Match of the week

Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire cheese and Casillero del Diablo Merlot

Posted by Fiona Beckett (Google+) on May 5 2020 at 07:48

Those of you who visit the site regularly will know that I’m a great advocate of drinking white wine with cheese and a bit of a sceptic about how well red wine pairs with it.

So I admit I was surprised - as many of you might not have been - just how well an intensely fruity 2018 Casillero del Diablo Merlot went with this famous British territorial cheese.

I have to confess I’m not a massive fan of the wine, well regarded though it is. For me, it’s just too full on with too much sweet, lush plummy fruit and a slightly weird smokey edge, presumably from the (well-charred, I imagine) American oak barrels in which it is apparently aged.

The Lancashire - from Mrs Kirkham- has a gorgeous rich buttery, clotted cream character which made the combination like topping a scone with a dollop of jam. The cheese rounded out the wine’s rougher edges and made it taste gorgeously velvety and smooth. It was pretty good with a Lincolnshire Poacher the following night too.

By the way Mrs Kirkham’s is one of the artisanal cheeses that has been recently highlighted as under threat from the temporary closure of restaurants and many specialist cheese shops but you can - and really should - buy it online. Mine came from the excellent Courtyard Dairy.

The Casillero del Diablo merlot is widely available for £8 though frequently discounted.

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