Wine & Artisan Cheeses
Episode #106
Karen
MacNeil goes bi-coastal in search of the perfect marriage of wine and artisanal
cheeses. In Northern California, she visits Bellwether Farms to
sample their hand-made cheeses. And in New York she stops by the
Artisanal Cheese Center and its companion restaurant, the Artisanal Fromagerie
and
Bistro, to pair wines with a variety of special cheeses. 
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In this episode, we learned three principles for pairing wine and cheese. First, complements. Pair spicy cheeses with spicy wines or fruity cheeses with fruity wines. For example, our Sancerre, the French sauvignon blanc, was the perfect compliment to our French hand-made cheese. They both came from the same area, and they both shared a tangy, chalky, grassy flavor.
Second, go for contrast. Salty cheeses with sweet wines, for example, or fatty cheeses with crisp wines. The bright acidity in our dry German Riesling, for instance, was a fantastic contrast to the Pierre Robert, a rich, buttery, triple crème cow’s milk cheese.
And finally, there’s balance. Pair powerful cheeses with powerful wines. Our big bossy Zinfandel stood up to an equally intense aged gouda, creating a perfect balance. So there you have it: complements, contrasts, and balance. Three relationships to look for when pairing wine and cheese.
There are some conventional wine terms that are really important to know because they allow you to remember wine more easily and give you a vocabulary when you’re talking to your local wine merchant. The top three words to know are body, acidity, and tannin. Body is the weight of the wine in your mouth. One way to remember body is to think about skim milk, whole milk, and cream. A light-bodied wine is like skim milk; a full-bodied wine feels like cream. Acidity is what makes wine lively, vivacious and refreshing. Zing is a good thing when it comes to wine, and in fact, wines that don’t have enough acidity usually taste pretty boring, dull, and flat. And then there’s tannin. Tannin tastes a little bitter, like an espresso, and it’s what gives wine its majestic structure. It also helps wine age. So remember body, acidity and tannin: three words no wine lover should be without.
Bellwether Farms
http://www.bellwethercheese.comArtisanal Cheese Center
http://www.artisanalcheese.comReal California Cheese (California Milk Advisory Board)
http://www.realcaliforniacheese.com
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