After searching for a cooking class in Olympia I finally found one! I went online and I read that this was a wine tasting and was complemented by various cheese. I know just the basics of the different wines and there food pairings. However I know of nothing when it came to different cheeses.
I drove downtown after a hard days work and just the thought of drinking wine was relaxing in its self. When I arrived I paid my $12 and the lady gave me 5 tickets and a wine glass. Each ticket was for the different wines so people wouldn't take advantage of the system I guess.
I headed upstairs were the event was held at. It was very casual, more like a get together at a grocery store and everyone drinking the displayed wines. The 'teachers' were just volunteers who also worked at the store. They seemed very unknowledgable about the product.The wines were fouced on grapes grown in Napa Valley, California.
The first one was a Lockwood Chardonnay. It was a very light wine, with a gentle oak flavor. It was paired with cuardo (spain; sheeps milk, semi hard). The cheese was similar to that of a milky parmesean without the bite. When paired with the wine, the drink was almost tasteless.
The second was Clos du Bious Pinot Grigo. This wine was not as fruity as expected. Light finish. Definatly palate cleansing. It was paired with a smoked cheese from Pike Place in Seattle. The cheese was fabulous! It was like as if someone took a smoked salmon and made it into a cheese. As for the pairing of the wine, the cheese should of been omitted and replaced with fresh fruit. I am not sure why these two were noted as completmenting. Not a cheese type of wine.
Bogle Pinot Noir was the next wine. It had the perfect acidity and went beautifully with the parmeasean-regginano. This was wonderful, and is what cheese should taste like; crumbly at the first bite and milky as it melts in your mouth. Then the wine palate-cleansed while leaving a cherry and oak after taste that lingers with a soft finish.
Alexander Valley Vineyards Sin Zin (fandel) was a great wine and would be a nice dinner wine. Unfornatly it was bitter tasting when eaten with cheese. Fromager d' Affinos (a buttery soft cheese) was tasteless on top a fig and olive craker. Although the craker its self was suitable with the wine. Alone this zinfandel had a great finish, very warming and smooth. It actually tickled my throat.
Hess Allomi Cabernet Sauvingon. This lovely wine was paired with a semi soft cranberry cheese made from cows milk. Not much to say, its a cab so it was smooth...very smooth and fruity with a dry finish. Just how I like to end my day.
