Wine & Cheese
Love and marriage, horse and carriage, wine and cheese. O.K., it doesn’t rhyme, but do they ever go together! It’s not surprising when one realizes how similar they are produced.
Here at Atencion, we’ll begin a series of wine and food match ups which, hopefully, will enlighten and entertain the reader.
Wine’s aromas, taste, and appearance are a result of the winemaker’s skill, the wine’s
“terrior” (the wine’s agricultural “birthplace”), and the weather. So it is with cheese with the additional factor of “lifestyle” of the producing animal. Many wine and cheeses start out with a basic “recipe”, and through the skill and artistry of the producer, can spin off many variations.
A few basics first: essentially, there are three types of cheeses. Cheeses made from goat and sheep milk are lower in fat, and cholesterol, contain no gluten, and easier for digestion. Cow milk cheeses, however, are higher in fat, so the flavors can be a richer, and creamier. And, since they are from different animals, the flavors are very different. Flavors of goat and sheep cheeses tend to be stronger, and acidic, with more of a “tangy”, nuttier flavor, which would make them a better partner to full bodied red wines. Also, cheese aromas and flavors increase when given a little room temperature time before eating.
O.K., let’s get to the fun part and pair up some of these delicacies with a glass or two of the good juice. Since there are literally hundreds of cheeses out there to choose from, and since many people have obvious favorite wine and cheese parings, we’ll won’t concentrate on the very well known varieties such as parmesan, Swiss, cheddar, and the like, but focus on the not well known cheeses made by local artisnal producers. These are all natural, without hormones, or additives, just the pasteurized milk and the aging process.
Sooo, the next time you are pulling the cork on a full bodied vino, like the San Lorenzo Tinto, take a bite of a local version of a St. Paulin. Made from cow milk, it is rich, flavorful, and a great counterpoint to the acids of the red wine. Or, as a change of pace, try a Panela, a goat cheese native to Mexico. A very light, fresh, Mediterranean style cheese that marries well with fruitier wines such as Chenin Blanc.
Another flavorful match-up would be some locally made goat cheese. Light, fresh as a daisy aroma, with tangy, slightly puckery, nuttier flavor that would sing if paired with a glass of Pinot Noir. Get a glass of the Monte Xanic Chenin Blanc/Columbard working, and match it with some cow Manchego. It offers a delicately pungent nose, a creamy, chewy texture, and a nice finish. Another great option would be a sheep cheese which is locally made, totally organic, and aged for six months. A moderately pungent nose, leads into a firm body that would marry beautifully with a full bodied Chardonnay.
Totally native to Mexico is Cojita cheese. It’s used almost entirely in Mexican cuisine and only comes from Cojita, in Michoacán. I couldn’t find a wine match-up for this cheese, but its uniqueness and universality in Mexican cuisine, I thought, needed mentioning. Made from cow milk and aged for six months, has a crumbly, feta cheese texture and very salty, tangy flavor. It doesn’t melt well, but rather is used as a garnish on enchiladas, frijoles, tostadas. The next time you have batch of frijoles in a restaurant, and you see the cheese “garnish”, you’ll be eating Cojita.
In the late 19th century, Mennonite missionaries settled in the state of Chihuahua began making cheese, and named it, you guessed it, Chihuahua. Made from cow milk, it has a light, unobtrusive aroma, and melts well. Next time you sit down with a plate of quesadillas, you’re probably dining on Chihuahua. I would pair it with a nice, full bodied Chardonnay from Casa Madero.
At the other end of the smell and taste spectrum is a local version of a Pont Lévesque. Made by Patricia Hernandez, it is the only Pont Lévesque made in Mexico. Big, aromatic, but with a milder, but still full bodied flavor, it is a cow cheese that needs reining in by a “big red”. Pull a cork on a Petit Sirah (not Syrah), a big Zinfandel, or Malbec and it has met its match! Senora Hernandez, who lives locally, is first Mexican to bring French cheese recipes to Mexico!
A special thanks to Mariana Peraza, Senora Hernandez’s daughter, and her partner David Abel of Luna de Queso for their help in researching this article. Luna de Queso offers over seventy cheeses, of which over two dozen are made by local artisanal producers, many of which cannot be obtained elsewhere.
Dick Avery is a free lance writer and head sipper at VinoClubSMA, a wine club devoted to the pleasures of Vino Mexicano. He can be reached at vinoclubsma@gmail.com. Visit the website at www.vinoclubsma.com.
Dick Avery is a free lance writer and head sipper at VinoClubSMA, a wine club devoted to the joys of boutique Mexican wines. He can be reached at vinoclubsma@gmail.com.
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