What To Do When You Want To Meet People: Throw a Cheese and Wine Tasting

I just moved to a new neighborhood, and I have to admit, I have been pretty depressed. Working from home isn’t what it’s cracked up to be, and I needed to meet people. So I joined the social committee. My first initiative? Cheese, of course. I convinced my neighbors that we should do a cheese and wine tasting. To be honest, it wasn’t that hard to convince them, considering we’re all heavy drinkers in the ‘hood. My husband wanted to do a cognac tasting, because all he drinks is Hennessy. While I admired the thought, all I could imagine was the older people in my community slurring words and falling asleep in public places like my husband does. Not a good look.  Instead, we decided to do wine and cheese.

A few tips if you want to do this in your own neighborhood:

1. We pre-made all of the plates with 1/2 ounce of each cheese. Any more than 8 cheeses is a bit much.
2. I put together a checklist for people to keep track of what they liked and didn’t like — this makes it easy for people to remember what they liked, especially after 8 glasses of wine. I also put a note at the bottom letting them know the pricing and where we got each of the cheeses and wines. Here is a generic Wine and Cheese Tasting Form that you can use, too.
3. We chose to be a little less formal — everyone was standing. This works well if you have one small plate for the cheeses, and places around the room to rest things.
4. We took a little break in between wines, so people could mingle and talk, and be social. It worked well, getting people talking about the wines and cheeses.
5. We used one wine glass, but provided a dump bucket and pitchers of water for people to wash out glasses. (Most people were licking the bottom of the glass, but this way you have an option if people don’t love what they got.) Be sure you encourage people to rinse their glasses between the white and red wine sections, and definitely before the dessert wine.
6. My neighbors, who picked out the wine, bought pourers that automatically cut off after 1 ounce. This was essential to make sure no one over-poured, and everyone got a taste. We planned for 1 ounce per person per wine. After about 20 people, you need to bump up to a second bottle.
7. You want to tell everyone to taste the wine first, then the cheese, and then them both together. They need to know what they like/don’t like about the pairing.
8. Pairings are about your own tastes — just because you like something doesn’t mean other people will.
9. Just a note on the pairings below — usually you taste from the lightest and freshest cheese to the most aged/pungent cheese. I skipped around so that the cheeses meshed with the wines. The wines were the star of this story. It’s a little non-traditional, but it worked well.

Here are our pairings, and some of my notes.

PAIRING 1

Riondo Prosecco (NV, Italy) with St. Andre (Cow, France, 4 weeks)

Why this works: Both the wine and the cheese are light in texture. Almost fluffy. The bubbles in the wine cut the fat in the cheese, cleaning your palette after the fat in the cheese coats your tongue.

PAIRING 2

Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand) with Humboldt Fog (goat, California, 3 months)

Why this works: Acidic  wine + Acidic cheese = mellow flavor. The tartness in the cheese offsets the acidity in the Sauvignon Blanc.

PAIRING 3

Columbia Crest Grand Estates Chardonnay (2009, California) with Camembert (cow, France, 3 weeks)

Why this works: Chardonnay can be hard to pair because of its has oaky flavors. This is especially true of Chardonnays from California. Camembert is a strong cheese that can stand up to it. Chardonnay is aged in oak, and Camembert is aged in caves with straw. The earthiness in both mesh well together.

PAIRING 4

Woop Woop Shiraz (2010, Australia) with Parmigiano-Reggiano (cow, Italy, 24 months)

Why this works: Shiraz is known for being fruity and a little rustic. When I think of rustic cheeses, I think of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Shiraz has some of those spicy and peppery and fruit flavors which pair well with the saltiness of the cheese. The combination of a lighter red wine and the Parmigiano is a classic one in Italy. It just works.

PAIRING 5

Deloach Pinot Noir (2009, California) with Gruyere (cow, Switzerland, 16 months)

 Why this works: Pinot Noir is a great lighter wine that melds with a lot of flavors. Pinot Noir is very fruit forward, and works well with the nuttiness and sweetness of the cheese. The Gruyere has a smooth mouthfeel and a little creaminess, so it makes those tannins disappear.

