Cheese is already delicious on its own but there are ways to make it better. Pairing cheeses is the art of combining different kinds with crackers, nuts, fruits, meats or anything else that improves the eating and creates new, unimaginable tastes.
A good start is to use the main characteristics of the cheese to find matching tastes. Mild goes with mild, and strong with strong. Nutty notes work well together, while fruity cheeses best match with fruits and crackers.
How to Pair Cheese with Food and Drink
Still, contrast also works. Combinations of sweet with salty or sweet with spicy are very good. The goal is to find things that complete or contrast the taste without overpowering the cheese.
For instance, strong cheeses match well with sweet things like honey or fruits to balance the bold tastes.
Tastes and textures can reflect each other or contrast to create balance. Surprising combinations work when you find subtle sweetness in both items, where one gives acid and complex taste, while the other brings toasty aroma and crunchy texture.
Local pairings are a wise choice. Tuscan cheese matches well with Italian items, such as wines and meats. Mature Manchego from Spain is excellent with jamón serrano.
Manchego with quince paste is a classic and simple choice. French Brie and French wine is an obviuos combination. Spanish cheeses love jamón Ibérico and Manzanilla olives.
The delicious Époisses from Burgundy can be well matched by fruity Pinot Noir from the same region.
Nuts and seeds are an excellent choice. A traditional combination is blue cheese with walnuts and pears. Apples and cheddar is another classic pair.
Honey is excellent when you pour it over soft cheeses, but it works for almost every kind. Sour apple, like Honeycrisp, with sharp cheddar is classic. Triple cream Brie with pepper jelly is another good idea.
Blue cheese perfectly works with honey, or with sour cherries and Honeycrisp apples. Cheddar cheese on apple pie is a special treat from Wisconsin.
The mild, but buttery and nutty taste of Brie matches well with salami, prosciutto, pickles, apricots, apples, pears, dates, almonds, candied walnuts and pecans. Blue cheese, feta and other strongly flavored cheeses seem better alone or matched with something very mild.
White wine is a good place to start to study pairings because it is very versatile. Bolder red wines, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Malbec, match well with mature, strong cheeses like cheddar or parmesan. As for beer, it is best to match the intensity of the cheese with the intensity of the beer.
For very mature and bold cheeses, look for more rugged beer styles. Mild blue cheeses go with brown ale or wheat beer, while intense blue cheeses like Roquefort match well with robust ales.
Spring is the season when sheep and goats have babies. Sheep and goat cheeses reach their peak of production and quality then. Try matching ash-ripened goat cheeses with spring vegetables such as cucumber, arugula and sweetpeas.