Ellie’s Cookbook: Pairing Burgundy Wine and Cheese

Epoisses de Bourgogne

A Look Into Burgundy Wine and Cheese Pairings

Here in Burgundy, we’re not only blessed with a multitude of world-class wines — we’re also fortunate enough to have some of the best cheeses in the world to accompany them. There’s an astounding array, a real smorgasbord of styles and flavors, so that there is something to fit all tastes and preferences. 

In this article we’ll explore some of the different types of Burgundy cheese, and then look at some great ideas for what dishes to make with them (and of course, what wines to pair them with). For this, we need look no further than Ellie Garvin’s cookbook At Home in Burgundy: The Papillon Recipes. It’s a selection of over 100 of her most popular recipes collected during the 25 years she has lived in France. A professional cook, she left the US in 1983 to learn French cuisine. Since then, her work with Papillon cruises and tours (as well as her collaboration with Elden Selections) has taken her to the culinary hot spots of Europe. But her home is in Burgundy, at the Domaine de Cromey, and these recipes reflect the rich, pastoral countryside that holds her there.  

Don’t worry if it seems there’s a lot to take in – the best way to learn (and the real joy of Burgundy gastronomy) is to dive in and try as much as you can. Experiment until you find what works for you.  There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to Burgundy wine and cheese pairings and the cuisine of Burgundy; it’s a broad church, where all pilgrims on the search for their true gastronomic heaven can find sanctuary...

Routes des Grands Crus Points The Way to Cheese

Burgundy Cheese: The Basics

• Cheeses made from cow’s milk are some of the most well-known of Burgundy cheeses, including such titans of the cheese world as Cîteaux and Reblochon (small-batch cheeses made originally by the monks of Cîteaux Abbey). There are also some excellent blue cheeses for those who like that style – look out for Bleu de Bresse, a cheese from the same area as the Bresse chicken, and featuring a washed crust and deliciously creamy texture. You might hear about cheeses which are originally not from Burgundy too – like Chaource, which hails from the Champagne-Ardenne region. 

• Then there are the ‘washed’ cheeses – the word ‘washed’ in this context means a cheese that is treated with brine or another natural agent to encourage a crust or rind to grow and protect the cheese. In this category you’ll find Epoisses, which is washed with a spirit created by the skins of leftover grapes in wine production, known as Marc de Bourgogne. Its flavors have been variously described as pungent and even spicy, but you should be your own judge! Other variations on this theme of strong cheeses include Ami du Chambertin (developed in the 1950s specifically to go with the wines of Gevrey-Chambertin), Soumaintrain, Langres, and Pierre-Qui-Vire.

• Cheeses made from goat’s milk form a third category – these tend to come from the pastures around Chablis in the north of Burgundy, or sometimes from Mâconnais to the south. They range from ultra-fresh so they barely hold together, to little nuggets of concentrated flavor. They include Charolais AOP, made since the 16th century in the south of the region, and pairing wonderfully with aromatic white Burgundy wine. There are some wonderful names to get your tongue around in this category of cheese – almost as “chewy” as the cheeses themselves – such as Bouton de Culotte, Crottin de Morvan, and Clacbitou.

How Ellie Pairs Burgundy Wine and Cheese

Now to Ellie’s cookbook, to see how to make the best use of such fine ingredients as these. First up, a recipe for Shallot, Leek & Époisses Cheese Tart. Époisses is one of those cheeses which is made in Burgundy, with Burgundy wine in mind – you can get it further afield, but it doesn’t travel all that well, which is yet another reason to sample it in situ in the rolling countryside of Burgundy. Everyone says 'red wine with cheese', but these sorts of creamy, heady cheeses go beautifully with the clean, crisp minerality of a chiselled Chardonnay with little or no wood – like the Domaine Borgeot Bourgogne Blanc 'Clos de la Carbonade' (or Clos de Carb as it’s sometimes referred to), for example. From Bouzeron, this wine far outshines appellations much grander than Bourgogne.

Cave Aux Fromages

For those wanting to use goats cheese, then her Goats Cheese Espuma with Garden Summer Salad is an excellent place to start, as it is so simple. You can really add whatever salad ingredients you have to hand, and to drink she recommends a full-bodied white such as one from Rully, by Jean-Baptiste Ponsot.

If lamb is more your thing, then why not combine cheese and lamb in the small but perfectly-formed parcels known as noisettes? Ellie has a recipe for Phyllo Wrapped Lamb Noisettes with Goat Cheese, and she actually uses cheese from a little further afield in the Loire valley, though the wine pairings are Burgundy through and through — a Santenay, with the rustic edge you’re looking for, or maybe a village Nuits-St. Georges; slightly ‘animal’, gutsy, but fruity. 

We’ve talked about Époisses, but let’s also mention Cîteaux. This is one of the most popular Burgundy cheeses, and can be used to make a wonderful Warm Citeaux Salad with a Walnut and Verjus Vinaigrette. Verjus, incidentally, is also found in ‘proper’ Dijon mustard (not the stuff they use vinegar in!) and is made from the juice of unripe grapes. There are certain cheeses that bring out the best in wine, and vice versa. Cîteaux is one of these: red or white, oaked or mineral, delicate or gutsy, all Burgundy wine goes with Cîteaux, and Cîteaux tastes better with wine: you can hardly go wrong! But if we have to choose, let’s go with something elegant like the Domaine Jean Fery Morey Saint Denis, which is ripe and luscious.

Whatever you opt for, try not to over-face your guests with a whole plate of cheeses to choose from; focus on one or two, and tailor the other food and wine to those flavors, so you can all take your time getting to know them. There’ll always be time to get together again and try some more!

Let Us Cook For You At Domaine de Cromey

If you’d prefer to leave the cooking to us, then why not come and be our guest at the Domaine de Cromey? Then you can experience the best Burgundy cheeses paired with wines from our capacious cellar, and taste them together with your friends in the luxurious setting of our manor house. Click here to learn more about our Burgundy house parties, and the activities you can plan for your Burgundy trip of a lifetime. 

Until then, Salut! 

Don’t forget that Elden Selection’s Burgundy Wine Club offers members the chance to find out more about the wines of Burgundy, sending four shipments per year. Members also receive invitations to member only virtual events in the U.S; 2 specially selected wine glasses; tasting notes; and the chance to win a stay at the Burgundy manor house Domaine de Cromey. And to read more about the producers, appellations and terroir of the Burgundy Wine Region, visit our blog.