Find out what pairs even better than wine with cheese

Are you planning a wine and cheese pairing party? It’s always been a favorite event of mine to host because you can feel sophisticated and buzzed all at once. I recently tasted something that pairs even better than wine with cheese. Curious? I’m spilling the rice and beans below on how you can host a serious pairing party of your own.

What’s the Drink?

Sake pairs wonderfully with cheese because they both contain lactic acid and similar “aroma ingredients.” Enjoying a bite of cheese after a sip of sake does something completely transformative to the beverage. Depending on the cheese you choose you can have an absolutely different sake experience.

Start with Great Sake

The great thing about sake for a pairing party is that you can stick with one brand that offers different variations based on how much the rice has been polished.

I was recently introduced to Moon Bloom Sake, and it’s quickly become my favorite because it is an all-female brand down to the 5th generation toji (master brewer) Mami Wakabayashi. The number of female tojis in the world is barely double digits because it was once believed that menstrual cycles made for unsuitable brewers.

Partners Ruriko Yamada and Shana Atwood formed Moon Bloom to share Wakabayashi’s story and rescued the 120-year-old brewery in Nagano, Japan, in the process. It’s a small-batch craft sake with two special varietals available in Los Angeles and a third that will be available in May of 2022.

For your Sake and Cheese Pairing serving Moon Bloom, follow this order:

1. Junmai Daiginjo – To Qualify as a Junmai Daigingo, the rice must be polished down to 50% or less. Moon Bloom polishes to 49% of its original size.
2. Moon Bloom Junmai Ginjo Genshu – Must be polished to 60% or less to be a Junmai Ginjo.
3. “Kunoichi” Yamahai Junmai – This one has no rice polishing requirement and has been polished to 70%.

If you’d like to use a brand other than Moon Bloom, then be sure it’s been made in the Pure Rice Style, or Junmai, without alcohol added. You can use a site like Takasan to choose from the levels I have described above. Start with a Junmai Daiginjo, then move on to a Junmai Ginjo Genshu, and finish with a Yamahai Junmai.

If you are local to Los Angeles, I recommend picking up your sake at Vinovore to save on shipping costs. It’s female-owned and operated, and only carries female vintners. Guaranteed you will not find a trendier wine shop in all of Los Angeles.

Let’s Cut to the Cheese 

L.A.-based cheesemonger and pastry chef Leah Park Fierro of Milkfarm offers in-depth pairing combinations for all three levels of sake. Park Fierro recommends that you sip the sake first and then take a bite of your cheese during a sake and cheese pairing. Avoid the other accouterments like nuts or jam until you’re done crafting your sake notes.

1. Junmai Daiginjo: Pair with a creamy Sheep’s Milk Cheese like a Basque Etorki that will let the pure sake shine.
2. Junmai Ginjo Genshu: Pair with a savory, hard cheese like a Parmesan or an ALP Blossom to balance out this sake’s “thick” characteristics, which has no water added.
3. Yamahai Junmai: Pair with a sharp cheese like cheddar or a Prairie Breeze to balance alongside this “citrusy” sake. Yamahais tend to be on the ” yeastier” side due to a natural fermentation process instead of lactic acid.

Finish with Fruit

Save the fruit that might typically accompany the cheese for a delicious finish to your sake and cheese pairing party. Grapes are an excellent choice, or you can slice Apples and Melons up. If you’re not overly cheesed out, find a nice Japanese Cheese Cake like Uncle Tetsu that is lighter in texture than the American version. You can see which Junmai it pairs best with and start the party all over again!