Looking for the perfect match? A good wine and a good cheese can enhance the flavours and complexities of each other. Select a wine that complements the flavours in your favourite cheese.
If you have a special bottle, pick a cheese to match.
Don’t know which cheese to buy?
You can bet there’s a wine out there for every cheese. In general, white wine tends to work better with cheese, as the high acidity of the wine breaks down the fat. However, there are red wines that can work well with mature cheeses.
You’ll notice some pairings repeat so you can mix and match with ease for your next party.
There are numerous studies finding the strong flavour of cheese accentuates the dominant flavours in wine. Interestingly, researches show your wine palate becomes more sensitive when combining cheese and wine so you will be able to detect more lovely flavours in the wine.
But in order to get this heightened taste sensation, you need to pair the two right.
Here is my guide to pairing the perfect cheese with your delicious wine with the most popular wines and cheeses pairings!
- Off-Dry Wines pair well with Spicy Cheeses
- Light Bodied Wines pair well with Light Cheeses
- Full Bodied Wines pair well with Heavier Cheeses
Sparkling Wine
Sparkling wine is the ultimate wine to enjoy with cheese, as its carbonation helps break down the coating of butterfat that cheese leaves on the palate, reducing clashes and leaving a clean taste in the mouth.
The bubbly exuberance effervescence and ample acidity and toasty, nutty flavours complement most cheeses, ranging from fresh to aged. Sparkling wine works well with mild or spicy cheeses but is versatile enough to be used for any cheese.
The tradition claims that sparkling wines pair beautifully with fatty and creamy cheese, when the wine acidity balances the dense texture of the cheese.
Cava
AKA: Cava Rosado – Cordon Negro – Codorniu – Spanish sparkling wine – Champán – Champaña*
Notes: but by agreement with the European Union it should not be called Spanish Champagne
Spanish Cava is a fine refreshing sparkling wine with amply and bright scents of citrus and apples. It matches well with soft and creamy Fresh Chèvre (goat). This is a versatile beverage which enhances perfectly the flavours of meat, fish and pastas as well.
Cheese Pairings:
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Dry:
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Off dry:
|
Sweet:
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Characteristics:
| Body | Acidity | Sweetness | Tannins | |
| Brut Nature | light | dry | dry – no added sugar < 3 g/l | low |
| Extra Brut | light | high | dry < 6 g/l | low |
| Brut | light | high | dry <15 g/l | low |
| Extra Seco/Extra Dry | medium | medium | off dry 12-20 g/l | low |
| Seco/Dry | medium | medium | semi-sweet 17-35 g/l | low |
| Semi Seco/Semi Dry | medium | medium | semi-sweet 33-50 g/l | low |
| Dulce/Sweet | full | perceived as low | sweet > 50 g/l | low |
Champagne / Rosé Champagne
Notes: To be called Champagne, the wine must be from the Champagne region of France
Notes: Champagne usually medium-bodied and varies from dry to off-dry and sweet. Though being the most popular sparkling wine type worldwide, officially it is produced only in the Champagne region of France. This is a complex drink with a wide diversity of floral or fruity odours and tastes, usually it has toasty citrus and apple flavours.
Champagnes shine with Brie, Camembert and soft Fresh Chèvre (goat) cheeses, as well as greatly accompany any meal.
The bubbly exuberance of champagne complements just about any cheese.
Cheese Pairings:
Dry:
|
Off dry:
|
Sweet:
|
Characteristics:
| Body | Acidity | Sweetness | Tannins | |
| Brut Nature | light | dry | dry – no added sugar 0-3 g/l | low |
| Extra Brut | light | high | dry 0-6 g/l | low |
| Brut | light | high | dry 0-12 g/l | low |
| Extra Sec/Extra Dry | medium | medium | off-dry 12-17 g/l | low |
| Sec/Dry | medium | medium | semi-sweet 17-35 g/l | low |
| Semi Sec/Semi-Dry | medium | medium | semi-sweet 33-50 g/l | low |
| Doux/Sweet | full | perceived as low | sweet > 50 g/l | low |
Prosecco 
AKA: Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene – Prosecco di Conegliano – Prosecco di Valdobbiadene – Cartizz – Glera
Notes: Proseccos, lightly fruity white sparkling wine originating from Italy, differ in sweetness, but they all feature light citrus and floral flavours, and coarse bubbles.
Prosecco pairs with soft cheeses such as Fontina, Fresh Mozzarella, Ricotta, including the cheeses soaked in the Prosecco wine itself, like Ubriaco. With its cleansing fresh qualities this is a fine wine to have at the beginning of the party.
Prosecco is also Asiago and Parmesan/Parmigiano classic Pairing, the bubbles in Prosecco cut through the saltiness of those hard cheeses. Plus, they’re all Italian!
