Artisan Cheese and Wine Pairing
Besides our daily tours and tastings here at the Estate, we offer several different “special” tastings. These are by appointment only and our staff love to facilitate these as a way for you to experience other parts of Michel Schlumberger and Sonoma County. One of my favorite tastings to do is the Artisan Cheese pairing. These are especially fun because we’re trying to demsytify wine and food pairings, have a little fun with local Sonoma products and we get to taste some fantastic cheeses. We work with local cheese purveyor Doralice Handal, who owns the Healdsburg Cheese Shop. When selecting cheeses for the tasting we bring her a couple of bottles of wine and then the battle begins. I call it a battle for fun, because I see us all the guns ablaze questioning which cheese works with which wine the best. We agree and disagree and inevitably taste more cheeses untill we all come to the final selections (I know this sounds rough…but it’s serious work). During the pairing battle we try to match each cheese’s flavor and texture with corresponding or complementary elements in the wine. The great part about it is this experimentation and that’s ultimately what we want you to walk away with. It’s ok to try new things, be bold and to look at cheese as just another component of your meal. It doesn’t have to be perfect but it has to be thought provoking. It has to be intriguing.
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We did the wine and cheese pairing the first time we visited Michel Schlumberger. We had so much fun, it was a great experience. I’d definitely do it again, the cheese was delicious and the wine was excellent, as always.