Wine and Cheese Pairing Chart

This is not, by any means, a comprehensive listing of all the wine and cheese pairings there are in the world. However, the below chart is a great starting point for wine and cheese enthusiasts. Most of the information comes from this chart on Gourmet Sleuth, in addition to the type of cheese it is (cow, goat, sheep, etc).

Why does wine and cheese taste so amazing together? It's said that the fat content of cheese is a perfect match to the acidity of wine, and smooths over any "faults" that may be in your glass of vino. I refer you to this article by LiveScience - it's a great primer on why certain foods just seem to go together.

Cheese and Charcuterie Board at Bin 228 Gastropub

The other night I had an amazing cheese and charcuterie board at Bin 228 with my boyfriend. The cheeses were: gouda and manchego, with coppa and prosciutto, cornichons and grilled bread. I paired it with a 2015 Riesling by Chateau Montelena (yes, that Chateau Montelena). It was perfection. The wine was dry, slightly acidic, but still fruity with hints of lemon. It also paired perfectly with the decadent truffled fonduta we ordered after (not pictured). Next time I'll have to try a Spanish red with the Manchego.... you know what they say, "What grows together, goes together."

Happy eating!

Cheese	Country	Type	Type	Wines
Asiago	Italy	Hard	Cow	Riesling, Rioja, Sauvignon Blanc, Prosecco
Beaufort	France	Hard	Cow	Red Bordeaux
Blue Cheese	All	Blue	Cow	Madeira, Sherry, Riesling
Brie	France	Soft	Cow	Champagne, Merlot, Sherry
Camembert	France	Soft	Cow	Cabernet Sauvignon, Chenin Blanc,
Cheddar	All	Semi-Hard	Cow	Chardonnay, Rioja, Sauvignon Blanc
Chevre	France	Semi-Soft	Goat	Champage, Gewurztraminer
Colby	USA	Semi-Soft	Cow	Champagne, Malbec, Riesling
Comte	France	Semi-Hard	Cow	Cabernet Sauv, French Reds
Derby	Britain	Hard	Cow	Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc
Edam	Netherlands	Hard	Cow	Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Riesling
Emmenthal	Switzerland	Hard	Cow	Beaujolais
Feta	Greece	Semi-soft	Sheep	Beaujolais
Fontina	Italy	Semi-soft	Cow	Pinot Grigio
Goat Cheese	France	Soft	Goat	Sancerre, Vouvray, Sauvignon Blanc
Gouda	Netherlands	Semi-Hard	Cow	Champagne, Malbec, Riesling, Merlot
Gruyere	Switzerland	Hard	Cow	Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc
Halloumi	Cyprus	Semi-Hard	Sheep	Rose, New World Whites
Harvati	Denmark	Semi-soft	Cow	Red Bordeaux, Rioja
Jarlsberg	Norway	Hard	Cow	Chardonnay, Zinfandel
Kasseri	Greece	Semi-Soft	Sheep	Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel
Limburger	Germany	Soft	Cow	Beer
Manchego	Spain	Hard	Sheep	Merlot, Rioja, Garnacha
Monterey Jack	USA	Semi-Hard	Cow	Merlot, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Zinfandel
Muenster	France	Soft	Cow	Beaujolais
Neufchatel	France	Soft	Cow	Loire Valley Wines (i.e. Sancerre)
Parmagiano	Italy	Hard	Cow	Chardonnay, Chianti
Pecorino	Italy	Hard	Sheep	Chianti
Piave	Italy	Hard	Cow	Zinfandel, Italian Reds
Raclette	Switzerland	Semi-Hard	Cow	Beaujolais
Red Leicester	Britain	Semi-Hard	Cow	Chardonnay, Pinot Noir
Roquefort	France	Blue	Sheep	Port
Smoked Gouda	Netherlands	Semi-Hard	Cow	Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz
Stilton	Britain	Semi-Hard	Cow	Port, Sauternes
Swiss	Switzerland	Semi-Hard	Cow	Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc
Taleggio	Italy	Semi-Soft	Cow	Pinot Blanc

Culinary Trend: Blood Oranges

Every so often, various ingredients and dishes go into vogue. Recently, foods such as kale and chia seeds made their way to the culinary forefront by way of blogs, magazines, and health fads.

Now, I'm noticing a previously obscure fruit that is gaining popularity in the foodie world– that is to say, the blood orange. Popping up in blogs and grocery stores alike, this underrated citrus is finally finding its way into America's kitchens.

