White wine goes better with cheese than red, experts claim

A Robust glass of red wine has long been regarded as the perfect accompaniment for cheese. But gastronomic experts now say that the tipple has been served erroneously at dinner parties for decades. The perfect partner for cheese, they claim, is in fact white wine, which is more mellow and versatile than its red counter-part, Daily Mail writes.

It is argued that reds, which are generally more strongly flavoured than whites, dominate all but the most potent of cheeses.

Stephen Williams, the founder of The Antique Wine Company, said: ‘Basically, you should never have any kind of creamy cheese with red wine. It’s just a no-no. But the matching issue is wider than that: white wines generally go better with almost every type of cheese.’

Cheeses commonly associated with red wine include blues such as Roquefort and creamy cheese such as Camembert. But Williams, whose company has supplied wine for the White House, believes the flavour of cheese is drowned out by the tannins – the bitter compounds from the stalks, skins and seeds of grapes.

Sweeter styles of white wines such as sauternes are the best match for a blue cheese such as roquefort as the beverage is believed to enhance its saltiness.

However he said whites which have been 'oaked' where they are stored in large barrels in order to absorb the wood's flavour should be avoided with cheese.