Blue and washed rind cheese, flavouring profile

Blue and washed rind cheese, flavouring profile

Strong cheese changes what a wine tastes like more than almost any other food, and a blue on its own, a blue melted over a steak and a pungent washed rind each want a different glass.

The compounds that matter. In blue cheese the mould makes methyl ketones, the source of the sharp blue smell, alongside heavy salt and a bitter edge, and sweetness in a wine is the surest way to calm both salt and bitterness. Washed rind cheeses such as Époisses, Munster and Taleggio carry sulphur compounds and a meaty, farmyard smell from the bacteria on the rind, over a soft, rich paste. In both, the fat and protein turn young, firm tannin bitter and metallic.

What it demands of a wine. Little or no tannin. Acid to cut the fat and meet the salt. Sweetness, or at least ripe, full fruit, where the cheese is blue and eaten on its own. For washed rind cheese, body and a scented or nutty character that can stand up to the smell rather than fight it.

Seek

With blue cheese on its own or with pear, honey or walnuts, Sauternes or Barsac from Bordeaux, France, calms the salt and bitterness with its sweetness and acid, and Monbazillac from Bergerac delivers the same logic at a fraction of the price. Noble Late Harvest Chenin Blanc from Stellenbosch, South Africa, does the same with honey and quince, and Vintage Port from the Douro is the old British answer with Stilton. With blue cheese melted into a sauce for steak, a ripe, soft red such as Primitivo from Puglia meets the salt with dark fruit and no harsh tannin. With Gorgonzola in pasta, gnocchi or risotto, a full white such as Fiano from Campania has the weight and a hazelnut note to match. With a washed rind cheese on its own, Gewürztraminer from Alsace, which is off dry, is the regional answer to Munster, its lychee and spice standing up to the smell. For a bone dry glass, a white Burgundy with gentle oak meets the creamy paste of Époisses. With melted washed rind, as in tartiflette, Jacquère from Savoie brings the sharp acid that cuts through potato and cheese.

Avoid

Young, tannic reds such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Nebbiolo or Syrah, whose tannin turns bitter and metallic against the cheese. Delicate, lean whites with blue cheese, which the salt and mould erase. Dry wines on a board where the blue is served with honey or fruit, since the sweetness on the plate makes them taste thin and sour.

Three to reach for. For blue cheese on its own, Sauternes or Barsac, Bordeaux, France. For blue cheese on red meat, Primitivo, Puglia, Italy. For washed rind cheese, Gewürztraminer, off dry, Alsace, France.