Wine & Cheese Matching at Christmas

Say Cheese...to some surprising wine matches

It’s the time of year for Port and cheese, but although this classic mix can be wonderful, it is not the case for all the cheeses on your festive table.

Luckily, there’s no need to buy a heap of different wines for each cheese on your board – all the wines here can be ‘recycled’ from other parts of the meal – so, you can quite easily stock up on a case of your favourite wine and choose your cheeses  accordingly.

Brie

Brie is one of France’s most popular cheeses and their Brie de Meaux is a national favourite with the local sparkling wine, Champagne.  In the UK we tend to eat Brie a little younger and less runny than the French, so a great pair for this style is either a fruity New World Pinot Noir or even a light, Beaujolais-style red.

J. Lohr’s 'Wildflower' Valdiguie 2013 from California is full of cherry, raspberry and banana – made in the same way as Beaujolais to maximise the forest fruit aromas. It is a fantastic match with the creamy texture of Brie, but also excellent served as an aperitif wine for red drinkers, together with a platter of charcuterie, or with a main course of turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings.

Goats cheese

France’s most famous French goat’s cheese is made in the Loire Valley - the birthplace of Sauvignon Blanc. The acidity in a good goat’s cheese makes it perfect with the local wines like Château Favray’s Pouilly Fumé 2013. Pouilly Fumé is Sancerre’s better value, and often more consistent, neighbour, with all the wonderful smoky minerality you’d expect from Sauvignon Blanc grown on the area’s flinty soils. But if you like your goat’s cheese with a drizzle of honey as they do in Italy, pick a sweeter wine, like those directly below.

Stilton / Blue cheeses

The classic British cheese combo is Port and Stilton, but the French prefer the sweet, honeyed, richness and refreshing bite of Sauternes with their salty blue cheeses. Clos Dady’s Sauternes 2011 comes in a half bottle size, meaning you can have a taste of luxury without the expense of opening a full one: but saying that, a full size bottle will see you through both the cheese and pudding courses!

Mature cheddar

The English love their Cheddar, even if most of it comes from Canada these days. If you buy the real thing this year – like a Montgomery Cheddar from Yeovil – you’ll need something special to complement the nutty flavours of this fine quality cheese. The 2012 Lucky Lizard Chardonnay from d'Arenberg has vibrant nectarine and white peach on the nose with nutty, citrus-mineral undertones. The wine’s crunchy apple acidity and wafts of smoky oak are a must with this robust cheese. What’s more, the wine is great with the turkey feast, so no need to wash out your wine glass after the main meal.