Wine and Cheese Pairings

 Wine Name: Barefoot Riesling

On Its Own: This Riesling is a pale yellow color. It smells fruity, I got hints of pear. It is a very sweet wine and tastes fruity, specifically like pear and orange. It was very tannic, and it left a dry feeling in my mouth despite being a sweet white wine. 

Paired with Brie: This Riesling paired really well with the brie. The juxtaposition of the wine with the cheese brought out the salty flavors in the cheese. The Riesling also made the aged flavor of the cheese really stick out making it taste even more cheesy. I really enjoyed how the sweetness of the wine and the creaminess of the cheese went together, it went down very easily when paired.

Name: 19 Crimes Cali Blanc

On Its Own: This Sauvignon Blanc's color is also a very pale yellow. It smells really citrusy, like grapefruit. The taste isn't very strong but I am getting a floral taste. This wine it semi-dry and very tannic, it leaves my mouth feeling even drier than the first wine I tried today. 

Paired with the Dill Fontina: This wine and the cheese did not pair well together. The Fontina brought out the worst flavors in the wine which I did enjoy beforehand, specifically, it made the flavor of the alcohol stand out more. Additionally,  rather than bringing out the unique flavors of the cheese, the wine brought out the underlying moldy flavor of the cheese and didn't highlight the dill at all which comes through quite a bit when the cheese is on its own. 

Name: Magnolia Grove Chardonnay 

On its own: The color of this Chardonnay is pretty consistent with the other two wines I tasted, but it is a slightly darker yellow. It smells vaguely like dried apricot. This wine is on the sweeter side, but more like semi-sweet and is not very tannic at all. It tastes sort of peachy, but not as sweet. 

Paired with Rosemary and Olive Oil Asiago: While in my opinion, this combination doesn't pair as well as the Riesling and Brie, this did pair a lot better than the Dill Fontina and Sauvignon Blanc. The wine really brings out the rosemary flavor of the cheese, but I feel as though the cheese overpowers the wine. The wine also makes the cheese feel less sharp than it does on its own, it mellows it out and gives the other flavors in the cheese a chance to shine. I was initially not the biggest fan of this wine on its own, but with the cheese mellowing it out I like it a lot more.