Stichelton and onion quiche and Fleurie

A simple lunch of quiche from leftovers thrown together from the fridge turned into a feast with a glass of Claire and Fabien Chasselay's Fleurie La Chapelle des Bois, an organic Beaujolais from the excellent 2009 vintage.

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking Stilton or Stichelton (the unpasteurised version I used) is so strong that it needs a sweet wine or a fortified wine like port, but in a creamy quiche, offset by onions, it will easily work with a crisp white wine or a light red like this. You also always need to take any accompanying salad into account - ours was a simple green one with a classic vinaigrette which also pointed to a wine with some acidity. This delightfully fresh and fruity Beaujolais, which you can buy for £13.25 from Vintage Roots, hit the spot just perfectly.

It seems to me there's a bit of a Beaujolais revival at the moment - I'm sure I've seen more about Beaujolais Nouveau this year than I have for a long while. And it's still huge in Paris, even among the natural wine movement, as this evocative post from Bertrand Celce of Wine Terroirs testifies. But with the 2009 vintage still around and some charming 2010s I'd stick to the real McCoy.

British cheeses and cider

I suppose I shouldn’t say this coming from the West Country but I often forget about cider when I’m thinking about cheese pairings. Not that I don’t enjoy it but there always seem more complex drinks with a wider range of flavours to experiment with.

But last week I was tasting a range of Somerset-based ciders from a producer called The Orchard Pig with cheese and was struck by just how well they went.

Standout matches were their Dry Table Cider with one of my favourite cheeses Gorwydd Caerphilly, Medium Table Cider with Keen’s cheddar (although I thought it would have worked still better with a slightly milder, mellower cheese like Hafod or Lincolnshire Poacher) and most interesting of all a new lighter 4.2% sparkling cider (the others are 6.5%) with Stichelton, an unpasteurised version of Stilton. (I wouldn’t draw the conclusion from that that all light ciders go with blues: Stichelton is exceptionally creamy in texture which worked particularly well with this palate-cleansing style)

The Orchard Pig also has a range of apple juices, one of which - an off-dry blend of Jonagold and Bramley - was absolutely delicious with the Keen’s.

Sloe gin and Stilton

The port and Stilton combo has become a bit of a cliché. Not that it doesn't work - it's hard to fault - but if you want to really impress your guests and take them out of their comfort zone, serve your stilton with a shot of sloe gin instead. It has much the same brambly flavour as a Late Bottled Vintage port but, despite being stronger, manages to taste lighter, fresher and less alcoholic.

Gordon's and Plymouth Gin both do a version but if you can find a bottle from a small artisanal producer, even better. In the UK Bramley and Gage (www.bramleyandgage.co.uk) does a good one, and also a very good damson gin which also works very well with blue cheese.