Whether you're planning an intimate gathering or simply exploring new flavour combinations, understanding wine and cheese pairing will transform your tasting experience. Here, our guides at Winery Guys Tours share some wine and cheese options and offer tips for finding your perfect match.
What wines go best with cheese?
Wine and cheese have been enjoyed together for centuries, especially when thoughtfully paired. There are three basics to keep in mind: complementing, contrasting, and balancing. For instance, creamy Brie pairs nicely with crisp Champagne, which helps cut through its richness. Salty Roquefort pairs well with sweet Sauternes, showing how opposites can work together. Meanwhile, nutty aged Gouda goes well with the toasted oak notes in a bold Chardonnay, showing that similar flavours can enhance each other.
Pairing wine and cheese is both an art and a science. There are some helpful guidelines, but your own taste matters most. Soft cheeses usually go well with white wines, while hard, aged cheeses often pair better with reds. Some of the best matches come from trying new and unexpected combinations. But what cheese goes with wine the best?
Classic Wine & Cheese Pairings
Not every wine works with every cheese, so where should you start? Here we go over which wines pair well with different cheeses.
Pinot Noir & Gruyère
The characteristic red berry fruit of Pinot Noir complements the nutty flavours in a medium-firm cheese like Gruyère. Both offer balanced aroma and complexity, avoiding overpowering each other.
Aged Port & Blue Stilton
Port is known for being full-bodied, sweet, and bold. It pairs best with a cheese that has a strong, pungent flavour. Blue Stilton, which is rich, salty, and pungent, goes especially well with an aged, sweeter Port. Remember, the sweeter the wine, the stronger the cheese should be.
Champagne & Brie
Triple-cream cheeses like Brie are rich and need something sharp and acidic to balance them. Champagne, with its bright acidity and bubbles, cuts through Brie’s richness and creates a nice contrast. The brioche notes in traditional sparkling wines also add a bit of toastiness.
Moscato d’Asti & Gorgonzola
Funky cheeses often go well with sweeter wines. Still, lighter options like Moscato d’Asti and other sweet whites can be a refreshing change, especially if you usually pair strong cheeses with heavy wines. The bright, acidic fruit in Moscato d’Asti helps clear your palate after rich cheeses like Gorgonzola, leaving you refreshed.
Sauvignon Blanc & Goat Cheese
Goat cheeses are earthy and tart, but they also act as a blank canvas. This lets the citrus and mineral notes in a French Sauvignon Blanc bring out the cheese's nutty and herbal flavours. The wine’s acidity also balances the richness of the goat cheese.
Cabernet Sauvignon & Aged Cheddar
A big, bold cheese needs a wine that can match it. Aged Cheddar is rich and pairs well with the drying tannins in many Cabernet Sauvignons. Their strong flavours work together, so neither one overpowers the other.
Rosé & Havarti
Rosé has crisp, delicate red fruit flavours, and Havarti’s mellow taste goes well with the wine without taking over. The wine’s steely minerality also contrasts nicely with the cheese’s smooth, soft texture.
Riesling & Raclette
Raclette is a smooth, buttery cheese that pairs well with Riesling’s high acidity and stone fruit flavours. The wine’s aromas bring out a subtle nuttiness in good Raclette. For the best balance, choose a Kabinett or off-dry Riesling.
Chianti & Pecorino
Pecorino and Chianti are a great example of 'grows together, goes together' because both originate in beautiful Tuscany. The firm, aged Pecorino, matches the strong tannins in Chianti. The wine’s savoury notes bring out the cheese’s herbal flavours, and its black fruit stands up to the cheese’s bold taste.
Malbec & Gouda
Aged Gouda’s nutty, caramel flavours bring out the smooth fruit and bold character of Malbec. The cheese’s rich taste and creamy texture match the wine’s deep aromas, making for a balanced and inviting pairing.
How do you pair wine and modern cheese?
Today, wine and cheese fans are trying new things and finding pairings that break the old rules.
Consider pairing a funky washed-rind cheese like Taleggio with an off-dry Riesling. The wine’s slight sweetness softens the cheese’s strong flavour, and its acidity cuts through the richness. It’s an unexpected match that really works.
Pair creamy goat cheese rolled in herbs with an unoaked Sauvignon Blanc for a fresh, lively combo that’s great for warm days. The herbal notes in both the cheese and wine go together naturally and feel modern and bright.
Try aged Gouda with bourbon barrel-aged beer for a pairing that highlights nutty, caramel flavours. Or go for triple-crème cheese with a crisp rosé, where the wine’s acidity and fruit balance the cheese’s rich taste.
Orange wine, which has tannins and complex aromas, goes surprisingly well with aged sheep’s milk cheeses like Pecorino.
Pair sparkling rosé with bloomy-rind cheeses or natural wines with funky, cave-aged cheeses. These modern pairings let you be creative and trust your own taste instead of following strict rules.
Practical Tasting Tips
Tasting wine and cheese together involves engaging all senses and noting how flavours change. Start by tasting the cheese alone to note its texture and initial flavours. Then sip wine, letting it coat your palate, followed by another cheese bite. This way, you’ll notice new flavours that only come from the pairing. Always start with mild cheeses and wines, then move to stronger ones. If you begin with strong blue cheese or bold red wine, it can overpower the other flavours.
Don't forget that temperature matters. Serve white wines chilled 7-12°C (49-55°F), red wines just cool 15-20°C (62-68°F), and let cheeses sit out for an hour before serving to bring out their flavour.
Have water and crackers nearby to cleanse your palate between tastings. Take your time and talk about what you notice. Pairing wine and cheese is just as much about sharing and discovery as it is about flavour.
Hosting a Wine & Cheese Event
Hosting a memorable wine and cheese night is easier than you might think. The main thing is to plan so your guests can relax and explore at their own pace. Start by picking a theme. You could focus on one region, like Tuscany or Bordeaux, try a style like sparkling wines with soft cheeses, or offer a mix that shows off different pairing ideas.
Prepare Your Offerings
Plan on two to three ounces of cheese per person if you’re serving several kinds, and one bottle of wine for every two or three guests. Arrange your cheese board from mild to strong, and give each cheese its own knife to keep flavours separate. Label everything so guests know what they’re tasting and can choose their pairings.
Keep Your Guests Involved
Create an interactive experience by providing simple tasting cards where guests can rate their favourite combinations. Include prompts like 'How did the wine change after tasting the cheese?', 'What wines go best with the cheese?' or 'What unexpected flavours did you discover?' This turns your gathering into an engaging exploration rather than just another party. You might even make it a friendly competition, having everyone vote on their top pairing of the evening.
Encourage Lingering
Consider the flow of your event. Start with lighter pairings and wines, moving to bolder combinations as the evening progresses. Offer plenty of palate cleansers like sliced baguette, fresh fruit, and nuts. Background music and comfortable seating encourage guests to linger and savour each pairing.
The real secret to hosting is your own enthusiasm. Share what you love about each pairing, encourage experimentation, and create an atmosphere where there are no wrong answers. Some guests will discover they love unexpected combinations, while others will gravitate toward classics. That diversity of experience is what makes wine and cheese gatherings so enjoyable and memorable.
Ready to discover your perfect pairing? Book a tour with Winery Guys Tours and unlock a world of delicious possibilities for your next gathering.