There’s never a bad time to pair wine and cheese, offering the perfect excuse to pop a bottle and indulge. With National Wine & Cheese Day on July 25th fast approaching, the acclaimed Napa Valley winery Seven Apart is mixing things up with expert wine and cheese pairings that go beyond the basics. Recently, the winery has experimented with uniquely curated pairings, which include Spanish, French, and California cheeses.
To learn more about these expert wine and cheese pairings that go beyond the basics, I chatted with Yannick Girardo, managing partner at Seven Apart Winery. Born in Nice, France, Girardo has had a long career in the food/beverage and hospitality industry. After a stint managing Auberge du Soleil’s food and beverage department in Napa Valley, he refined his skills. He took a deep dive into the world of wine at Grgich Hills Estate for nearly six years before working with the founder of Seven Apart to launch and open the winery. Here’s what he shared about selecting wine and cheese pairings beyond the basics.
Bold cheeses and goat cheeses
This year, Seven Apart’s favorite wine and cheese pairings have included bold, high-fat cheese pairings with Cabernet Sauvignon. “Sauvignon typically pairs well with bold cheeses due to the characteristics of the depth, structure, and the presence of tannins that Cabernet Sauvignon is known for. Cabernet nicely complements cheeses that are bold and have a higher fat content. It creates a wonderful, balanced flavor,” Girardo shares. The winery has also explored pairing goat’s milk cheese with Sauvignon Blanc, as the high acidity in this wine enhances the creaminess of goat cheese. In contrast, the citrus component of the wine complements the cheese’s tanginess.
At Seven Apart, the team focuses on choosing a broad selection of cheeses to taste with wines when looking for new pairings at the winery. This includes three to four choices for each of the featured wines, allowing a backup option should the purveyor be out of a specific selection. Some examples of recent wine and cheese pairings include Camp de Montalban cheese (Spain) or Cow’s Milk cheese (U.S.) with Cabernet Sauvignon. Brebis Pyrenées, a type of sheep’s milk cheese, also pairs well with this wine.
Breaking away from safe pairings
When pairing wine and cheeses, many like to play it safe for a trustworthy flavor combination they can count on. However, Girardo encourages everyone to be a bit adventurous. “There is nothing wrong with trying something out of your comfort zone. There are plenty of options, whether it is a domestic or international selection. Many retailers, such as Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods, have a great selection of wines and cheeses that could be fun to pair and enjoy. They have cheese and wine specialists who work at both places and would gladly recommend and help make the selection and process easier for any consumer,” he says.
“I think there aren’t any rules or etiquette or ways to enjoy it together when it comes to wine and cheese. That’s coming from a French man who loves wine and cheese. The beauty is that you don’t have to overthink it or stress out about what goes well with one another. Wine and cheese bring comfort and happiness to anyone who enjoys them together.” I also asked Girardo to compare cheese selection for white wines vs. red wines. He recommended pairing aged, sharp, and firm cheeses with red wines, such as Gouda, Parmesan, and Manchego. The nutty flavors from these cheeses complement the tannins found in red wines.
Knowing the right cheese that goes well with a selection of wine isn’t something most of us know off the top of our heads. However, Girardo says this fear shouldn’t keep you from enjoying a delicious pairing of wine and cheese. He recommends selecting an easy option, such as leaning towards a “Creamier or semi-soft cheese; which will always pair well with red wine. What could go wrong with wine, cheese, and a great piece of bread?”
Go-to wine and cheese pairings
When in a pinch, Girardo says Camembert or Brie are great options. These cheeses are rich, creamy, and not necessarily overwhelmingly strong in flavor to pair with any red wine or Chardonnay. “But if you were to choose an aged version of those cheeses, then the flavors that might be more dominant and pungent might have some ammonia present. As for white selection, you can never go wrong with a fresh goat cheese to go with Sauvignon Blanc.” For those looking to get in on National Wine & Cheese Day fun, Girardo says it’s a good opportunity to try a broader selection of wines and cheeses in a fun, social way. “Gather friends together, have them share a cheese and wine pairing selection with a theme such as a single country as a way to explore something new,” he suggests.
