Check out best pairings to celebrate wine and cheese day 2024

The national wine and cheese day was founded in 2014 by freelance writer and wine lover Jace Shoemaker-Galloway. 

Today is a perfect opportunity to eat some of your favourite wine and cheese combinations or to try something new. 

Cheese is one of the most misunderstood foods when it comes to matching with wine, said the Wine Society. 

Cheese connoisseur Terry Kirby shared his advice on what wine to match with each kind of cheese. 

Wine and cheese pairings 

The Wine Society expert said that hard cow’s cheese, which has rich, nutty flavours, needs to be paired with appropriately robust, full red wines, otherwise, the cheese will dominate. 

He added: “Try any syrah-based southern Rhône, such as Château Courac, or perhaps a silkier Barossa shiraz of similar age. The latter, or maybe a big Barolo, would go equally well with an aged Parmesan.  

“A crumbly, lactic, sharper Lancashire cheese, such as Mrs Appleby’s, needs a fruitier, but well-structured wine. A good Beaujolais is ideal, like those from Morgon.” 

Mr Kirby advises that dry, salty cheeses with a long aftertaste are best with the big red wines or full-bodied oaky whites, such as an Australian chardonnay.  

However, go for a Valpolicella with younger, milder Italian Pecorino, any medium-bodied, tempranillo-based wine for Spanish Manchego or the wonderful, smoothly nutty Ossau-Iraty from the French Pyrenees. 

He added: “Farmhouse Gruyère and other French semi-hard cheeses like Comté or English ones like Cornish Yarg can be wonderful with pinot noir, or white wines, particularly those with good acidity, such as a riesling, which cuts through the cheese’s fatty nature. Try zippy Loire sauvignon or New Zealand rieslings.” 

Mr Kirby said that blue cheeses such as stilton, roquefort and gorgonzola represent “a pinnacle of cheeses”.  

Strong, creamy, salty and pungent, they demand big, structured wines to match their deep, complex tastes.  

“Although some will reach for Claret, fine Bordeaux may be too elegant to compete. A perfect combination is a good fruity vintage Port or a drier tawny Colheita, particularly with a bowl of nuts.  

“Sauternes delivers the classic sweet/salt combination. Dark, tannic red wines from the south of France, such as Corbières, Madiran or Cahors, also make a fine match for the local Roquefort, tempering the ‘sheepy’ richness,” the expert added. 

Mr Kirby also said that mature goat’s cheese, where crisp, dry whites can slice, razor-like, through the sometimes cloying texture, can defeat red wine.  

“With chèvre salad or the ash-covered Crottin de Chavignol and walnut bread, try a full-bodied white Rhône blend or Rhône-style blend from South Africa.  

“Experiment too with a southern hemisphere chardonnay, such as Heggies Chardonnay, its acidity balancing that of the cheese,” he concluded. 

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