This wine and cheese pairing was called the perfect pairing and was done at a winery called Shadybrook winery in Napa Valley, California. The wines tasted were a Chardonnay, 2 Red Blends, and a Cabernet Sauvignon. These wines were paired with unique cheeses made locally in Napa valley. The first cheese was a smoky swiss cheese, the second cheese was a goat milk swiss cheese, and the third was a salty mild italian cheese. Each wine tasting was phenomenal and trying the wines with each of the cheeses was such an amazing experience! All of the wines tasted during this experience were made locally in Napa Valley.
The first wine I tried was a 2019 Rapp Ranch Chardonnay, a 100% Chardonnay varietal. Tasting the wine before the cheese, it had an amazingly crisp flavor. The wine smelt of honey crisp apple with hints of vanilla. The flavors I was getting was mostly just very bright, grapey, acid-forward flavors. This wine paired amazingly with the smoky swiss cheese. This cheese was so creamy with a hint of smokiness. The creaminess of the cheese brought out the medium body of the wine that appeared light-bodied pre-cheese. The smokiness of the cheese brought out hints of spice in the wine that were not sensed before hand. This chardonnay paired well with the goat milk swiss as well. Oddly, the chardonnay brought out a dill flavor in the cheese, which I really enjoyed. This wine did not pair very well with the salty italian cheese, as the saltiness in the cheese led to an overwhelming acidity in the cheese.
One of the red blends I tried was the 2018 Shadybrook Estate V Red Blend. This wine was a 44% Cabernet Franc, 22% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Petit Verdot, and 3% Malbec. This wine was a deep-bodied dark red wine. The wine smelled of plum and some sort of oak. The taste of the wine was heavily cherry forward with notes of dark chocolate and spices. Drinking this wine before pairing it with cheese, the aftertaste was not really noticeable. However, drinking this wine after taking a bite of cheese elongated the taste of the wine and a licorice-flavored aftertaste was observed. This wine paired best with the salty Italian cheese due to its lack of softness and creaminess. The salty flavor of the cheese brought out the deep, tannic, oaky flavors of the wine and the hard texture allowed for the wine to go down beautifully. This wine was pretty heavy bodied and viscous, so I did not love it paired with the super creamy goat milk and smoky swiss cheeses. The cheeses brought out the heavy body of the wine and made the body to heavy for the flavors of the wine.
Another wine I tasted during this perfect pairing was the 2017 Rapp Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon, a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon varietal wine. This wine was pretty good. It was medium-bodied and smelled of sweet chocolate and cherry. The taste of blackberry in the wine was extremely apparent and enjoyable. This wine was pretty tannic and did leave a pleasant mouth puckering sensation. This wine paired best with the goat milk swiss cheese. This cheese was very creamy with pretty mild tastes of dill. The creaminess and texture of this cheese is what paired so well with this wine. Before the cheese, the wine tasted heavily tannic. After the cheese, the tannic component was dimmed out significantly and the wine tasted overall like a balanced piece of goodness. This wine also paired well with the other cheeses. The salty Italian cheese mellowed out the blackberry fruity flavor which allowed for the more savory flavors of the wine to come out. The smoky swiss cheese was also creamy which mellowed down the tannins and the smokiness of the cheese brought out the body in the wine.
This wine tasting experience was so amazing. I loved trying all of the wines and pairing them with the cheeses. I had so much fun and am definitely itching to go back to Napa Valley for more tastings ASAP!
