Wine and Cheese Tasting #1

With my limited experience in the world of wine tasting, a wine and cheese tasting was definitely something I had never done before. It was something I had always heard of doing, but nothing I ever had any desire to do, it was definitely an experience which resulted in red wine being spilled on the carpet (due to a cheap bottle opener) and a broken wine glass. Now to the wine and cheeses!



Pairing 1- Asiago Cheese and Resonata Nero D'Avola

Cheese- It was a hard cheese, smelled a little bit like Parmesan to me. It fell apart in my mouth and had a dry and smoky taste, and resulted in a good tasting cheese.

Wine- This was a wine that we had at a wine tasting earlier in the year. Definitely had a medium body and mouthfeel, with a strong taste and smell of cherries. Tasted okay to me.

Pairing- The tasted kind of clashed to me, didn't seem to accentuate the flavors in the wine or cheese, or bring out anything new. Tasted the same to me as when I tried them by themselves.

Pairing 2- Havarti Cheese and Lindeman's Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

Cheese- It was a softer cheese than the first one was, very creamy and reminded me of mozzarella in its taste and smell.

The clean up

Wine- Smelled of oak in some dark fruits, the taste included some oak and plums. The finish was extremely dry.

Pairing- The wine definitely seemed to bring out even more creaminess in the already creamy cheese, while the cheese brought out the cherry flavoring in the wine. No new tastes though.

Pairing 3- Gouda Cheese and Oak Leaf Vineyards Pinot Grigio

No more glass for you

Cheese- It was a softer cheese again, and had a lightly sharp aroma, but really not much in the flavor.

Wine- Had a pineapple and pear aroma with some pear in the taste but there was an alcohol burn in the aftertaste that wasn't pleasant.

Pairing- The wine definitely made the cheese sharper, what was a hardly noticeable sharpness before was much more present. The cheese also seemed to take some of the alcohol bite out of the aftertaste, but I didn't recognize any new flavors.