Cheese and Wine Pairing of the Week - 21/3/19

This week, we’re pleased to be showing off “lesser known” regions of cheese and wine in our Cheese and Wine Pairing of the Week, so we’re going in depth on a Haut-Poitou Sauvignon Blanc, and blue cheese from Nottinghamshire.

Haut-Poitou is the AOC-appellation for wines from the area around the city of Poitiers, in western central France. It covers red, white and rosé wines, mostly from Sauvignon Blanc, Gamay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.
Hardly a well-known wine-growing area, Haut-Poitou's location is perhaps best described in terms of its proximity to the nearest key wine-growing areas – Saumur and Chinon. Poitiers, the town at the centre of the appellation, lies a full 50 miles from Saumur, showing how separate it is from the rest of the Loire vineyards.

‘Ohh! Poitou’ Sauvignon Blanc is our Wine of the Week from this region, coming in at £13.49 a bottle. It is a crisp and fresh style of Sauvignon Blanc with intense floral and fruity aromas, as well as tropical and citrus fruit notes. If you like this style of wine, you may want to check out our Spring Collection!
This “in your face” freshness perfectly balances out the savoury notes of our Cheese of the Week – Stichelton, made in Welbeck, Nottinghamshire. The name is derived for the old English 'Stichl' meaning a style and 'Tun' meaning village or hamlet, as they were told that they were not allowed to use the name “stilton” due to the fact that they use raw cow’s milk as opposed to pasteurised cow’s milk to make the cheese! Stichelton can have a multitude of long lasting flavours ranging from fresh green apples (which really compliments our wine choice!) to beef stock. It has a juicy acidity and toasty, biscuity notes towards the rind. The texture is soft and creamy.

While it is a blue cheese, the makers Joe Schneider and Randolph Hodgson don’t set out to make the vein-iest cheese possible. Stichelton begins white and crumbly and as it matures the blue softens this white, crumbly paste into a smooth rich cream colour. They believe that “It is the effect of the blue that is the thing to eat rather than the blue itself.”

So give our Cheese and Wine Pairing of the week a go – and remember you get 20% off our cheese when you purchase our pairing in store!