Wine Cheese Tasting!

This past weekend I decided to do a wine and cheese tasting! As someone who does not eat dairy regularly, I was excited to try cheeses and pair them with wines which I have been enjoying drinking (with the help of a dairy relief pill). The three cheeses my friend and I chose were: aged parmesan, mild cheddar and pepper jack cheese. The three wines we paired was a strawberry watermelon wine, sweet apple wine and a Chardonnay. 

 

Hungry Run: Strawberry Watermelon 

Variety: Cataba - Year: 2021 - Region: CA, USA - Price: $15

This wine was not up my ally. Extremely sweet, that masked any other flavors. Light pink in color but tastes most similar to a white wine, with vegetal flavors and a slight dryness to it. Was so sweet it was hard to have more then just a sip at once. The only cheese that this wine paired well with with pepper jack. The spiciness of the cheese and the sweetness of the wine complimented each other due to the opposite flavors they balanced each other out well. Since the parmesan was very rich and tangy, it did not pair the best with this wine because the sweetness masked the flavors and did not blend too well. 

Hawstone Hollow: Sweet Apple Wine 

Variety: Apple - Year: 2021 - Region: PA, USA - Price: $14

This wine was probably one of the grossest wines I have ever put in my mouth. I think that the wine actually spoiled because it smelt like baby food and tasted extremely foul. After the first sip it was hard to even continue to try the wine with the cheeses, but because of the horrible flavors of this wine, it did not pair well with any of the cheese. My best guess as to why this wine tastes so foul is probably due to oxidation. Although the reviews of this wine describe it as "locally sourced apples, blend of 4 different types. No spice. Perfectly sweetened and crisp, like biting into an apple." It would have been great to taste these flavors, but this wine was definitely spoiled by the time my friend and I opened it. 

Chardonnay 

Winking Owl - Variety: Chardonnay - Year: 2022 - Region: Ca, USA 

This wine is always so delicious. I have always enjoyed drinking wines from this brand and I am a big fan of chardonnay. Flavors are full of ripe apple and pear and toasted oak. I really preferred this wine with all of the cheeses, I think that the subtle flavors of this wine which were not too overpowering paired well with each cheese, especially cheddar because that was my favorite cheese. Since this wine was not too sweet it was very refreshing pairing with the dryness of the crackers and the flavors of each cheese! Would pair again! 

My friend and I were able to determine that out of the 3 wines we chose to pair with this wine, that the chardonnay has the highest amount of body. According to page 14 of Wine Folly, the higher body is due to the tannin cunt and more depth in flavor!