How to pair wine with cheese... it's all about salt and acidity

Get the match right and it can be heavenly, says our wine columnist Tom Forrest
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Tom Forrest4 November 2015

Two words that are gloriously interlinked. Not just in the form of a retro 70s party theme but as products that work in harmony when consumed together. Why do cheese and wine work so well together? Well, they do share common beginnings. Both cheese and wine are products of fermentation - wine with the help of yeast and cheese with the aid of bacteria. Not only do they share this common beginning, they also share levels of acidity and some flavours. Get the match right and it can be heavenly.

If we look at levels of acidity first, probably the most acidic cheese is a young goat’s cheese. Take a nibble and straight away you find that fresh lemon yoghurt tang of acidity which fills the mouth. This high level of acidity doesn’t need to be softened but the wine that you choose to match needs to have a matching level of acidity. If you visit the vineyards of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé in the Loire valley you will find small Alpine goats running through the vines. Because they make goat’s cheese in the area, the Sauvignon Blanc wines of the region have developed in a fresh, acidic manner that suits the cheese.

I’ve gone for a cracking Sancerre for my choice. The Joseph Mellot ‘La Franchotte’ Sancerre 2014 (£14.00) from Waitrose is a classic Sancerre wine. Full of the crisp flavours of gooseberries, minerals and a gob smacking dose of lemon zest gives enough zing on the finish to make any goat’s cheese jump up and take notice.

One of the reasons that cheese and wine parties were so popular in the 1970s was because of the types of cheeses and wines that were available at the time. Nowadays the processed cheddar cheese would be labelled as ‘mousetrap’ cheese and the wines would be a pretty rough affair from some part of central Europe. The reason that these would work so well together is down to the salt content of the cheese. Salt has a peculiar effect on tannins in wine. It makes them appear softer and more fruity. You could say that the cheese made the wine more palatable! Nowadays the quality of the cheese and wines available to us has shot up out of recognition, but the effect of salt on wine tannins remains the same.

A traditional Camembert or Brie de Meaux cheese with their white penicillin mould growing on the surface will contain less salt than say a mature farmhouse cheddar cheese, but there is still enough to show this effect. These soft cheeses also contain flavours of mushroom and autumnal leaves when fully mature. These cheeses don’t come from a wine producing area (they are produced in the North of France where grapes won’t ripen) but they do match the flavour profile of mature Pinot Noir wines.

I could have gone for a red Burgundy wine but I have instead looked further east in France to a region that is almost not in France. In fact for many years it wasn’t. Alsace lies right on the border with Germany and so the cultures of both countries influence the region. The east facing slopes of the Vosges Mountains act as a giant sun trap and allow red grapes to ripen even this far north. Well, really I mean one red grape variety and that is the Pinot Noir, which is only about 10 per cent of the total production of the area. Hugel Classic Pinot Noir 2012 (£15.99) has the young flavours of cherry and strawberry but with a mushroomy, smoky woodland note that works with the cheese without overpowering it.

Finally the one of the strongest flavoured cheeses around, Blue cheese. These cheeses tend to be very salty due to the relatively long maturation needed to develop the blue veining. Traditionally cheeses like stilton would be served with Port wine with its strong fruity flavours, high alcohol and sweetness to balance the salty, creamy richness of the cheese. But I don’t think that you have to go that far. Roquefort is a sheep’s cheese that is cave-matured in the South of France. It develops a spicy, peppery edge to the creamy, saltiness that is more obvious as the cheese melts on the tongue. This melting texture and salty, peppery note does mean that a sweet wine will be the best match because of the texture of the wine and the balancing sweetness. But which wine?

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Traditionally, Sauternes would be served but nowadays there are many fine sweet white wines produced around the world. You probably can’t get much further away from Bordeaux in France than Nelson in the South Island of New Zealand, but the Seifried Estate ‘Sweet Agnes’ Riesling 2014 (£14.99 half bottle) is a late harvested wine (some of the grapes resemble raisins when picked) which displays intense concentration of fruit flavours.

Mandarin and candied peel flavours with an attractive natural acidity on the finish complement the salty notes of the blue cheese and the luscious sweet texture matches the melting sensation of the creamy cheese.

So think about the salt and acid levels in your selected cheese before you select your wines to accompany them. And remember as is often quoted from the ‘Life of Brian’ “Blessed are the Cheesemakers!” and enjoy the food trinity that is ‘du pain, du vin, du fromage!’

Tom Forrest is the Head Sommelier at Vinopolis. Follow him on Twitter @VinopolisTom

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