Wine and Cheese Tastings

Wine and cheese go hand in hand – and for good reason, too! When experimenting with various wine and cheese combinations through a planned tasting, one can start to detect the palate influence of a precise cheese on a particular wine.

For example, an old trick to help a “lower end” Cabernet Sauvignon straighten up and act like a “sophisticated Cab” is to serve it with a crumble of blue cheese. The blue cheese coats the mouth and lays a foundation that softens a young, often astringent Cab.

To test this effect, sip the Cab (prior to tasting the blue cheese), take a nibble of the blue cheese and sip the Cab again – wahlah…you’ve got yourself a “new” Cab! If you could use a few suggestions for what other wine and cheese pairings to try, then check out the Wine and Cheese Pairing guide here.

For this style of tasting you will want your guest to sample a wine from the flight and then introduce the appropriate cheese pairing and have them reassess the wine’s qualities in light of the subtle flavor changes.

Here’s a sample wine and cheese pairing: Gewurztraminer & Swiss; Riesling & Gouda; Chardonnay & Baked Brie