Wine & Cheese Tasting

During the first weekend of Spring Break, while all of my fellow classmates were enjoying the sun and alcohol in PCB or Key West, my boyfriend and I were stuck in Blacksburg, bored and decided to go to Walmart to run some errands.

Our Receipt from Walmart

While in Walmart, we looked at their wine selection and stumbled upon the cheapest wine we had ever seen: $2.97 per bottle.  It was then that I decided that this would be the perfect time to do a wine and cheese pairing, but try to do it as cheap as possible.  So we then found a small cheese tray for $5.98 and got some Breton Crackers for $2.18 to clear our pallets between the different cheeses!  

We purchased with the following wines, which are all from the same vineyeard: Pinot Grigio, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc.  And we used the following cheeses that were on the cheese tray: Pepper Jack, Colby Jack, Swiss, Cheddar.

The Oak Leaf wine's Purchased

Name - Oak Leaf Pinot Grigio

Variety - Pinot Grigio 51%, Colombard 49%

Region - California

Country - United States

Year - The year was not specified.

Price - $2.97
Wine Review - This light-bodied, crisp wine has a vibrant citrus nose, hints of apple and peach, and a refreshing finish.  Pair with rotisserie chicken.
Personal Review - The wine had a citrus smell, but had a sweet taste.  The most noticeable flavor was apple, and it was a very light wine.  My boyfriend said "I hate that I like it."  I would definitely have this wine again, especially for the price!

Name - Oak Leaf Cabernet Sauvignon

Variety - Cabernet Sauvignon

Region - California

Country - United States

Year - The year was not specified

Price - $2.97
Wine Review - This medium-bodied, smooth Cabernet Sauvignon has vibrant notes of blackberry fruit, a hint of toasty oak, and a lingering finish.  Pair with Rib Eye Roast. 
Personal Review - This wine smelled and tasted of spice.  The black pepper was overpowering.  I liked it, and would possibly have it again if I wanted a mediocre, but drinkable, Cab. Sav. for a small price.

Name - Oak Leaf Sauvignon Blanc

Variety - Sauvignon Blanc

Region - California

Country - United States

Year - The year was not specified.

Price - $2.97
Wine Review - This medium-bodied, zesty Sauvignon Blanc has bright aromas of lemon and fresh melon, with a clean, crisp finish.  Pair with Seafood Pasta.
Personal Review - The wine definitely smelled of citrus and tasted of lemon.  The after-taste was a little weird though.  I would drink this again.

Overall, my boyfriend and I agreed that we liked the Pinot Grigio wine the best, followed by the Sauvignon Blanc, and then the Cabernet Sauvignon in last.  Here is the breakdown of the wines paired with the cheeses:

Pinot Grigio

1. Pepper Jack: The spiciness from the pepper jack cheese absolutely took over and you could only taste the spicy cheese, but to the extreme.  It was not a good pair at all and did absolutely nothing for the wine since the wine is so light-bodied that it gets drowned out.
2. Colby Jack: We liked this pairing a lot.  It really brought out the apple flavoring and tasted delicious.
3. Swiss: This was super sour.  It really was disgusting, and we had to wash our mouths out with water to get this taste out. 
4. Cheddar: This paired well, but it didn't really change the flavors or bring out any

We rated the Colby Jack was the best and the Cheddar came in second.  We did not like the Swiss or the Pepper Jack at all, but we said the Swiss came in third and Pepper Jack in last.

Cabernet Sauvignon

1. Pepper Jack: The pepper from the wine and the spicy pepper from the cheese combined for a gross combination.  All you could taste was pepper, and I would absolutely not have it again.
2. Colby Jack: This was a good pairing because it evened out the wine's pepper flavor, and gave it a mellowed taste.  It was very good.
3. Swiss: This was also very, very sour and peppery.  I would not have this again.
4. Cheddar: It actually made the wine very dry, but reduced the pepper flavors as well.  This was a great combination. 

We rated the Colby Jack first, and the Cheddar came in second place.  The Pepper Jack and Swiss cheese pairings, again, were not very good; however, we rated the Pepper Jack in third place and the Swiss cheese in last.

Sauvignon Blanc

1. Pepper Jack: This was a battle of the flavors.  There was a lot of taste from the spicy peppers from the cheese, but the flavors from the lemon were also heightened.  It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great either.
2. Colby Jack: This cheese smoothed out the wine and gave it a mellowed after taste.  This was good.
3. Swiss: This was sour and did not pair well due to the dryness from the cheese.  It was absolutely terrible.
4. Cheddar: This pairing literally made it taste like lemonade, but more of a sour lemonade and not sugary lemonade.  It was good, and I would have this again.

The Cheddar got first place, and the Colby Jack came in second place.  The Pepper Jack followed in third place, and the Swiss cheese got last again.

Overall, we thought this was a great experience.  Although we were a little nervous going into it, it wasn't terrible.  Plus, now I have one or two wines that I wouldn't mind drinking again that were VERY cheap!  So if anyone ever complains about how expensive this class is, you could always turn to this blog for ideas.  To make it cheaper, you could always get more friends involved to split the cost, you don;t have to purchase crackers, etc.  So happy drinking!