Feb 07 2010
Wine and Cheese
Toronto, Canada has an entire convention devoted to Wine and Cheese, now going on for more than 20 years. But perhaps one shouldn’t get too excited, since the pairing goes back at least 4,000 years.
Both products are made from living substances and improve with age, both are a product of fermentation, the process by which yeast cells introduce chemical changes and both reflect their terroir. ‘Terroir’ refers to the combination of soil, climate and region from which the product comes.
Traditionalists suggest that the wine and cheese be paired according to region or strength, thus preventing one from overpowering the other. Part of the reason is the tannin levels. Red wines, fermented with the skins, have a higher concentration than white and this affects the pairing characteristics. The protein and fat in cheese helps coat the palate, reducing the harshness of excess tannin.
