We already know wine and cheese is the best duo out there with the acidity of the wine and fattiness of the cheese there is no greater pair. So, what happens when one of the ingredients of the cheese is wine?
When cheese is dipped, marinated, brined, soaked, or washed in wine, the rind and other exposed areas take on the wine’s flavors, color, and aromas. You can also find some cheeses that are directly injected with wine into the cheese’s interior creating colorful veins like a purple-red marble. This not only enhances the flavor of the cheese but also extends its shelf life. The wine tempers the growth of bacteria, because of its alcohol content.
How do you pair wine cheese with more wine?
In general, salty foods go well with high acidic wines and fatty foods pair well with tannic wines. In addition, foods that come from one area usually go well with wines that come from the same region. That being said, there’s no harm in trying odd pairings, you’ll never know what you end up loving.
To help you understand which wine-infused cheeses pair well with which wines, below are some examples that you can purchase today.
Santori Bellavitano Merlot Cheese
You can purchase this cheese at Target for $6.99.
This is a creamy cheese with berries and plum notes. It’s made from cow’s milk in Wisconsin and is soaked in Merlot. We suggest pairing this cheese with a fruity red wine to enhance the ‘berries and cream’ flavor.
Purple Moon Cheese
You can purchase this cheese at iGourmet for $9.99.
Purple Moon Cheese is a wine-soaked cheddar combining Fiscalini’s Farmhouse Cheddar with a Petite Sirah creating a subtly nutty, sweet cheese. We suggest pairing this cheese with a Zinfandel to balance the Petite Sirah.
Belton Farms Port Wine Derby Cheese
You can purchase this cheese at iGourmet for $9.99.
This is a smooth, creamy cheese marbled with a delicate Port infusion. Through the marbling, this Derby cheese has real blackcurrant undertones. We suggest pairing this cheese with a dry white wine and Belton Farms has the great suggestion of grating this cheese over pasta.
The Drunken Goat Semi-Soft Goat Cheese
You can purchase this cheese from Target for $8.99.
This semi-soft pasteurized goat cheese from Spain’s Mediterranean coast is marinated for 48-72 hours in Doble Pasta red wine. The interior remains sweet and smooth while the rind adds a mild fruity flavor. We suggest pairing this cheese with a light tannin and ample fruit Pinot Noir.
La Casearia Carpenedo Blu 61 Cheese
You can purchase this cheese from iGourmet for $22.49.
This is a soft Italian blue cheese washed in sweet Passito wine and covered in cranberries creating notes of raisins, currants, licorice, and vanilla which offsets the bold bite of blue cheese. We suggest pairing this cheese with a tawny Port where the strong flavors can complement each other.
Whatever cheese and wine pairing you choose you can always enhance the taste of the wine you’re drinking with one of Aervana’s Instant Wine Aerators.