PAIRING 6

Bogle Old Vines Zinfandel (2009, California) with Gouda (cow, Holland, 3 years)

Why this works: Zinfandel is a little dry, but has jammy blackberry and plummy fruit. When you combine the two, the sweetness of the gouda and the fruit in the Zinfandel reminds me of a berry tart. The gouda has a little crunch as well, so the texture reminds you of toffee.

PAIRING 7

Beaulieu Vineyards Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (2007, California) with Munster (cow, France, 8 weeks)

Why this works: Cabernet is a big red wine, and this is a big stinky cheese. Cabs have leather, woody flavors, and this cheese is very “barnyardy” and rustic. The smoothness of this cheese also helps to calm down the tannins.

PAIRING 8

Kafer Riesling Berenauslele (NV, Gemany) with Valdeón (cow, goat, Spain, 3 months)

Why this works: Dessert wines are sweet, and the flavor opposite of sweet is salty. Salt is used in the preparation of this cheese, and the balance of these two is great. Valdeon is not as spicy as other blues, and Riesling isn’t as heavy as most dessert wines. The pairing is delicious.

Want some help putting together your own party? Need more notes or talking points on the cheeses or the wines? Contact me at: dana@casacheesewine.com.

Enjoy!

~ Dana

How to Identify Cheeses

Hint: this aint it...

Cheeses are split into different categories. As we walk through the types of cheese, you will learn to identify them easier. Many of the things that cheeses have in common make them easier to recognize and guess how a cheese will taste. It makes you seem so much smarter when talking about cheese. And beyond that, it helps you to really understand what kinds of cheeses you like. Do you despise sheep’s milk cheeses because you can’t stand the smell of wool sweaters in your cheese (or, as Christina says, the smell of a barnyard)? Or love, love, love bloomy rind cheeses, because of how runny they can get? Knowing how to identify these things will help you to identify your faves in the future.

Here are some general characteristics:

1. Milk Type:

Raw/Pasteurized: So when you think of pasteurization, you think of drinking milk, safety, killing of bacteria, etc. But for cheeses, that’s not always good. The natural bacteria in milk can help develop a flavor profile that is quite interesting. Cheese made of milk aged less than 60 days isn’t allowed to be imported into the US. So real brie (Brie de Meaux) isn’t allowed to be sold here. If someone told you they’ve had it here, the real deal, they’re lying. Pasteurization also kills nuances in milk, so the starting point is pretty much the same. You won’t be able to detect differences in season or fields. This could be good if you are looking for a cheese that is always the same. But not so good if you are looking for some type of variation and a changing flavor profile.

Sheep’s Milk: This is the fattiest milk. These cheeses tend to “glisten” with fat after they sit out a little while. These cheeses can have a sheep-y, barnyard, lanolin smell, so you can usually recognize them by their odor. The color is pure white. Random fact you should know? Sheep don’t produce a lot of milk. But what they do produce is closer to the state of cheese, so technically it takes less sheep’s milk to make cheese.  One famous sheep’s milk cheese? Roquefort.

Cow: This is one of the most common milks used, because cows produce so much milk. It can range from white-ish to ivory. The ivory characteristic is due to the ability of cows to extract beta carotene from the plants they eat.  Unlike sheep’s milk, cow’s milk has the most liquid per solids. So it takes a lot of cow’s milk to make the same amount of sheep’s milk.  Famous cow’s milk cheese? Pierre Robert.

Goat: This milk is pure white because goats don’t absorb beta carotene, which tints the color of milk. This milk has a recognizably tangy taste, especially in fresh goat cheese. Most people think of goat cheese as only the fresh chèvre, but there are so many, many more aged versions. Famous Goat Cheese? Selles-sur-Cher.

