This would go down as one of my most memorable tasting experiences, pairing a range of seven different ciders and perries from England and Wales, with seven different English cheeses. Cheese & Wine HK was so proud to have collaborated with Authentic Cider to make this event happen and to have it featured as the last event of Hong Kong’s first Cider Festival! Pommelier and Founder of Authentic Cider, Jeremy Stunt, captured the attention of our multinational audience with his deep knowledge and passion about these ciders. The suggested pairings were put to the test and…..here are the results in the order we tasted!
Tunworth: A bloomy rind cow-milk cheese at optimal ripeness, showing orange and light brown spots through the white bloom. A cream coloured paste, velvety soft and oozing richness. A pronounced vegetal bouquet with intense porcini and Brazil nut notes. The palate seduces with a rich buttery mouth-coating sensation, with balanced salt and acidity. Finishes long.
This beautiful award-winning cheese from Hampshire was paired with Herefordshire’s Once Upon A Tree Chapel Pleck 2013, a sparkling dry perry (7% abv), made in the traditional method. Extended ageing on lees (approx. 3 years) contributed layers of soft pear fruit and toasted autolytic complexity to the mineral dry style. The subtle fruitiness left the palate with just a hint of sweet sensation on the crisp dry finish. The pairing worked particularly well with the faint autolytic character enhancing the vegetal/mushroom note of the cheese, the soft but present acidity offering a good buffer for the creaminess of the cheese, and the fine bubbles cleansing the palate after each mouthful.
Absolute consensus on this pairing!
Absolute consensus on this pairing!
Riseley: A joint collaboration between Ann Wigmore and the Neal’s Yard Dairy maturation team, responsible for transforming the freshly made cheese into a deliciously pungent washed rind cheese. There is a sticky golden orange rind with an ivory-coloured paste (with small openings), creamy and soft under the rind and chalky and firm in the core. Under the familiar pungency of washed rind cheese, there is a sweet lanolin and caramel butter cream nuance to balance the savoury and meaty characters. Slightly gritty on the rind, which contrasts so interestingly with the unctuous creaminess of the paste.
This was a hit with the Ross on Wye Raison d'Etre 2016, a sparkling dry cider from Herefordshire. This was made with Dabinett and Michelin apples grown at Broome Farm. Fermented in oak barrels, using wild yeasts and matured for two years. This was bone dry. The wild funkiness of this cider worked so well with the pungent and savoury Riseley, with the acidity of the cider balancing the creaminess of the cheese. There was no question that this was a very good pair!
Appleby’s Cheshire: A great classic handmade since 1952 by the Appleby family, using unpasteurised milk from their herd of Friesian cows. Under the dry natural rind, there was a golden orange firm but slightly granular paste that crumbles. The palate reveals a distinct mineral character, overlaid with fruity, delicately tangy lactic notes and a meat brothy umami nuance that is very appealing. The rich flavours coat the palate, and the tangy and juicy acidity keeps it refreshed. A bittersweet crisp finish. There is a very endearing sense of warmth, which is quite different from the other cheeses.
A bit of an all-rounder with most of the ciders tried, I must admit, but the best pairing was with Little Pomona’s Hazy Ways Part One, 2017 (7.4% abv) from Herefordshire, using 91% Dabinett apples and 9% Ellis Bitter apples. This off-dry lightly petillant cider was made using the cold racking method to retain some of the natural sweetness from the fruit. Fermentation gradually came to a halt by regularly removing the fermenting liquid off the lees, until the natural yeast was exhausted in its job. It was bottled unfiltered. This off-dry cider was juicy, with a hint of apple sweetness, and the remaining lees gave this a rustic yeasty character which paired rather well with the earthy mineral style of Appleby's Cheshire.
Gorwydd Caerphilly: A lovely dual-texture cow-milk cheese now hailing from Somerset, instead of its Welsh origin when Todd Trethowan (former Neal’s Yard Dairy cheesemonger) and his brother Maugan started making this on their Gorwydd farm in South Wales. Made with unpasteurised cow milk, the cheese has a grey/brown natural rind, felt-like and dry to the touch, showing a grey halo under the rind, with an ivory-coloured firm but granular paste that slightly crumbles. Rich lactic and citrus aromas from the paste, moving to pronounced earthy and mushroom notes on the rind. Medium+ acidity and medium salt. As the Appleby Cheshire had a warmth about it, I find that this cheese has a ‘cool character’.
Although this cheese is not from Wales, it did a fabulous job pairing with Hallets Real Cider by Andy Hallett, in Monmouthshire, South Wales. It is a blended cider, made with cider from current year’s fruit and oak-aged vintage cider from the previous year, giving it a unique taste. Almost dry upon entry, this sparkling medium cider (6% abv) then developed a delicate sweetness on the palate, and leaving the palate with a wine-like astringency. This cider showed great craftsmanship and a very classy sophistication, and was the perfect drink with Gorwydd Caerphilly. The semi-dryness and the astringency of the cider complemented so well the rich lactic flavours of the cheese. A marriage made in heaven!
