion in that they are both light bodied sweet wines with low tannins. With this I taste slight hints of cherry/blackberry.


Irish Cheddar: I definitely like the merlot pairing with the Irish cheddar better than this. Since this is a sweeter, lighter wine, the sharp Irish cheddar almost overpowers the wine.


Smoked Gouda: I like this pairing a lot better than the Irish cheddar. While I actually prefer the taste of the Irish Cheddar, the lighter sweeter/smokier taste of this cheese blends better with the sweeter wine.


Manchego: I have a similar opinion to this as I do with the gouda. I almost like this pairing better since the Manchego is a strong flavor and the wine helps the flavors of the cheese settle in my mouth. Overall I would say that I still like the gouda pairing better with this.





OVERALL: 

Favorite: Smoked Gouda with Chateau De Varennes

Most Surprised: Merlot and Irish Cheddar. This was the first time I experienced a time where the wine was so much better with food rather than by itself.

Least favorite: Merlot/smoked gouda. The merlot just overpowered the flavor of the cheese.

Friends: they all liked the Chateau De Varennes the best. They all agreed that the merlot was too strong for our rookie wine pallets.

























Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Wine Tasting: Loosen Bros--Rieslings

Image
  Name: Loosen Bros Variety: Riesling Region: Mosel Country: Germany Year: 2020 Price: $15 Winery Review: " Dr. Loosen’s non-estate wine embodies the elegant and racy style of classic Mosel Riesling. It is refreshing and fruity, with a fine mineral edge that is typical of the region. Dr. L Riesling is made with fruit that comes exclusively from traditional vineyards with steep slopes and slate soil. By working closely with local growers on long-term contract, brothers Ernst and Thomas Loosen are able to maintain excellent quality in every vintage. Dr. L Riesling is bottled with a screw cap to avoid cork problems and to preserve freshness" Wine Folly: I thought it was very interesting how wine folly stated that it paired well with spicy Indian cuisine, I have never thought about a pairing like that. As I have learned now from throughout the class, Riesling is Germans big wine. It is dynamic in the fact that it can be very dry or very sweet. Mosel- which is called out by name i
Read more

Wine Tasting: 19 Crimes The Banished

Image
  Name: 19 Crimes The Banished Variety: Blended Wine Region: South Eastern Australia Country: Australia Year: 2018 Price: $20 Winery Review: Full and round on the palate with a distinct sweetness making the wine rich and mouth coating. The dark chocolate and vanilla aromatics compliment subtle flavors  of cloves and cinnamon spice. Wine Folly: This is a blended wine--I can't seem to find the exact grapes that make up this blend, but since it is an Australian red blend, I would take a guess that is a majority Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon since those are the primary grapes grown in southern Australia. I also would take a guess that it is majority shiraz/cabernet sauvignon because of the taste. Wine Folly notes shiraz as having rich dark flavors- like blackberry sauce and fruit cake...this is something I could definitely taste. My Review: I think that majority of why these wines have become so popular is because of the marketing and bottles. Each of the 19 crimes bottles tells a diff
Read more

Tasting: Olney Winery Wild berry Blast

Image
Name: Wildberry Blast Variety: "smooth blush grape" "used with grapes sourced from all over the world" Region: Olney, Maryland Country: USA Year: 2021 Price: $14 Winery Review: "smooth blush grape wine bursting with wild berry flavors, refreshingly sweet with an ATOMIC kick Wine Folly: n/a..no specific listed name on the wine bottle since the grapes come various areas. My Review: The smell closely follows what the wine tastes like...low quality. The smell has a harsh alcohol smell with little hint of any natural flavor. The taste is similar, with berry/artificial flavors dominating any grape that may be in there. Even the color I find to be unnatural, while it tries to imitate the color of a rose blush wine, the taste is completely different. I think this really should be classified as a fortified wine.
Read more