2. Style of Cheese:

Fresh/Soft: They have no real “rind.” These are cheeses that should be consumed sooner rather than later. They are not aged, and have higher liquid content (whey) Examples: chèvre (fresh goat cheese), ricotta, mascarpone

Semi-Soft: Usually rindless, with a little less moisture than the fresh/soft cheeses. Examples: Montery Jack, Colby

Soft-Ripened Cheese (a.k.a Bloomy Rind): These have a white moldy rind on the outside. The penicillium candidum mold is responsible for this, and it can be incorporated inside the cheese, as well as on the outside, by being mixed into the paste, or sprayed on the surface. Examples: Pierre Robert or Brie type cheese. This category also includes double and triple crèmes, where extra butterfat is added into the cheese to make it creamier. Yum. It’s like butta baby….

Washed rind: A.K.A. Stinky Cheeses:  They stink. Literally. They are typically washed in some sort of salt and bacteria mixture to prevent molds from growing on their outsides. In doing this, however, it encourages brevibacterium linens (b.linens bacteria), which can produce some very fragrant aromas. Their bark is usually worse than their bite, in that the taste can be quite mild. These cheeses were the specialty of monks, who cared for these cheeses while abstaining from meat. Interestingly, these cheeses can smell a lot like meat. Those monks, smarter than they looked. Examples: Tallegio, Grayson.

Semi-Hard: These cheeses have less moisture than semi-soft cheese. Many times the curds are cooked, salted or cheddared to remove even more moisture (whey). They are typically aged for longer to take even more moisture out of the cheese. These can tend to be more salty, and deliciously nutty. Examples: Gruyère, Swiss

Hard: These are aged even longer than the semi-hard cheeses listed above. They can tend to be well, hard. They are usually crumbly, because there is so little moisture left in them. Ever tasted that crystalline crunch in a cheese? That caramel-y flavor? Sign of crystallized proteins in the cheese. Examples: Aged Gouda, Ricotta Salata, Parmagiano-Reggiano

Blue: OK, duh, they have blue or green molds growing in them (Penicillium Roqueforti molds). This isn’t a type of rind, per se, but more a type of cheese. Blue cheese can have rinds, like in the case of Valençay, or none, like Maytag. Examples: Roquefort, Maytag, Valdeón

Side Note: Natural rinds are rinds that are aged without assistance from washing, foil or other aids.

3. Age:

Cheeses can be aged from a few days to years. Flavors change over time, and texture can indicate a lot about age. The younger a cheese, the more water it contains, so the more soft and moist it will be. The more aged a cheese becomes, the more likely the nutty, caramel flavors are to come out.

These factors should serve as a guide to recognizing your cheese. Kind of like “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints,” but without the crazy subway scene (That’s my train, by the way!!). And unfortunately, without Channing Tatum as well….

~Dana

Review: Bin 36, Chicago

Bin 36 Chicago

So I went to Chicago in search of cheese. Okay, not true, but once I saw the cheese list at Bin 36 I was mystified and made it my job to find this place. Over 45 cheeses, and a delightful set of wine and cheese flights. Done deal.

They had so many wine and cheese flights that we didn’t feel like reading through them all, and many of the cheese flights didn’t work with wine flights very well. So a friend and I decided we’d create our own cheese flights based on the wines we liked. We went with the bubbles.

The “Bubble” Flight included: 1) NV Brut Gruner Veltliner, Szigeti, Neusidersee, Austria 2) NV Brut Blanc de Noirs, Gruet Winery, Albuquerque, New Mexico 3) NV Brut Chenin Blanc, Tabernero, Peru and 4) NV Rose, Varichon Et Clerc, Savoie, France.

We selected a Pierre Robert, a Robiola Tre Latte, and a Gorgonzola Dolce. All of the cheeses were super creamy, so the bubbles cut the fat from the cheese – just kind of cleaned our palettes. The Pierre Robert, the calm thing it is, meshed well with everything. The Robiola Tre Latte was a little different, with the sharp taste of the goat cheese in it not being a total hit with all of the wines.

Then we decided to do the Sexy Reds wine flight.