7 Perfect Pairing Wines for Our Highland Fine Cheeses!

Apr 22, 2025

At Highland Fine Cheese we specialise in artisan soft cheeses, all made in the Highlands of Scotland, our most famous of which is an Annatto wash rind soft cheese - Minger. We've partnered with our friends at Corney & Barrow to find the perfect wine pairings for our range of cheeses and they've come up trumps for us.

Why is it so important to get the right wine pairing to your cheese? The 2 sides have so many complexities to them and extremities. Finding a perfect balance between the saltiness of the cheese with the sweetness of the wine. A wine with very harsh tannins can be improved by a cheese with higher fat as it can soften the tannin. Finding a balance between a very rich cheese and an earthy wine. All of these considerations can overall improve the experience of both your wine and your cheese consumption, in some cases elevating it to a new level.

It's a complicated business, which is why we've been working with Corney & Barrow to give you our best advice. But remember no pairing is wrong - finding the right pairing can be a very personal experience. But why not start here?

Blue Cheese

A classic ‘cheese and wine’ combination is Blue Cheese with a sweet wine.

STRATHDON BLUE, soft and more complex than most Blues with bold cracks and streaks, this creamy, juicy cheese yields to the touch and fills the mouth with a delightfully fudgy texture, finishing on balanced notes of salt and steel. Pair this with - Noble Reserve Trockenbeerenauslese Burgenland Weingut Kracher NV

The Kracher family has built its reputation on exceptional Trockenbeerenauslese sweet wines, made from grapes affected by ‘noble rot’. For this cuvée, up to ten different vintages were blended together to create a decadent, complex, refined sweet wine with remarkable freshness.

You need nothing more than a “Kracher”, to enjoy with this blue! This “Kraching” pairing with Strathdon Blue, complements the intense creaminess and saltiness of the cheese. There’s something so right about this combination. Weighing in at a remarkable 181g/l, the sugar levels the freshness and intensity of the wine is just perfect.

Wine Tasting Note: Honey and toast on the nose, with exotic fruit aromas – mango, and passionfruit. Unctuously textured with peach, yellow plum and candied lemon flavours. Complex maple syrup character, sweet spice and an uplifting fresh finish.

Noble Reserve Trockenbeerenauslese Burgenland Weingut Kracher NV Halves | Kracher

Noble Reserve Trockenbeerenauslese

BLUE MURDER, a blue with a slightly smoother paste but similiar taste profile to our Strathdon Blue. Pair this with - Corney & Barrow Ruby Finest Reserve Port NV

This is a ruby Port from longstanding Corney & Barrow supplier, Wine & Soul, based in the Douro’s beautiful Pinhao valley. Wine & Soul is the brainchild of Sandra Tavares da Silva and her husband Jorge Serôdio Borges, both winemakers of world acclaim. This is a blend of Ports from the estate which are matured in large casks and aged on average for 6 years in large oak vats on site.

The perfect partner in crime for Blue Murder. The sweetness and fruitiness of the port matches harmoniously with the saltiness and strong savoury notes of Blue Murder, creating a perfect partnership between sweet and savoury.

Wine Tasting Note: Deep ruby in colour, velvety intensity of blackcurrant and cherry, laced with pepper, on both the nose and palate – supported by silken tannins. Simple sumptuous and a ‘classic’ combination with most cheeses but particularly good with the Blue Murder.

Ruby Finest Reserve Port NV

Brie

Brie pairs well with white wines with more acidity as this complements the creaminess of the cheese

MORANGIE BRIE, named after the Glen of Tranquility, when ripe is a rich creamy paste with elegant mushroomy and grassy undertones. Pair with La Bergerie Chardonnay Vin de France François Carillon 2021.

Domaine François Carillon, although recently founded, can trace its ancestry back to the 16th Century, with François himself the sixteenth generation of farmers. The Domaine is borne of Domaine Louis Carillon, Louis being François’ father, now retired. François began working with his father and brother Jacques in 1988. Fascinated from the outset by the vines and their environment, the vineyard became François’ main focus and remains paramount today. François and his brother took over the family Domaine on their father’s retirement. For family reasons, in 2010 they elected amicably to split the estate holdings and thus Domaine François Carillon was established.

