The Cheese
Fourme d’Ambert may be my favorite blue cheese, year in year out. If you are lucky enough to find a pristine raw-milk example, its clean ivory paste studded with many small pockets of vibrant, blueprint-blue mold, you’ll discover flavors and aromas that are positively heavenly! Closer to Stilton than Roquefort, this cheese is both piquant and sweet. It is earthier than Danish blue, but not as gamy as Gorgonzola; creamier than Blue d’Auvergne and less salty, too. It is a mystery to me how a cheese can be intensely sharp and subtly complex at the same time, yet Fourme d’Ambert meets this description.

Named for its town of origin and the wooden form used to produce its characteristic horn shape, Fourme d’Ambert has a distinct grayish-brown natural rind that protects the cheese as it ripens. Made from cows’ milk, this ancient cheese is from the mountainous south-central region of France known as Auvergne, in the Massif Central, that is still somewhat wild (for Europe) and under-inhabited. Like Roquefort, France’s other great Blue from this region, this cheese is of somewhat mysterious origins. Fourme d’Ambert was developed prior to good record keeping (or written history, for that matter), and certainly predates Stilton and Shropshire, which it somewhat resembles.

Look for a piece that has a uniform light ivory interior with abundant small pockets of bright blue mold. Avoid pieces that are dried out or show significant browning or graying of the paste; these will be bitter. It is worth the effort to search out a raw milk version of this cheese (legal in this country!), as it displays much more depth of flavor. The original foil should contain the phrase “Au Lait Cru,” which means “of raw milk.”

The Wine
Côtes du Rhone is an AOC (appellation of controlled origin) in southeastern France spread throughout the Rhone Valley. Sirocco winds from North Africa scour this valley, creating a hot, fairly dry climate. The vast majority of the wines made in this region are red (or rosé), and the dominant grape is Grenache. Several grapes are used for blending including Syrah, Mouvèdre, Carignan, Counoise and Terret Noir. Depending on the region and the producer, the blending grapes vary greatly in percentages. This area has had some consistency issues, but with the advent of better viticultural practices and improvements in enology, these are less of a concern today.

There are two distinct levels of quality within this cagtegory: Côtes du Rhone AOC and Côtes du Rhone Village AOC. The Village designation indicates a wine produced in one of 17 authorized villages known for their outstanding grapes. There may even be a specific village denoted, but not always. These wines will be bigger, richer and more full bodied than the standard AOC.

I love these wines with many types of food, cheeses in particular. Too many Americans are familiar with the New World Syrah and “Shiraz,” with their explosive fruit bombs of flavor. The wines of the Rhone are more subtle, drawing flavors from a more varied palette. The result is wines more suited to pair with a wider array of foods. 

The Extras
This pair begs for apples and pears. The apples (Honey Crisps, Fuji or Macintosh) will bring out the sweetness and creaminess in this cheese, while the pears (choose ripe Comice or D’Anjou) accentuate the earthiness and complex mold flavors present in this Prince of Blues. For additional texture and flavor excitement, add honey roasted pecans and smokehouse almonds. This is one pair that can stand up to almost any bread, but I find that a ciabatta or a sweet French baguette will truly allow cheese to shine.

Why it Works
The classic Blue pairings, like Sauterne and Roquefort or Port and Stilton, are based on a seesaw of sweet and salty extremes. This pair is more about a medley of complex earthy flavors from both the cheese and the wine combining with sweet/tart fruit to create perfect harmony among your taste buds. What more could you ask for?

Created for Barbara Admas Beyond Wonderful
by Cheese Expert, Mark "The Cheese Dude" Todd.

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