Berkswell: A sheep milk cheese hailing from 16th Century Ram Hall in the West Midlands, made by cheesemaker Julie Hay and the Fletcher family. Shaped in the form of a flattened sphere (or a flyer saucer), the natural brown/grey rind of this cheese shows a fascinating display of multiple coloured moulds, ranging from white to yellow to orange and copper red. Rich buttery aromas, complemented with pineapple, macadamia nuts, savoury, cocoa and caramel notes, and finishing with a mild tangy finish. Beautifully complex, flavourful, and lingers on the palate.
This fabulous cheese was paired with Perry’s Somerset Redstreak (6% abv)……a sparkling medium cider (not perry!!!). The Perry family has been making cider for four generations, and all their ciders are made using natural fermentation with apples within 10 miles of their farm in Somerset. A single varietal cider using Redstreak apples. This cider was lightly sparkling, with a rich apple flavour, and the astringency to complement the natural sweetness. There was a particular depth to this cider, and the finish was very long. We loved the way this cider hit it off with the fruity note of the Berkswell, while not overpowering it. The astringency of the cider was balanced by the caramel sweetness of the cheese, making it a very memorable pairing.
Ticklemore: A goat milk cheese shaped like a flying saucer, with a dry natural rind showing brown/orange colouring through the white chalky coloured surface. Dual texture paste. Soft and yielding ivory-coloured surface-ripened paste under the rind showing more evolved protein breakdown, with the texture of marshmallow-mousse. The core is white chalky that crumbles to the touch. Lemon citrus, fresh almonds, grass and vegetal notes adorn the bouquet. Fresh tanginess and a medium+ salt level help refresh the palate. A cheese with great character, thanks to the complexity of the milk sourced from a herd of mixed breed goats, including Anglo-Nubian, Toggenburg and Saanen goats, raised free-range on Button Farm on Dartmoor.
Originally created by Robin Congdon of Ticklemore Dairy, Ticklemore is now made on the Sharpham Estate in Devon.
This was paired with Oliver’s Classic Perry (5.8% abv), a premium sparkling perry made by Tom Oliver in Herefordshire. Underneath the floral and citrus notes, there was a somewhat ‘wild’ character, with just a touch of uplifting and aromatic acetic acid resulting from the slow fermentation with wild yeasts. Tasty and juicy. The acidity of this sparkling perry was a good match with the tanginess of the cheese and the complexity of the cheese was equally complemented by the perry’s own nuances. I loved the way this perry left a mouthwatering sensation on the palate, quite unique.
Originally created by Robin Congdon of Ticklemore Dairy, Ticklemore is now made on the Sharpham Estate in Devon.
This was paired with Oliver’s Classic Perry (5.8% abv), a premium sparkling perry made by Tom Oliver in Herefordshire. Underneath the floral and citrus notes, there was a somewhat ‘wild’ character, with just a touch of uplifting and aromatic acetic acid resulting from the slow fermentation with wild yeasts. Tasty and juicy. The acidity of this sparkling perry was a good match with the tanginess of the cheese and the complexity of the cheese was equally complemented by the perry’s own nuances. I loved the way this perry left a mouthwatering sensation on the palate, quite unique.
Beenleigh Blue: Originally created to mimic Roquefort, the terroir of Devon has since shaped this sheep milk cheese from Ticklemore Dairy into an awesome blue cheese with its distinct personality. Rindless, blue veins are evenly distributed in the soft ivory-coloured paste. The paste is rich, moist and crumbly with a creamy and opulent texture. Redolent of cocoa butter, caramel, vanilla yoghurt, white chocolate and a hint of pineapple notes, seasoned with spicy blue mould ketones. The cheese melts on the palate and finishes long.
This cheese was simply marvellous with the Blenheim Superb Ice Cider 2015 by Herefordshire’s Once Upon A Tree, made from late harvested Blenheim Orange and Laxton Supeb dessert apples, cryo-concentrated to produce this lusciously sweet cider (7% abv). Balanced by a good dose of acidity, this reminds one of ripe bruised apples, with just a hint of cider funkiness. This was a perfect match.
This cheese was simply marvellous with the Blenheim Superb Ice Cider 2015 by Herefordshire’s Once Upon A Tree, made from late harvested Blenheim Orange and Laxton Supeb dessert apples, cryo-concentrated to produce this lusciously sweet cider (7% abv). Balanced by a good dose of acidity, this reminds one of ripe bruised apples, with just a hint of cider funkiness. This was a perfect match.
A truly memorable evening and a first for Hong Kong! I believe we may even have awakened the dormant interest in real ciders amongst the audience. I hope so because these are great artisanal beverages, crafted by talented and passionate people, in small to very small quantities! And they just work so well with cheese!
Thank you to Jeremy for his support in making this happen and thank you to the staff at Metropolitan Workshop (Central)! Great venue!
Author's note: All cheeses sourced from Neal's Yard Diary.
Author's note: All cheeses sourced from Neal's Yard Diary.
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