Malbec may not be the most popular red wine out there, but avid wine lovers know that its dark fruit flavours and lovely smoothness are worth experiencing time and time again. Here on Just Wines blog, we have been trying to cover every wine varietal and blend, one by one, and share with you how to pair them with cheese. Figuring out the right wine and cheese pairing requires a good understanding of the cheese’s flavour profile, and is what we are going to discuss today.
“What kind of cheese goes with Malbec?”
As always, we are going to recommend cheese that is readily available in Australia and New Zealand.
Category: Hard to semi-hard cheese
Variety: Gouda
Foremost, the name is pronounced as ‘how-da,' with it being a Dutch word. From a town of the same name in the Netherlands, its texture has a springiness to it (unlike hard varieties like Parmesan), which decreases with ageing. As it matures, Gouda becomes more hard and crumbly. Hence it is best described as ‘hard/ firm cheese to semi-hard.' One of the most famous cheeses in the world, it is produced with cow’s milk.
Ageing doesn’t just change Gouda’s texture, but flavour too. Young Gouda cheese is hugely mild, while its trademark nuttiness becomes more evident in mature versions. Mild, however, doesn’t mean Mozzarella-like lack of taste, it has a subtly sweet undertone and a consistent flow of flavour, no matter how weak it might be. The more old versions are reminiscent of butterscotch! The depth of mature Gouda cheese tastes delicious with the dark fruit flavours of a Malbec wine. If you can obtain Gouda flavoured with cracked black pepper/ peppercorn, even better! The peppery notes in the wine would echo the spice in the cheese!
And with that, we hope that your pairing Malbec cheese queries get answered! Gouda also goes very well with pears, and you might want to also serve some fruit for your next cheese and wine party. Just ensure that you use mature cheese, and your guests would remember the good time they had for months to come!
