What’s needed for the perfect cheese and wine night?

I love hosting dinner parties, it’s an excuse to get together with friends, as well as a chance to try out a few new recipes.

Lately I’ve exhausted a lot of my classic dishes so I’ve decided to mix things up a little and try holding a cheese and wine evening – a bit posh I know but should be fun!

The trick with getting this theme just right is knowing what ingredients to pair with what drinks.

Melanie Reeve, senior wine expert at Vinopolis, claims that cheese and wine make a great pair, with lighter, creamier cheeses more going particularly well with white wines.

According to Ms Reeve red wines can often leave the mouth a little drier, meaning they are difficult to match up with cheese. Although she explained the key to successful pairing “is to try and balance the heaviness of the cheese and the body of the wine”.

She went on to recommend some of her favourite pairings which I really can’t wait to try out this weekend.

The first is creamy goat’s cheese paired with a chilled white Sauvignon Blanc, as “the chalky, creamy texture of the cheese is really suited to the contrasting grassy fruitiness of the wine”.

If you prefer a saltier cheese, such as a blue sheep’s cheese like Roquefort, then the expert advises that a rich and sweet dessert wine like Muscat could be the perfect partner.

Ms Reeve went on to say that she’d never rule out a pairing, although some do work better than others.

I find that brie and red wine always seems like a top idea, although it tends to put me and my husband to sleep as it’s so heavy!

Why not try something a little different, like sparkling wine with Grana Padano or mature cheddar cheese with peated whisky?

What’s your favourite combination?

Posted by Margo Hunter