BEST WINE TO PAIR WITH CHEESE

Wine and cheese is one of the greatest food and drink pairings in human history. But the conventional wisdom — red wine with hard cheese, white with soft — is too simplistic. Here is the real guide.

THE BEST PAIRING — ORANGE WINE WITH CHEESE

Here is the secret that cheese connoisseurs know and most wine drinkers do not: orange wine is one of the best cheese pairings of all. The tannins and texture of skin-contact wine stand up to the fat and protein of aged cheese in a way that most whites cannot. Skin Deep and Arriba are both brilliant with a cheese board.

BRIE AND CAMEMBERT — PROST!

Soft, creamy cheeses need something with enough acidity to cut through the fat. PROST!, our pét-nat, delivers — the natural bubbles, the lemon-sherbet character, and the refreshing finish make it perfect with brie and camembert.

CHEDDAR AND AGED HARD CHEESES — LEFT ON RED

A good aged cheddar wants a wine with enough body to stand up to it. Left on Red — slightly above fridge temperature for the cheese course — is brilliant. The juicy red fruit and subtle earthiness complement aged cheddar without overwhelming it.

GOAT'S CHEESE — RIZZLING

The classic Loire Sancerre and goat's cheese pairing works because of the crisp acidity and mineral quality of the wine. Rizzling delivers the same combination — and our organic Austrian Riesling is a genuinely sophisticated alternative to the more obvious Loire option.

BLUE CHEESE — THE ADVENTURE

Blue cheese with orange wine sounds wrong. It is not. The sweetness of the blue, the saltiness, the funk — all of these find an unexpected partner in the tannic, complex character of Skin Deep. This is the pairing that will surprise your guests. Available at locowines.co.uk.