Wine and Cheese Pairing #1
Let me make this perfectly clear, I really enjoy eating cheese, especially the more expensive kinds when I get the chance to do so. However, I bought three types of cheeses that I thought would taste good by themselves without thinking too much about how they would taste with the wines (my first mistake). I originally was going to do this by myself but ended up doing this wine and cheese pairing with my roommate William and my friend Jose. They were intrigued by this activity and decided last minute to join me which I didn't have a problem with because I rather hang out with people doing this type of thing than do it by myself.
Ok, so I got the three different wines and three different types of cheese from Kroger although I want to try Vintage Cellar next time. The first wine on the left is called Bay Bridge Red Blend which does not even have a vintage on it because it cost me 2.99 (what a steal), but I did not expect this to taste very good because of that. The second wine in the middle is called Bay Bridge Merlot which also does not have a vintage on it because it cost me 2.99 (what a steal), and I did not expect this to taste very good either because of that. The third wine on the right is called California Dream Cabernet Sauvignon which actually had a vintage on it (2021) and cost me around $11; I expected this one to taste better than the other two wines. These are all wines that I have never had before so I really didn't have many expectations.
For the three types of cheeses that I got from Kroger, I have never tried these specific ones before so I was pretty excited to try these. The first cheese on the left (or the top) is Vermont Cheddar; nothing too special about this one. The second cheese in the middle is Boar's Head Chipotle Gouda which I was most excited about out of the three; I really like spicy food so this was perfect. The third cheese on the right (or the bottom) is Boar's Head Cream Havarti. This was probably the second most exciting cheese that I bought because I really enjoy creamy cheese.
I cut the three different types of cheese into little cubes although, from the looks of it, I did not do a very good job LOL. They are kind of mixed in together but the one that looks like it has peppers in it is the Gouda, the one that is a darker yellow is the Havarti, and the lightest one is the Vermont Cheddar. The Gouda was a little spicy, not as much as I expected, but I still really enjoyed it; it was a little creamy which I also enjoyed, but it had a smokey flavor to it which I was not a huge fan of. It also smelled very smokey and was a little chewy. The Havarti was not spicy at all, although, I did not expect it to be, it was very creamy (the creamiest out of the three), and had a sharp taste to it. It was actually very soft and did not smell like much. The Vermont Cheddar was definitely the sharpest out of the three cheeses which honestly I did not mind at all. It also was not spicy at all and it was not super creamy like I thought it would be.
The Bay Bridge Merlot smelled like dark cherry, with hints of floralness, and definitely smelled very sweet. It tasted super bitter, with very small hints of sweetness, as well as hints of cherry. With the Gouda, the bitterness of the wine took over at the beginning; it did not pair well with the wine at all, and then all I tasted was the spice from the cheese which was very overpowering. With the Havarti, the bitterness of the wine was just present the entire time, so I really did not taste much of the cheese and did not pair well together at all. I thought it would be better. With the cheddar, the bitterness of the wine was not as present as the other two kinds of cheese were, but I mostly just tasted the cheese. The wine was not overpowering with this cheese.
The Bay Bridge Red Blend smelled like dark cherry, had subtle hints of floralness, and smelled a little bit dry. It tasted super sweet just like it smelled, and tasted like apples and cherries (not really a fan of apples but liked the cherry flavor). With Gouda, the sweetness of the wine took over so I did not really taste the cheese until the end where then it just tasted spicy; it worked surprisingly well together. With the Havarti, the sweetness of the wine and the creaminess of the cheese really complemented each other well. It had a very good balance, and neither the cheese nor the wine was more overpowering than the other. With the cheddar, it was not terrible, but the wine and the cheese really did not complement each other well at all. I just tasted the cheese throughout the combo and it was weird since the wine is super sweet.
The California Dream Cabernet Sauvignon smelled like black raspberries, cherry, and subtle hints of dryness. It definitely tasted a little dry, it was very bitter, and I did get a strong taste of black raspberries from it. Honestly this one made me want to throw up even though I tried all combinations, but they all had the same characteristics. All the three types of cheese got overpowered by the overwhelming bitterness of the wine. None of the combinations even remotely made sense and did not complement each other well at all. I did not want anything to do with these to be honest LOL.
Overall, the evening was definitely interesting. I would not recommend these wines and I will definitely try to find better wines that are more than $2.99. But, it was fun and the three types of cheeses actually were really good.
