Cheese and wine are thought to be the perfect pair, but they can often disagree with one another, just like the rest of us. Many assume that any red wine will make a good bedfellow with any cheeses, but a soft and mild goat’s cheese will be very unhappy coupled with a big bold red. A full-bodied red, like this Chateau Ste Michelle 2009 Merlot, needs a bold cheese that can stand up to it.

Tina Messina, Co-Owner of The Wine ConneXtion in North Andover, Ma, is an expert in helping customers choose the perfect pairing of wine and cheese and she has found not one, but three great matches. Sine the Chateau Ste Michelle 2009 Merlot is packed full of “ripe berry aromas and jammy flavors,” Messina chose an aged goat cheese, a blue cheese and a high quality Italian pecorino. They all go well with this value priced wine, highlighting that full-bodieed style of the wine “holds up well to the distinct flavors” of all three cheeses.

Click here to read the rest of this article and wath the video at the Taste of the Trib from The Eagle Tribune.