Do you love wine and blue cheese but are unsure if they go well? Worry less, and stop wondering what wine pairs with blue cheese because we’ve covered you! Read on and find out the best wine for blue cheeses.
Best Wines to Pair with Blue Cheese
Pairing wine with blue cheese might be a little bit tricky.
Blue Cheeses and their beautiful blue markings and patterns are known to have a very distinct scent. Thanks to the fungus inside the curd. It not only produces the smell but also artistically forms the marble pattern.
However, the distinctiveness of the blue cheese’s scent varies. Its scent depends on how mild or strong the blue cheeses are.
For mild blue cheeses, a simple fruit wine pairs well with them. At the same time, those blue cheeses with stronger scents and tastes need a specific type of wine.
Here are the best wine and blue cheese pairings you will surely enjoy whether you are dining out, on a date, or at home celebrating life.
Port and Stilton Blue Cheese Wine Pairing
The Stilton Blue Cheese is famed for its pungent smell and taste. These distinct characteristics of the Stilton Blue Cheese earn them the EU Protected Name Certification Trade Mark.
While this type of cheese is produced locally in England, only three counties are allowed to make the Stilton Blue Cheese – Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, and Leicestershire.
The British love this cheese so much that they call it ‘King of Cheese.’ Stilton Blue Cheese is not called ‘King of Cheese’ for nothing.
The strict code or protocol it follows when processing the cow’s pasteurized milk produces a different level of spiciness and relatively dense texture – creamy, crumbly, and smooth. Because of these, it is hard to find a wine that best pairs with Stilton Blue Cheese.
But if there’s one wine that most Sommeliers will recommend to pair it with the Stilton Blue Cheese, it would be Port wine.
Like the Stilton Blue Cheese, the Port wine has distinct and diverse characteristics. Its richness, intensity, aroma, taste, and high alcohol content constitute Portugal’s best wine.
You can pair the Port wine with any blue cheese, though. It’s just that its intensity best matches the intense and strong flavor of the Stilton Blue Cheese. There are two types of this wine that you must know about – vintage ports and tawny ports.
If you want to go with the most popular Port wine for your Stilton Blue Cheese, you must go with the vintage ports. The vintage port wines have a strong yet concentrated taste and aroma that is perfect for overpowering Stilton Blue Cheese.
But, go for tawny ports if you prefer a softer yet rich port wine with a good note combination of nuts and wood. Its softness will indeed highlight the flavors of the Stilton Blue Cheese.
Before you start pairing the Port wines with a Stilton Blue Cheese or any salty and pungent blue cheese you like, here’s a quick tip.
Always choose the sweeter Port wine to pair it with the most pungent-smelling blue cheese.
Bordeaux Blend (Red), Zinfandel and Gorgonzola Blue Cheese
Gorgonzola is an Italian blue cheese with a balanced creamy and sweet flavor. It is made of unskimmed cow’s milk and is produced in Piedmont and Lombardy, Gorgonzola.
The Gorgonzola Blue Cheese has three types: the briefly aged Gorgonzola Bianco, the 60-day-year-old Gorgonzola Dolce, and the 90-day-plus aged Gorgonzola Picante. The Dolce Gorgonzola is sweet, while the Gorgonzola Picante is spicy with a thicker and dryer rind.
The three-month process of producing Italy’s most famous blue cheese yields a great result. Its texture resembles Stilton Blue Cheese – soft and crumbly with a nutty aroma.
But regardless of their ages, this blue cheese’s mild to sharp flavor pairs well with Bordeaux Blend and Zinfandel Blend.
From its name, the Bordeaux Blend is made of the best red wine grapes in Bordeaux, France. These select few red wine grapes are as follows:
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Cabernet Franc
- Merlot
The Bordeaux Blend’s tastes depend on the type of red wine grapes used or where the Bordeaux Blend comes from. It may taste like a sweet and fruity or a bottle of wine with balanced flavor, tannin, acidity, and sweetness.
Sometimes, you may also taste the beautiful fruit flavors in this blend. Flavors such as blackberry, vanilla, and licorice are some of the flavors you may taste.
The Bordeaux Blend’s concentrated flavor and aroma fit well with the spicy blue cheese.
Another blend that works well with blue cheese is the Zinfandel Blend. Its rich flavor and beautiful structure and the herbaceous notes of the blend are perfect for the blue cheese’s distinct taste.
The oak-ness, reigning grape tannins, acidity, and the aromas of the vanilla and coconut notes in a Zinfandel Blend match the blue cheese without overpowering the cheese’s strong flavor.
Sauternes Wines and Roquefort Blue Cheese
The beautiful white Roquefort Blue Cheese and its exceptional sweet taste make it one of the most sought-after blue cheeses. This impressive blue cheese is the grandfather of all blue cheese. Though it is the oldest, its trademark taste still impresses cheese lovers these days.
