Study shows that eating cheese actually makes wine taste better

If you're not having a plate of Brie with your Pinot, you might want to reconsider. A new study published in the Journal of Food Science suggests that eating cheese might actually make wine taste better.

The study had 31 wine and cheese consumers from France evaluate four different wines on their own and combined with different cheeses. The four wines –Pacherenc, Sancerre, Bourgogne and Madiran – were tasted alongside four cheeses – Epoisses, Comté, Roquefort, Crottin de Chavignol.

According to the researchers: "Results showed that cheese consumption had an impact on dominance, duration of attributes and on preference for most wines." The example given in the abstract said that all the cheese reduced the sourness and increased the fruity tastes of the Madiran. None of the cheeses had a negative impact on the evaluations of any of the wines.

Lead author Mara V Galmarini said: "Thanks to our research we learned that the duration of the perception of astringency of a certain wine could be reduced after having cheese and that the four evaluated cheeses had the same effect. In short, when having a plate of assorted cheeses, the wine will probably taste better no matter which one they choose."

The Centre for Taste and Feeding Behaviour in France conducted the study with consumers from the region of Dijon taking part. The researchers said that though the study was too small "to make extended general conclusions on wine's preference, significant changes were observed before and after cheese intake".