Cheese Research (Click To Zoom)
Today at LaDomestique, I’ve got a couple of cheese and drink pairings for you. In the spirit of a week spent on Colorado goat cheese, I stayed local and chose beer and wine made in Colorado. I hope this encourages you to go out and discover pairings to go with your favorite cheeses. Despite what others may say, there are no rules to perfect pairings. One of my great passions is the magic that happens when I discover a beautiful food and wine (or beer) pairing. A Chef I worked with once said, “A good pairing is when you can’t tell where the food ends and the wine begins”. A few suggestions to help you on your journey:
- What grows together goes together
Food and drink produced in the same area share the same terroir, or sense of place. The Loire Valley in France is home to crisp, refreshing Sauvignon Blanc wines that pair beautifully with the local goat cheese. Look for opportunities to pair ingredients in your local area.
- Balance
Being well balanced is a revered quality in food and wine. No one component is overwhelming and all flavors can be appreciated by the palate. Kind of like people- it’s generally easier to be friends with someone who is well balanced. In the world of flavor creaminess is balanced by acidity, saltiness is balanced by sweetness, etc. Seek balance in your cheese and wine pairings.
- Opposites Attract
This is similar to balance. If the cheese is pungent, try a fortified, sweet wine. A rich, buttery cheese can pair well with a crisp, acidic white.
- Samesies
You can seek out a complimentary pairing where there is harmony between the cheese and wine. The lemony flavor of chèvre is enhanced by an acidic white wine. Each ingredient gets along well. Today I paired a strong, pungent cheese with a full bodied, intensely hoppy beer. It works.
That’s all you need to know to go forth and start pairing. Try new things and develop your palate. Bon appetit!
Mojo India Pale Ale with Haystack Mountain Red Cloud
Mojo IPA With Haystack Red Cloud
The Cheese
Washed rind goat cheese with a smooth, semi-soft texture. This cheese is not joking around. The aroma is pungent and aggressive, and it slaps you in the face. If you stick around and give it another whiff, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by nutty undertones. A taste reveals a salty, funky, and acidic cheese with complex flavor that stays with you.
The Pairing
A cheese with so much personality needs an equally strong partner, so I decided to go with beer. I was looking for a fruity beer with plenty of flavor, and Chris, the wine department manager at Superior Liquor, guided me towards the Mojo India Pale Ale. This full flavored, somewhat bitter, malt infused beer is made by Boulder Beer Company. It definitely has the citrus I was looking for and the flavor is bold enough to stand up to the cheese. Today it’s pouring rain and I’ve got a fire going- perfect for this rugged and satisfying pairing of beer and cheese.
The Brewery
According to their site, Boulder Beer Company is “Colorado’s First Microbrewery”. It was founded in 1979 by three physics professors at the University of Colorado at Boulder and originally operated in a goat shack on a local farm. The brewery definitely has a laid back “Boulder” attitude, a sense of humor, and hippie style. Where else but Boulder, Colorado do you find a dry-hopped ale named “Hazed and Infused”?
Guy Drew Vineyards 2009 Viognier with Haystack Peak
Guy Drew Vineyards 2009 Viognier With HayStack Peak
The Cheese
A pyramid-shaped, soft-ripened goat cheese made by Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy. The bloomy rind is musty and earthy, while the soft interior is luxurious, elegant, yet tangy and complex. I’m a big fan of this cheese. As it ages from the outside in, the flavor of mushrooms comes through with a hint of honey. Haystack Peak is intruiging, complex, and addictive.
The Pairing
I wanted a wine to match the sophistication of the cheese- something floral and maybe a hint of residual sugar. Chris at Superior Liquor guided me towards Guy Drew Vineyards Viognier. According to Chris the warm, sunny days and chilly nights of Colorado climate paired with high altitude create a good environment for growing Viognier. The grapes can ripen fully while still maintaining good acidity. Guy Drew Vineyards Viognier tastes of tropical fruit, honeysuckle, and spice balanced with good structure and acidity. There’s nothing cloying about this wine and though it tastes of honey, it has no residual sugar. Guy Drew Vineyards has made a Viognier that is a true expression of the grape: perfumed, full bodied, and complex with spice. In other words, it’s lovely.
The Winery
While many Colorado wineries plant their vineyards in Grand Junction on the western slope, Guy Drew chose a site near Cortez in the bottom southwest corner of Colorado. The vines are situated in McElmo Canyon on the Colorado Plateau west of the Rocky Mountains. Ancient Pueblo People had a trade route through the area, and vines grow amongst Anasazi ruins. The owners, Guy and Ruth Drew, are committed to working with archaeologists to preserve the heritage left behind. The arrowhead on their wine label pays homage to the native Americans who worked the land many years ago. Talk about terroir!
It’s been a fun week of cheese and wine here at LaDomestique. Thanks for reading and have a fantastic weekend! Maybe you’ll discover a new local cheese or wine?
