The Best Cheese & Wine Pairing
Wine and cheese pair very well together.
While there are certainly no rules to uphold, matching wine and cheese carefully can bring out the best flavors in both.
Modern sensory research shows that cheese fat softens wine tannins, while wine acidity cuts through cheese richness, making both taste smoother and more aromatic. This is not just tradition, it’s chemistry.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Frédéric Hémon, born and raised in the windswept landscapes of Brittany, France, carries the heritage of French gastronomy with him. He is a certified sommelier, trained at the esteemed Lycée Technique L’Étincelle in Nîmes, France, where he refined his craft with the rigor and elegance befitting the great traditions of the wine culture. The curriculum he pursued included an immersive component that granted him firsthand experience in the winemaking process within a local winery. Hémon began his sommelier career in Paris before relocating to Los Angeles in 2003, where he lent his expertise to L’Orangerie and Valentino, two of the city’s most distinguished dining institutions, celebrated at the time for possessing the finest wine lists in the City of Angels.
The golden rule is match intensity with intensity
Here are the pairings that genuinely sing.
A few general tips: serve cheese at room temperature (pull it out an hour before).
| • Blue cheeses Roquefort, Stilton, Gorgonzola shine with dessert wines like Sauternes or Port. The salt amplifies sweetness; the sweetness softens salt. |
| • Harder-aged cheeses Such as Parmesan, Pecorino, Aged Cheddar can stand up to a wine with a lot of tannins, like a Cabernet Sauvignon, Barolo, Chianti. |
| • Soft‑ripened cheeses Like Camembert, Triple‑Cream, pair better with Champagne, Crémant, Pinot Noir |
| • Salty cheeses Go best with a sweet wine partner like Muscat. |
| • Goat cheese Soft: Brut or Rosé Sparkling Wine, Sauvignon (Fumé) Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir Hard: Pinot Noir, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon |
| • Cow & Sheep Cheese Medium: Pinot Noir, Petite Sirah Hard: Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Port Blue, Late-Harvest Riesling, Chenin Blanc, Gewürztraminer, Muscat, Zinfandel |
| • Fresh Cheeses The high acidity of Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre, Assyrtiko, crisp rosé matches the tang and cuts the freshness of goat cheese, feta, mozzarella |
SUGGESTED READING
• White Wines Bordeaux 1855 Classification
• Cheese Fondue Recipe
• Cheese Soufflé Recipe
• Latest Articles on GAYOT
When in Doubt: The Six “Always‑Works” Reflexes
• Sparkling wine works with almost every cheese.
• Pinot Noir is the safest red.
• Sweet wine for every blue.
• Sauvignon Blanc for every goat cheese.
• Gewürztraminer for every washed‑rind cheese.
• Aged red only with aged hard cheese, never soft.
Common Mistakes
• Pairing big tannic reds with soft or creamy cheeses → chalky, bitter clash.
• Serving cheese too cold → muted aromas and poor pairing.
• Ignoring intensity → the fastest way to ruin a pairing.
Building a Cheese & Wine Board
A balanced board includes:
• one fresh cheese (goat, ricotta)
• one soft‑ripened (Brie, Camembert)
• one semi‑hard (Manchego, Gruyère)
• one hard aged (Parmesan, cheddar)
• One blue (Roquefort, Stilton)
Pair each with a contrasting wine style to create a dynamic tasting arc.
[brid video=”2751179″ player=”21154″ title=”Marissa Mullen | That Cheese Plate That Wants to Party” duration=”101″ description=”undefined” uploaddate=”2026-07-22″ thumbnailurl=”https://cdn.target-video.com/live/partners/16169/snapshot/2751179_th_6a614879e2bcb_1784760441.jpg” image=”https://cdn.target-video.com/live/partners/16169/snapshot/2751179_fhd_6a614879f23e5_1784760441.jpg” contenturl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/16169/sd/2751179.mp4″ width=”800″ height=”450″]
Watch our exclusive video with food stylist Marissa Mullen.