Wine and Cheese Tasting #1

First Wine and Cheese Pairing!

February 16, 2022

This week my friend Gabi and I paired 3 different wines with 3 different cheeses for a night of fun!

Sauvignon Blanc paired with Baked Brie topped with Garlic, Rosemary, and Honey

Tasting the wine alone:
Aromas: citrus aroma, specifically lemon; no secondary or tertiary aromas
Light, acidic, and dry
Low levels of tannins
Sour finish
According to the Wine Folly textbook, sauvignon blanc from New Zealand has ripe pear and kiwi flavors, which I was able to pick up on.

Tasting the wine with the cheese:
The cheese brought out the pear flavor of the wine. Drinking the wine before the cheese made the cheese taste better because it brought out the sweet flavors of the brie and honey.

Cabernet Sauvignon paired with Spring Green Colby Jack

Tasting the wine alone:

Aromas: the primary aromas were dark berry and cherry, the secondary aroma is cured meat, and the tertiary aroma is oak aged.

It is dry, high in tannins because of the salivation after drinking it, and has a salty finish

Tasting the wine with the cheese:

When you eat the cheese and then drink the wine, it makes the wine taste much sweeter. I loved this pairing!! The saltiness of the cheese brings out the fruit flavors of the wine and cuts out the saltiness, making it it lighter and less dry. When you drink the wine first and then the cheese, the cheese had a fattier, creamier texture.

Merlot paired with Manchego

Tasting the wine alone:

Aromas: the primary aroma is red fruit, specifically cherry. The secondary aroma is mushroom, and the tertiary aromas are cola and vanilla.

This wine had a low acidity and was high in tannins, but not as high as the cabernet sauvignon.

Full bodied with a perfumed finish

Tasting the wine with the cheese:

Eating the cheese first and then drinking the wine made the wine have a completely different finish. It was more sweet and mellow, and almost completely got rid of the saltiness. Drinking the wine first and then eating the cheese made the cheese have more of a fatty, buttery texture. I liked this because the cheese was very dry.