What do you do to celebrate over 400 awards for our cheeses and 140 awards for our wines? Get some of our favourites together for a cheese and wine matching evening!
We invited Alex James, musician and cheese maker, and Tim Atkin, Master of Wine and wine critic to join our in-house experts, Win Merrells, Cheese Developer and Ryan Carter, Winemaker to lead an evening of cheese and wine.
Along with the cheese and expert wine matches we (the food and drink team) have thrown in our own opinions so if you try any of the matches do leave us a comment below!

Bodnant Valley White
This distinct cheese has a slight lemon and lactic character with some sweet notes and a firm slightly crumbly texture. Local milk is turned into big truckles of cheese which are matured traditionally on wooden shelving for the cheese to reach perfection.
Tim Atkin’s Wine: Taste the Difference Languedoc Red (14%) Dark purple in colour, this wine is full of black fruit flavours and toasted spice aromas with layers of flavour and a complex intensity on the finish.
Ryan Carter’s Wine: Taste the Difference Priorat (14.5%) Priorat is a powerful red wine from Catalunya. A lovely deep red colour with heady aromas of black fruits, vanilla and toasted almonds.
Our verdict: Both wines worked really well but the Languedoc Red was just a little bit smoother for us. We liked it that it didn’t overpower the subtle sweetness.

Taste the Difference Chabichou
A distinctive goats’ cheese with a rich creamy texture. Full fat mould ripened soft cheese made with pasteurised goat’s milk.
Tim Atkin’s Wine: Taste the Difference Pouilly-Fumé (12.5%) Rich, almost exotic fruit flavours underpin the fine gooseberry and peach character in this classically smoky Pouilly Fumé.
Ryan Carter’s Wine: Winemakers’ Selection Côtes de Gascogne (11.5%) Our winemakers have combined Sauvignon Blanc and Colombard grapes to give an intense floral nose and delicate flavours of passion fruit and lemon zest.
Our verdict: Both of these worked brilliantly with the gooey wedge of Chabichou and we would happily enjoy both! This was too tough, The Côtes de Gascogne is excellent value so we’d pick this, but the Pouilly-Fumé as a treat.

Blue Monday
A blue veined soft cheese with a piquant blue taste, which is indulgently creamy and soft. Made for Alex James Presents by the multi award winning Shepherds Purse Artisan Cheesemakers. Hand made in small batches on the family farm in Yorkshire.
Tim Atkin’s Wine: Taste the Difference Sauternes (13.5%) A lusciously sweet wine from the Sauternes region of Bordeaux Hints of honeyed apricot & white peach
Ryan Carter’s Wine: Taste the Difference 12 year old Oloroso Sherry 50cl (20%) a dark amber dry Sherry with intense aromas of dried fruit with a hint of liquorice and flavours of toffee and walnuts. It was awarded the Champion Fortified Trophy at this year’s International Wine Challenge Awards.
Our verdict: James’ cheese is out of this world, it has amazing texture and according to the man himself it is a great match with a hoppy beer. Two quite different choices with this cheese but there was no doubt that despite both packing a punch on flavour they stood up well to this exceptionally tasty cheese. The room was split but we were swayed by the Oloroso purely because I believe Sherry should get more praise for being a brilliant match for cheese.

Taste the Difference Piave
Italian hard cheese, made with pasteurised milk. Extra matured for a minimum of 12 months, this hard cheese has a great depth of flavour with some sweetness.
Tim Atkin’s Wine: Taste the Difference Barbaresco (14%) This wine is rich and powerful, delivering an intense palate of ripe red berries, black cherries balanced by an uplifting acidity and notes of liquorice and truffle
Ryan Carter’s Wine: Taste the Difference Aglianico del Vulture(14%) Deep ruby red in colour, this elegant wine is powerful with a complex bouquet, intense notes of ripe plum, cherry and blackberry, all elevated by a hint of warming spice.
Our verdict: Two pretty big wines here and two wines that we adore, so this was really tough but the slight earthy truffle notes in the Barbaresco paired so brilliantly with the Piave that we had an extra sip, or two.

Taste the Difference Welsh Slate Cavern Aged Cheddar
Exclusively developed with Sainsbury’s. This cheese is matured at the creamery for 11 months and then taken 500 feet underground in the Llechwedd Slate Caverns within the depths of Snowdonia and allowed to mature for a few months in the slate maturation cavern. This traditional process gives the cheese unique characteristics; a firmer body and depth of flavour with rich savoury notes.
Tim Atkin’s Wine: Taste the Difference Douro (14%) A blend of traditional Portuguese grape varieties, with concentrated wild berry fruit flavours, hints of vanilla and spice, and a soft, smooth finish.
Ryan Carter’s Wine: Taste the Difference Tanunda Barossa Red Blend (14%) Sweet ripe, perfumed nose and palate. Lovely bonfire notes.
Our verdict: Cheddar may be a common cheese but this Welsh Slate Cavern is anything but ordinary. Its rich texture needed some fruity but smooth to complement it well.

Vintage Gruyère
Sweet but slightly salty, with a flavour that varies widely with age. It is often described as creamy and nutty when young, becoming with age more assertive, earthy and complex.
Tim Atkin’s Wine: Taste the Difference 12 Year Old Amontillado Sherry (19%) This tawny coloured dry Sherry has a savoury character with notes of salted almonds and raisins.
Ryan Carter’s: Wine Sainsbury’s Madeira 37.5cl (17.5%) is a fortified Portuguese wine made in the Madeira Islands. It is matured at high temperatures to develop its characteristic style, honeyed with rich raisiny flavours and notes of caramel toffee with a long satisfying finish.
Our verdict: Another match that divided the room but the Madeira was better than we we’re expecting. The honeyed textured worked brilliantly but if you want a more savoury taste then the Amontillado Sherry might be for you.