Suveg Cellars Wine and Cheese Pairing Guide: Part 1

Enjoy our first of two posts that take a deep dive into multiple varieties of gourmet cheese and suggest pairings with Suveg Cellars Wine.

Beaufort (bow-FOR)

Beaufort is processed from cow milk and features a fairly dense, concentrated buttery consistency, a fruity aroma and rich nutty flavors with a hint of sweetness. The summer cheeses often feature additional herbal and flowery notes. The most prized Beauforts are aged over one year from the provenance of Haute-Savoie France and should not have any fissures, blemishes or holes.

Suggested Similar Cheeses: Swiss Gruyere, Gruyere de Comte, Fontina D’Aosta, Paive

Suggested Wine Pairing: Suveg Cellars 2014 Table Dancer, Suveg Cellars 2015 Grenache

Amarelo da Biera Baixa (ah-mah-REL-loh dah BAY-ruh BUY-shah)

Processed from raw goat and sheep milk from the provenance of Idanha-A-Nova in east central Portugal, this cheese offers a slightly musty aroma and a rich bittersweet, lactic earthy flavor profile with a long finish. The addition of goat milk provides a lighter more yellow color rather than straw or golden hence its name which means “yellow” in Portuguese. With age, this cheese can become quite aggressive.

Suggested Similar Cheeses: Serpa, Serra da Estrela, Queso de la Serena

Suggested Wine Pairing: Suveg Cellars 2014 Mourvedre

Bergfichte (bearg-FISCH-the)

Swiss German for “Mountain Fir” this raw cow milk cheese from the provenance of Switzerland is encircled in bark cut from mountain fir trees preventing the paste from spilling when the cheese is soft. The bark also imparts a subtle woodsy flavor. This cheese requires some palpable texture and consistency in order to deliver its ideal mouthfeel.

Suggested Similar Cheeses: Winnimere, Rush Creek Reserve, Vacherin Mont D’or

Suggested Wine Pairing: Suveg Cellars 2014 Pinot Grigio

Caerphilly (kaer-FILLY)

A cow milk cheese from the provenance of Wales and Southwest England, this eloquent cheese is simple, direct and delicious. It is a cheesy cheese that is firm, smooth and creamy approaching the consistency and palate weight of a true farmhouse butter with perhaps more palpable texture and hints of lemon.

Suggested Similar Cheeses: Landaff, Single Gloucester

Suggested Wine Pairing: Suveg Cellars 2016 Viognier

Bra (Brah)

A cow milk cheese from the provenance of Piedmonte in Northwest Italy, this nourishing cheese is equally satisfying but less challenging than its neighbor Fontina d’Aosta. The paste is firm and moist and riddled with very small holes. The flavor profile is sour on the attack with a pleasant bitterness gradually building to an impressionable finish. When young, this cheese is fresh, grassy and mild but with age becomes drier and increasing pungent.

Suggested Similar Cheeses: Bethmale, Le Moulis, Thomasville Tomme

Suggested Wine Pairing: Suveg Cellars 2016 Barbera, Suveg Cellars 2014 Sangiovese