Undurraga Rosé and Campestre Goat Cheese
We told you there would be more wines by Undurraga! This time we’ll taste their rosé. And this cheese, I know you can all imagine how excited we were to find an aged cheese made with goat’s milk here in Costa Rica. We came across it at the grocery store that we visit most often, Luferz. We go there every week and it wasn’t until about a month of visits that we noticed this brand of cheeses, Monte Azul in the refrigerated section. They have have over a dozen different cheeses and they refer to themselves as artisan. We all know what that means ?
As we started to identify aromas of the wine, we noticed much more than we usually do. I was first reminded of the sparkling Lambrusco from my online tasting with Chris at Wine101. I remember thinking that wine smelled like makeup, what a strange aroma for wine! Then I thought a little harder and said it was kind of like perfume and floral. It didn’t stop there, also tart, soft, maybe smoky or burnt? Neil picked up roses, butter and strawberry aromas. He was more confused by the flavors he tasted when he identified spiced meat, tartness and a delicate fruit finish. I agreed that it was tart with spice but also noticed a softness with a hint of sweetness and a light texture. We found it to be a wine with many faces!
Our initial time with the Campestre cheese was all we could have imagined. It looked like cheese, smelled like cheese and even sliced like cheese! Ok maybe we’re getting a little carried away. I picked up salt, funk and cooked milk aromas. Neil noticed salt, funk and grassy aromas. I was certainly excited that it had a harder texture than most here. I didn’t think the cheese was that creamy but it did interact with my tongue. The texture seemed kind of squeaky when I chewed it as well. Neil felt that it retained that token Costa Rican spongy texture. We identified funk, salt, grass, and cooked milk flavors with a spice finish and a flavor that lingered. Our rating, pretty darn good!
During our pairing of Undurraga rosé and Campestre cheese, we were curious to see how the wine and cheese would interact with each other. I noticed the wine still smelled like perfume but it did soften nicely and there was spice. Just after he sipped the wine and had a bite of cheese, Neil picked up a flavor of cherry jolly rancher. He found the cheese to make the wine mellow and it reminded him of a lightly tart, somewhat buttery chardonnay. The wine influenced the cheese too. Neil thought it brought out the milk flavor. I smelled the same funk and cooked milk aromas in the cheese but it wasn’t salty anymore. We really enjoyed this pairing because it was the first wine and cheese in a while where they really played well together.
Do you #drinkpink often? We have been trying quite a few rosés in the past 6 months and we are always curious to taste more. I think the reason we celebrate #yeswayrose is because it is pretty versatile and great in the warmer weather. We were both definitely surprised to find out that this wine was made from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. We never would have guessed from the floral aromas and buttery flavors. Have you found a rosé you’d like to share? We’d love to hear about it, tweet @winecheesefri or tag us on FB @wineandcheesefriday!