Photo Credit

Blood orange gets its name (unsurprisingly) from its dark, blood-red fruit that distinguishes it from its cousin, the navel orange. In terms of taste, the two are relatively similar; though personally I find the blood orange to be a little more on the sour side (a subtle distinction from the navel orange's acidity) with a unique aftertaste. Of course, the taste is contingent on the orange's specific cultivar. When in season, many blood orange varieties boast a noticeable sweetness defining their taste.  

Now, I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to citrus fruits– I love to eat my oranges and grapefruits raw and unsweetened, or freshly pressed. However, these blood orange inspired recipes and foods are good enough to make me break my rule:

Talenti Blood Orange Sorbetto

Blood Orange Cake 

Recipe here.

Blood Orange Sangria

Recipe here.

Blood Orange & Clementine Galette

Recipe here. 

Goat Cheese Crostini with Blood Orange Marmalade

 Recipe here.

New Foods @ Whole Foods

What's great about Whole Foods is that they offer a lot of options (especially in produce) that aren't commonly found in traditional grocery stores.

This is what I picked up today:


1. Pomelo

Pomelos aren't very common in regular supermarkets, but I've seen them here and there at Whole Foods. I remember looking at them over in the produce section, just thinking they were some sort of mutant grapefruit. Little did I know that pomelos are the original grapefruit; and that grapefruit itself is thought to be a hybrid of pomelo and orange (who knew?!).

Admittedly, I had to google how to properly prepare the pomelo for eating (no shame here). However, going against internet advice, I just ended up cutting off the rind with a knife, then cutting the fruit into supremes (that is to say, cutting the fruit wedges away from the membrane), like so: 

Image Credit: Foodie Journey

Unfortunately, I wouldn't recommend the supreming technique for pomelos... the fruit segments aren't aligned in such a symmetrical way like the other citrus varieties.

The type of pomelo I bought had the ruby red colored fruit within, belying its similarity to grapefruit. However, most pomelos have a light green or yellow fruit. 

This is what mine looked like:

The taste of the pomelo was like a mild grapefruit, except with twice the work needed to eat it. While it was great to try a new citrus, I think I'll stick with grapefruit and oranges.



2. Challah 

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Whole Foods carried challah in their bakery. It's not something I usually see in regular grocery stores (to my chagrin).

Challah is a traditional Jewish bread that is chewy, eggy, and delicious. In accordance with Jewish religious law, it is not made with dairy. However, it still maintains a rich texture in a similar way to brioche (a French bread).

The Jewish religion and culture is to thank for a variety of delicious eats– lox, bagels, pretzels, and pickles, to name a few. But challah (in my opinion) is one of their best culinary achievements. 

3. Kombucha

Kombucha is one of the newest health fads, following in the footsteps of trendy superfoods like kale and kefir.

Kombucha is basically a fermented, effervescent tea drink that contains probiotics (like yogurt). As someone who's not a huge fan of yogurt (unless its frozen), I was hoping to get some good bacteria from Kombucha.

First, let me say that I really wanted to like this drink. I'm not discriminatory when it comes to tea at all– I can handle anything from the most pungent black teas to bitter green varieties. But when I tried the Kombucha, I almost gagged. It tasted like vinegar beer. I even checked to expiration date to make sure the vinegar taste wasn't a result of spoiling. But alas, the expiration date was many months away, leaving an inexplicable (and disgusting) taste of vinegar.

So I googled the method of making Kombucha, and it turns out its brewing process is similar to the way vinegar is made. Apparently Kombucha develops the vinegar taste as the fermentation progresses... if the tea is fermented for a shorter period of time, it won't taste as vinegar-y. So I'm not ready to completely cross off Kombucha (at least not yet), but I definitely won't be buying the GT's Multi-green Tea ever again.

The Myths about Bertolli Olive Oil: Debunked

MYTH 1: Bertolli is an Italian Olive Oil.

FALSE.

While Bertolli olive oil is packaged in Italy, the majority of the olives come from Spain or other countries. Only about 20% of their olives come from Italy.

(Source: Extra Virginity, by Tom Mueller)

MYTH 2: Bertolli’s Olive Oils that are marketed as “Extra Virgin” are, in fact, extra virgin.

FALSE.

