If you like food and wine, you must be familiar with cheese. The charming color of the cheese, the rich aroma, no one can resist its temptation.
Like wine, chocolate and coffee, cheese is a veritable terroir. Different origins, varieties, processes and maturities can make them change into different taste textures and fine flavors, which are loved by gourmets.
Let's take a look at what the charm of this cuisine is, and what kind of spark it can make with wine.
▲ Furlon Wine Industry / Furlon Wine Academy
The "gold" in dairy products
Cheese, also known as cheese, cheese, cheese, cheese, etc., is a fermented dairy product made from animal milk such as cow's milk and goat's milk.
Historically, cheese is a very old food, and people have been making cheese as early as 3000 BC.
Each kilogram of cheese needs to be concentrated from 10 kilograms of milk, which is easily absorbed by the body due to the retention of rich protein, fat, calcium, vitamins and other nutrients.
For this reason, cheese is also known as the "gold of dairy products".
What are the common cheeses?
There are too many types of cheese to count, and there are more than 8,000 kinds in the world. Therefore, we have selected 5 representative cheese varieties on the market and briefly introduced them to you.
1. Mozzarella
As a pizza staple, your first impression of mozzarella is certainly its unique brushed texture. The raw material of mozzarella is buffalo milk, which has a fat content of three times higher than ordinary milk, making the final taste more fat and powerful
Mozzarella is used in pizza and lasagna, but is also classic as a starter to accompany raw tomatoes and basil leaves.
2. Mascarpone
Mascarpone is a type of fresh cheese with a smooth texture, a sweet taste and a rich milky taste. Because it has more water and fat, its storage time is very short, and it needs to be eaten as soon as possible.
Mascarpone can be used directly as a snack or served with biscuits, fruit, and is also suitable for desserts such as tiramisu or cheesecake.
3. Blue Mould
Blue cheeses have a highly recognizable marbling pattern or blue spot and are internally matured for 3-6 months with the help of penicillium. After the fat and protein are broken down, they gradually produce a spicy, salty taste and creamy texture.
Roquefort, Gorgonzola and Stilton are the world's three most famous blue cheeses. But because the flavor is so special, not everyone can accept it.
4. Cheddar Cheddar
Cheddar is one of the most famous cheese varieties in the world, and its name comes from the sixteenth-century English origin of Cedarshire. The color is white or golden, the taste is delicate and soft, and it is generally chewy. The taste will vary depending on the length of time it takes to mature, with some slightly sweet (9 months) and some having a heavier taste (24 months).
The cheddar melts easily and can be cut into small pieces to stir in salads or sandwiched in burgers or sandwiches.
5. Parmesan Parmesan
Parmesan is a hard cheese, the cheese with the least moisture and the longest maturity, usually taking one to two years. Its recipe has barely changed in seven hundred years and has been known as the "King of Cheese".
Its granular texture is perfect for grinding into cheese powder and sprinkling on salads or pasta. Because of its umami taste, in addition to mixing salads, boiling pasta and rice stew, it can also be used to make soup and green sauce.
A guide to matching cheese and wine
As the saying goes, France has two treasures, one is wine and the other is cheese. Since ancient times, the French have called the combination of food and wine "Marriage", which shows that the two are a match made in heaven.
When wine meets cheese, it will collide with a richer and more wonderful taste.
In general, the pairing of wine and cheese follows two basic rules.
Fresh, soft cheeses are best paired with fruity, soft-tasting wines such as Champagne, Chardonnay, Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc.
Cheeses with a long maturity and a harder texture are suitable for pairing them with stronger flavors and heavier wines, such as Red Wines such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah from Bordeaux, France or a single Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah.
In addition, the more salty cheese should be paired with wines with higher sweetness, and cheese with more than 30% fat content should be paired with wines with higher acidity. You can't go wrong with a wine that's also produced locally to pair with cheese.
Spicy and pungent cheeses, such as blue cheese, can be paired with sweet wines such as Sauternes, Icewine, Port and Sherry.
Of course, the pairing of wine and cheese is not limited to this. Everyone has different preferences, find their own most suitable taste, that is, your exclusive combination.
Cheese is like the lover of wine, and the collision of two foods is destined to make people harvest a beautiful taste experience.
This article is edited by Fulong Wine Academy Fulong Wine, winning in the profession!