A Gift of Wine and Cheese
Nothing complements a bottle of wine like some robust, flavorful cheese. It is possible to buy a wine and cheese gift basket, but for that personal touch, why not try adding some cheese to the wine gift you select yourself for the wine lover in your life?Finding the Perfect Cheese for Your Wine GiftThere are well established guidelines for pairing wines with cheeses. Wine and cheese have gone together since time immemorial (the Ancient Greeks actually grated cheese directly into their wine goblets, though it is doubtful that there would be much of a market for feta flavored retsina nowadays!), and so gourmets and connoisseurs have thousands of years of experience to draw from. Port and Stilton is probably the best known pairing of wine and cheese. Port, a fortified wine from Portugal's Duoro Valley, is a sweet dessert wine, and its sweetness complements the strong, salty flavor of the Stilton blue cheese. So well established is the Port and Stilton pairing that there are several recipes based around it. There are Port and Stilton sauces, Port and Stilton pâtés – even, at one time, Port and Stilton potato chips, courtesy of Kettle Chips, though these have now been discontinued, and appear to have only been available in the United Kingdom.Shiraz wines go well with cheeses that have nutty flavors such as Dubliner (from Ireland), and Cabecou Feuille, a goat cheese from the Midi-Pyrenées region of France.Merlot complements creamy, washed rind white cheeses like Mozzarella (or, even better, Buffalo Mozzarella) and Pont L'Eveque.General Rules for Creating Wine and Cheese GiftsOf course, it is easy to go on listing specific examples (and if you would like to see more, the website winefetch.com is an excellent source), but what are the general principles behind the pairings of these wine and cheese gifts?Soft cheeses like cottage cheese and Ricotta retain more of their moisture than harder cheeses, as they have a higher whey content. They are best paired with light white or rosé wines such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Noir.Blue cheeses have a sharp, tangy taste that is best complemented by a red dessert wine. We have already mentioned Port and Stilton, but you could also try a red Zinfandel or a Cabernet Sauvignon. Mild semi-soft cheeses like Muenster or Monterey Jack should be paired with a fruity white wine like a Riesling or a Chenin Blanc.For a hard cheese such as Provolone or the various Swiss cheeses, select a crisp white wine like a Pinot Grigio and for extra hard grating cheeses, like Parmesan or Romano, go for a full bodied red wine. Parmesan and Chianti is the ultimate combination for Italian food lovers, but may not be the best choice of wine and cheese gift, as the Parmesan needs refrigeration, while the Chianti, being a red wine, is best served at room temperature.With a basic understanding of these principles, and a little imagination, selecting the perfect wine and cheese gift should come naturally.
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