6 Best Wine Pairings For Cheddar Cheese

It’s said that there’s no other pairing in the world that works well like wine and cheese. The two complement each other like, well, wine and cheese. However, this timeless food and beverage combination has evolved from an ordinary pleasure to a culinary culture over time. You can even attend classes on how to pair wine and cheese these days.

Even though it’s an old tradition dating back years, placing cheese and wine alongside each another can be a complicated and intimidating endeavor. A perfect union of flavors will surely be a delightful encounter if you do it correctly. You need to consider every piece of detail in the pairing to make that happen.

The good news is that you can enjoy wine and cheese with minimal effort. The combination is ideal for any occasion, from casual picnics and nibbles to cocktail parties and soirees. It’s a relief for people to stick with tried-and-tested cheese and wine pairings in hosting parties and other gatherings.

Different Cheddar And Wine Pairings You Should Try Out

If you’re new to cheese and wine pairing, you can consider beginning with a specific cheese to match your wines for a cheeseboard. Cheddar cheese, in particular, is nutty and cold and with the right hint of sweetness. When aged, cheddar can get saltier, sharper, and crumbly, making it the perfect pairing for wine.

The best wine to pair with cheddar, as with other cheeses, depends on how mature it is. A mild to medium block cheddar will be much easier to match than an aged clothbound cheddar that’s already been aging for 18 months or more.

Ready to start pairing wine and cheddar cheese like a pro? Here are some of the best wine varieties you can include in your list:

Syrah/Shiraz With Tobacco Notes

Tobacco notes are assumed to be a distinctive feature of particular grapes and the wines crafted from them. Still, they can also be influenced by oak barrels which add a tobacco-like and spicy complexity to the final wine product. Because of its tobacco notes, Shiraz is the ideal wine varietal for smoked and aged cheddar cheese.

The savory flavors of aged cheddar cheese are pretty concentrated. That’s why you need to carefully pick wines to pair with it that are as intense and relatively dry. Syrah works perfectly in this combination because it has flavors of herbs and dark fruits and the like.

You can consider black charcoal cheese for this particular pairing. Since charcoal cheddar cheese is infused with edible activated charcoal, it possesses an earthy and smoky taste that’s perfect to work with your Shiraz bottle. What’s more, the black color of this cheese adds an exotic and fashionable look to your cheeseboard.

Cabernet Sauvignon

A Cabernet Sauvignon that’s dry red features understated hints of dark fruits and herbs, making it the perfect varietal to bring out the strong flavors of extra sharp cheddar. Cabernet Sauvignon pairs perfectly with other strong cheeses, particularly salty and firm ones.

A heavier, bolder cheese like cheddar requires a wine that can lift it, twist it around, and not get overwhelmed in the process. The fattiness of aged Cheddar pairs beautifully with the mouth-drying tannins found in most Cabernet Sauvignons. Besides that, their bold flavors will complement each other rather than drown out the other.

Champagne

It’d definitely take very little space to list what isn’t good to pair with Champagne because this bubbly wine goes well with a wide variety of foods. White wines, in general, pair better with more foods than red wines. Of course, reds are great with food, but they’re more focused. Whites, particularly drier ones, have less sugar and more acidity. There are also bubbles, which function as palate cleansers in the same way that a swig of mineral water or club soda would.

If you’re like most people, you’ll toast the New Year with a glass of Champagne. In general, Champagne, or sparkling wine, has long been the toast of choice for special occasions. Of course, no sparkling celebration is ever complete without cheese. This favorite sparkling wine option oftentimes has a medium body and has different dryness ranges.

Apple flavors and toasty citrus are typical in Champagne, and with its bubbly fizz, this kind of wine tastes well with close-textured hard cheeses, such as cheddar.

Riesling

If you could only pour one wine to go with a plate of multiple cheeses, Riesling would be a good choice. It pairs well with a wide range of cheeses due to its well-balanced sweetness, acidity, mineral notes, and tropical fruits.

Riesling is an off-dry, light-bodied white wine with peach blossom and stone fruit flavors. When paired with powerful cheeses like cheddar, the wine’s sweetness and acidity complement the cheese’s stimulating qualities. Try pairing semi-dry Riesling with medium-aged and semi-hard cheddar cheese to balance the intense flavors.

Pinot Noir

If you love the boldness of Vermont sharp cheddar, consider pairing it with a wine with earthy notes like Pinot Noir. Cheddar lovers enjoy pairing Vermont cheddar with sweet and tart fruits like pears and apples, softening it in dips and sauces, or using it as the centerpiece of a fabulous cheese and crackers platter.

Pinot Noir is a light to medium-bodied red wine with dry characteristics and ripe red fruit flavors. It also goes well with a nutty, medium-firm cheese like Gruyere. This earthy and strawberry-flavored wine is usually a good choice for pairing with both cheese and charcuterie.

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is a chameleon, which makes deciding on a Chardonnay pairing an exciting task. Like a versatile character performer, Chardonnay can take on a variety of roles. One bottle may be clean, crisp, and light-bodied, while the next may be oaky, rich, and full-bodied. When selecting cheese for a chardonnay pairing, consider the wine’s oak content.

Chardonnays aged in oak complement sharp cheddar cheese’s bold and sophisticated flavors. This pairing brings out the fruitiness of the wine and the mellowness of the cheese. Nevertheless, you can also pair it easily with parmesan, baby Swiss, brick, asiago, and alpine-style cheeses.

Conclusion
With the suggestions mentioned above, you should be able to come up with cheddar cheese and wine pairings easily. Whether hosting a dinner party or just having wine and cheese at home after a tiring day at work, try to include at least one of these pairings. They’re not only delicious, but they may even change your mind about what to have for dessert.