Cheese Pairings:
Dry:
|
Off dry:
|
Sweet:
|
Characteristics:
| Body | Acidity | Sweetness | Tannins | |
| Dry | light | high | dry | low |
| Off Dry | light | medium | off dry | low |
| Semi-Sweet | medium | medium | semi-sweet | low |
Sparkling Reds / Rosé
AKA: Rosé Champagne – Sparkling Rosé – Blush Sparkling – Blush Prosecco – Cava Rosé – Sparkling Rosé Moscato – Brachetto d’ Acqui – Lambrusco – Sparkling Rosé Shiraz(Syrah) – Sparkling Rosé Malbec
Notes: Sparkling red and rosé wines as a group have quite a range of styles.
Cheese Pairings:
Dry rosé:
|
Off dry rosé or light red :
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Full-bodied sparkling red:
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Semi-sweet red:
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Sparkling White Wines
AKA: Blanc de Blanc – Blanc de Noir – Cava – Champagne – Sparkling moscato – Sparkling wine – California sparkling wine – Sparkling riesling – Cremant – Prosecco – Spumante – Francicorta – Vinho Verde
Notes: European countries such as France (Champagne, Cremant), Italy (Prosecco), Germany (Sekt), Spain (Cava) have trademarked names for their sparkling wines whereas most of the new world wine producers do not. They just call their wines “Sparkling” and their location such as California, New York, Australia, Chile, Argentina etc. These wines can be made by the traditional Champagne method or several different techniques such as the Charmat or tank method, the transfer method or simply by adding carbon dioxide with machine carbonation. The longer a wine is left on its lees (dead yeast cells) the more toasty and bready the taste becomes and the finer the bubbles appear in the wine.
Cheese Pairings:
Dry:
|
Off dry:
|
Sweet:
|
Characteristics:
| Body | Acidity | Sweetness | Tannins | |
| Brut Nature | light | dry | dry – no added sugar 0-3 g/l | low |
| Extra Brut | light | high | dry <6 g/l | low |
| Brut | light | high | dry <12 g/l | low |
| Extra Sec/Extra Dry | medium | medium | off-dry 12-17 g/l | low |
| Sec/Dry | medium | medium | semi-sweet 17-35 g/l | low |
| Semi Sec/Semi-Dry | medium | medium | semi-sweet 33-50 g/l | low |
| Doux/Sweet | full | perceived as low | sweet > 50 g/l | low |
Pairing a wine with a cheese that comes from the same region is usually a fair bet.
Note: I get really excited about cheese and wine, so it’s difficult for me to be brief when there is so much wonderful information to share!
Also check:
- A Complete Guide to Plan an Unforgettable Wine & Cheese Party
- The cheese
- ***Soft Cheese – Fresh – Cow’s milk cheese
- ***Soft Cheese – Fresh – Goat’s milk cheese
- ***Stretched Curd and Brined
- ***Soft and Brined
- ***Soft-ripened and Bloomy-rind – Cow’s milk cheese
- ***Soft Ripened and Bloomy-rind – Cow’s milk cheese – Double/Triple-crème cheeses
- ***Soft-ripened and Bloomy-rind – Goat’s milk cheese
- ***Semi-soft and Brined
- ***Semi-soft – Mild Cow’s milk cheese
- ***Semi-soft – Mild Sheep’s milk
- ***Semi-soft – Swiss or Swiss style
- ***Washed Rind (soft or semi-soft/Semi-hard Cheese/Medium-aged Cheeses)
- ***Aged – Cow’s milk cheese
- ***Hard – sheep’s milk cheese
- ***Hard – Grana
- ***Blue cheeses
- What to serve with the cheese and wine?
- Cheese and Wine Pairing
- ***Classic Cheese and Wine Pairing Chart
- ***Classic Wine and Cheese Pairing – Sparkling Wine
- ***Classic Wine and Cheese Pairing – White Wine
- ***Classic Wine and Cheese Pairing – White Wine
- ***Classic Wine and Cheese Pairing – Rosé Wine
- ***Classic Wine and Cheese Pairing – Red Wine
- ***Classic Wine and Cheese Pairing – Dessert Wine
- Non-alcoholic alternatives
- How much to buy?
- How to set the table?
- Chronogram & Preparation
***In Development, please keep checking.
Reference: Content and images based on information from: https://www.wikipedia.org/ https://cheese.com https://www.cookipedia.co.uk
https://culturecheesemag.com https://www.gourmetsleuth.com https://winefolly.com/ https://www.tasteatlas.com https://www.wine.com/ https://winemonger.com https://www.terroir-france.com/
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It’s great to know that while Proseccos, a mildly fruity white sparkling wine from Italy, vary in sweetness, they all have coarse bubbles and a faint citrus and floral flavor. My sister adores procession events. I’ll purchase a flavor-infused prosecco for her as a birthday present.