It came as part of an early anniversary gift from the family. They included a bottle of sparkling apple/grape cider… which feels somewhat lacking when paired with the creamy, delicious cheese.
What type of wine would you recommend pairing up with this delectable gift? Also, how do you prefer to eat your fontina?
I’ve been nibbling little hunks of it like a mouse since the moment we got home. Quick! Before I nibble it to nothing! What do you recommend?
And if you just feel like proclaiming your adoration for fontina cheese here, feel free! I will understand.
My mate the wine snob doesn’t serve wine with any cheese. He reckons that anyone who thinks they can tell good wine from bad after eating a hunk of cheese, is simply kidding themself. So he serves beer with cheese.
Well if you like the flavour of beer, grab a good one and go for it, it definitely works at least as well as wine. Every sip of beer freshens your mouth for another taste of cheese.
Wine and Cheese don’t match according to the BBC. Which is true enough but sort of missing the point. Wine and cheese makes deadens the wine but enhances the flavour of the cheese. Anyway, I don’t think a red would work too well, theres too much fat in a fontina, rather I think a crisp white like a Chardonnay or a Riesling would work far better to cut the richness of the cheese. Pair it with a nice crusty bread as well.
Pairing of any food and beverage is an obvious personal taste but to me the combination of a creamy (buttery), oaky Chardonnay doesn’t offer any contrast with the Fontina. BTW, the fat content of Fontina (~45 to 50%) is not that high compared to many other cheeses. Also, for me, the combination of riesling and fontina sounds terrible. I’ll stick with the big robust reds with some tannins to stand up to the cheese, along with the dry and fruit driven taste. YMMV
Alllll right, then. I picked up a bottle of Barolo (expensive!) and a Riesling (not nearly as expensive!) - I started off with the Riesling, nibbling at the cheese… mm… not bad at all…
But later I opened the Barolo. I haven’t had any cheese with that. And the bottle is kind of empty. I need more Barolo. Don’t know how it is with the cheese yet. But I definitely need more Barolo. Yes.
Fontina is one of those cheeses where the aroma and the taste just don’t seem to come from the same source. I’ve always found Fontina to have a slight “barnyard” aroma, yet the taste is awesome.
Just out of curiousity, what Barolo did you purchase and consume?
The Barolo has a blue and white label, and it says “Boroli Barolo”. I cannot say that once fast, let alone five times fast. It tasted wonderful. So wonderful, I might dream about it.
It wasn’t quite $40 - don’t remember exactly, might have been $35. Somewhere around there.
And no help necessary - though I may have to wait until I sleep this off before I can start on that cheese. It’s… my… precioussssss…