In a study conducted by the UC Davis Olive Center, the Bertolli “Extra Virgin” Olive Oil did NOT meet any of the three standards used to test “Extra Virgin” quality, including standards set by the USDA and the IOC (International Olive Council). Instead, the oil only achieved “virgin” grade status, which implies a much lower quality. This means that Bertolli has been defrauding the public with their misleading advertising. Frankly, I’m surprised that there haven’t been any repercussions for Bertolli. They are flat-out lying about the quality of their olive oil.

While the government has chosen to ignore this blatant, misleading advertising (which should be illegal if it isn’t already), you can do your part to stop food fraud by boycotting Bertolli brand foods.

(Source: UC Davis Olive Center)

I'm not just trying to pick on Bertolli, though. As you can see on the chart, supermarket megabrand Filippo Berio also markets its oil as extra virgin, when by two separate standards it should be labeled as just virgin. 

For the full report by the UC Davis Olive Center, click here.

MYTH 3: Despite all this, Bertolli is still a good-tasting olive oil.

FALSE.

I’ll admit, this one is mostly my own opinion. But if you’ve ever had good quality olive oil, you’d know that Bertolli is a tasteless, inferior “oil” (I wouldn’t even give it the word “olive” in its label) that should really just be used in oil lamps (called lampante in Italy).

As defined by the International Olive Council, the three main flavors in a genuine extra virgin olive oil should be (to varying degrees):

1.       Pepperiness

2.       Bitterness

3.       Fruitiness

A flavorless, bland olive oil is by definition not extra virgin. If you don’t believe me, go buy a bottle of Bertolli and taste for yourself. Is it peppery? Do you taste any hint of fruit? Is it bitter? While these terms are undoubtedly subjective, anyone with taste buds can tell that Bertolli olive oil has no clear taste of any of the three IOC flavor profiles.

If you're still skeptical, go online to McEvoy Ranch’s website. (They are an olive oil producer out of Petaluma, California; cultivating Italian olive varietals.) Purchase a bottle of their Olio Nuovo, wait for it to arrive in your mail, then taste it alongside Bertolli’s oil. I don’t think anything else needs to be said.

For a list of great olive oil providers in North America, click here.

Note: While reading Extra Virginity by Tom Mueller, I read about how large olive oil companies would sue outspoken food critics (and even experts) for criticizing their products. So, despite the scientific evidence that points to Bertolli’s misleading advertising and obvious inferiority, I would like to state that this is my OPINION only. You can deduce the truth for yourself.

(Basically­ – please don’t sue me for libel, olive oil companies!)

Movie Review: Somm

Last night I watched Somm, a documentary following four experts as they prepared to take the world's most difficult wine knowledge test, and earn their Master Sommelier degree.

There are only 214 Master Sommeliers (or Somms as they are known colloquially) in the world. The test contains three parts: one part on service in restaurants and hotels, one part on theory, and one part in the form of a blind tasting test. Candidates must taste six wines and describe them accurately in less than 25 minutes, including the year it was produced and the region from which it came.

Watching the four men prepare for the test was incredible. From just a sip of the wine, they could tell whether it had traces of oak in it, what possible grapes it could have been made from, and the level of alcohol it contained. It's amazing that they could glean all that information just from one taste.

The four main candidates practicing the tasting portion of the test, supervised by a Master Sommelier

For those of us who are still learning about the various aspects of wine tasting (including myself), this tasting grid from Epicurious is a great way to get started. It's also great for parties!

Continual Learning: Food Network Style

One of my favorite hobbies is watching Food Network and expanding my culinary knowledge via the shows. My three favorite shows are:

Iron Chef America

Next Iron Chef

Chopped

Watching professional chefs cook with expert narration (especially by Alton Brown) can be very instructive. It is also a great way to learn about ingredients not commonly used in the average home kitchen. In order to remember everything I've learned, I've started compiling a Culinary Dictionary using Google Docs, so I can add new terms whenever I watch a cooking show. Here are some of my recent additions:

1. Sabayon: is a type of dessert "foam", made by whipping together egg yolks, sugar, and a sweet wine (like Moscato).
2. Cava: a Spanish sparkling wine; what Champagne is to France or Prosecco is to Italy.
3. Dacquoise: a cake made from layers of almond and hazelnut meringue, buttercream, and often ganache. 
4. Pistou: a French sauce made with basil, garlic, and olive oil. It differs from its Italian cousin pesto, which is made with the same ingredients and pine nuts. 

So far my culinary dictionary has reached 264 entries. As soon as I think I've got every possible food term in my dictionary, they'll give a new ingredient to the contestants on Chopped that I'll have to add it. At this rate it will never be finished!