Its bitter-sweet taste, pungent smell, and creamy texture are attributed to the blue mold, sheep’s milk, and old-style process and manufacturing method.
Because its taste is not similar to most blue cheeses, some are having difficulty finding the best wine that matches the bitter-sweet taste of Roquefort Blue Cheese until they discover Sauternes wines.
Sauternes wines are sweet white dessert wines from Bordeaux, France. Though sweet, the Sauternes wine makers ensure everyone that the wine’s sweetness will not overpower the fruity flavor and spicy aromas of the Sauternes wines.
The balanced flavor and the aroma of the Sauternes wine make it a perfect go-to wine for every Roquefort Blue Cheese lover. The complexity of the wine’s tastes may feature a variety of fruit flavors, including apricot and tropical fruits.
You may also taste some caramel flavor that incorporates the Sauternes wine’s overall flavor, which blends perfectly with the saltiness and bitter-sweet flavor of the Roquefort Blue Cheese.
With all the flavors blending in your palate, the Sauternes wine and the Roquefort Blue Cheese will play melodiously without competing for your taste bud’s validation of which flavor wins.
Cabernet Sauvignon and Danish Blue Cheese
The Danish Blue Cheese is amongst the few new blue cheeses variety that you will find being served in some restaurants. This type of blue cheese is another cow’s milk-based with a maturation period of around 60 to 90 days.
However, what makes the Danish Blue Cheese different from the other cheeses on this list is that it’s a little bit less spicy and salty.
The Danish Blue Cheese was initially made to replicate the best flavors of a Roquefort Blue Cheese, only that its flavors must be slightly lighter than the Roquefort.
Since its flavor is a level or two levels down, the Danish Blue Cheese producers in Denmark still managed to hit the creaminess and the crumbliness of the cheese’s texture.
Its mild flavor is a suitable pair for fruits. But what wine pairs perfectly with this cheese type?
You might be right if you think it’s Sauternes because the Danish Blue Cheese somehow tastes the Roquefort – lightly flavored and aromatic. But the best wine for this cheese is the full-body, highly concentrated red wine grape, Cabernet Sauvignon.
But how does the Cabernet Sauvignon taste with Danish Blue Cheese?
The wine’s flavor immerging from its different ingredients, including black cherry, bell peppers, a few baking spices, and even graphite, does well with the level of spiciness and saltiness of the Danish Blue Cheese.
However, like what they say, “no wine tastes the same,” the Cabernet Sauvignon’s medium to full-body is sometimes not present in other Cabernet Sauvignon wines.
Cabernet Sauvignon may taste a little savory, smoky, or even fruity, depending on how they are made and their ingredients. The Cabernet Sauvignon’s versatility is perfect for the blue cheese’s pungent smell and intricate flavor. It can withstand it without overpowering the taste of the lightly flavored Danish Blue Cheese.
Merlot Wines and Swiss Blue Cheese
Swiss Blue or Bleuchatel, is another grandfather blue cheese that hails from France since the sixth century. It is a dry yet creamy blue cheese. Its texture is soft, and tastes and smells like the typical blue cheese – salty and pungent.
The Swiss blue cheese’s stimulating flavor is compatible with most wines. However, our best pick for the Swiss blue is the Merlot red wine.
Are you wondering what makes it the best fit for the Swiss Blue Cheese?
A bottle of Merlot wine is the underrated version of the mildly sweet and fruity cabernet sauvignon. But, don’t get us wrong. If you find that the Merlot wine is an underdog, consider this. The Merlot wines are one of the most respected wines globally.
The red fruits and tannins of the Merlot are not just its selling point. This dry wine from the Bordeaux region in France and its medium body and fruit flavors make it one of the most celebrated wines. Also, the Merlot wine is perfect for the Bordeaux blend due to its balanced flavor.
Thus, if the Merlot wines can blend flawlessly with both mild and strong wines, there is no reason why they can’t blend perfectly with the Swiss blue. And with its average alcohol content, herbal notes, and dark fruit flavors? You will surely enjoy the Merlot-Swiss Blue Cheese pairing.
Conclusion
Wine-blue cheese pairing is not a complex task. It just sounds complex as both have different characteristics. Here’s a quick tip for what wine pairs with blue cheese, the wine must share the same flavor intensity with the blue cheese.
George Moore, co-founder of Wine Flavor Guru, is a charismatic entrepreneur with a rich background in California’s wine industry. Alongside Sylvia, he transformed a Sonoma County vineyard into a source of premium wines. George’s expertise in sourcing exceptional grapes and his approachable style make wine appreciation both accessible and engaging.