Chardonnay is a natural ‘go to’ grape for brie – there is just a lovely combination of yeasty, brioche and stone fruits flavours with nice underlying acidity that just simply works! A melt in your mouth pairing.

La Bergerie is true to its home in Languedoc, in the south of France, with the perfume, richness and joyful stone-fruit that entails. The wine has a wonderful acidity and minerality, married with subtle notes of oak, and a rich creaminess.

La Bergerie Chardonnay Vin de France Francois Carillon 2021 | Carillon (Francois) (Negociant)

La Bergerie Chardonnay

Crowdie

Traditional soft Scottish cheeses pair well with a light-bodied, crisp white wine like Sauvignon Blanc, or a dry Riesling, as these wines complement its fresh and tart flavours.

BLACK CROWDIE is fresh, creamy, sour tasting and crumbly! Yes - all of these things. Black Crowdie has been likened to cottage cheese but with added spiciness, due to the inclusion of peppercorns. The pepper can blow your socks off, it’s about as subtle as an earthquake. Ideally paired with Manoella 10YO Tawny Port Wine & Soul NV.

Established in 2001 by Sandra Tavares da Silva and Jorge Serôdio Borges, both winemakers and couple, that have been investing and acquiring old vineyards and properties at Douro Valley, in Portugal. All grapes previously selected and non de-stemmed were foot trodden in stone Lagares. The aging was developed in 630L seasoned Portuguese chestnut casks for over 10 years.

A surprise pairing for the Corney & Barrow team but in the words of one of our Account Managers, “God, aye! That works!”. The sweet, raisined fruit character & freshness of the Tawny Port marries the peppery spice of the Black Crowdie perfectly.

Wine Tasting Note - Beautiful and deep golden-amber colour. Complex and fresh aromas of nuts combined with honey and figs. On the palate is very rich with mellow fruit flavours and very long finish.

Manoella 10YO Tawny Port

SKINNY CROWDIE, sister to our Black Crowdie, light and creamy with a faint hint of lemon and soft curd texture. Recommended to pair with Die Agteros Chenin Blanc Joostenberg Estate 2023

Joostenberg is a small, family-owned and run wine farm, in Muldersvlei on the border of Paarl and Stellenbosch. Their aim was to create wines with individuality and a sense of place, made as naturally as possible, with respect for the environment. To this end, the estate was converted to organic methods (certified 2012) and remains one of the few fully certified organic estates in South Africa.

The wine’s name is derived from an old Afrikaans saying: “the hind ox gets there eventually”. In the days when oxen were used to pull carts, the youngest would start at the rear. As it got stronger it would work its way to the front of the cart. It’s a reference to the vineyard, which took a long time to prove itself, but is now a favourite.

The light and creamy texture of the Skinny Crowdie balances the refreshing nature of the Die Agteros and brings out the herbal character of the wine.

Wine Tasting Note - A delicate wine with a complex array of aromas and flavours. Baked apples, honey and flint, balanced by the refreshing citric acidity and chalky texture characteristic of the Chenin Blanc grape.

Die Agteros Chenin Blanc Joostenberg Estate 2023 | Joostenburg

Die Agteros Chenin Blanc

Semi-hard and hard cheese

Cheddar, Manchego, Emmental, Gruyere, Edam and Gouda, are best paired with red wine with medium tannins.

FAT COW, unique and sitting somewhere between Gruyere and Emmental in appearance and flavour. It is buttery, nutty, sweet and milky with a hint of orchard fruits and dairy cow in the aroma and taste.This smooth waxy textured semi-hard cheese is best paired with Alma de Unx Garnacha Navarra 2022

Produced by Bodegas San Martin, which owns vineyards in the middle of the low mountain landscape of the Baja Montaña region of Navarra. This is characterized by rolling hills that offer a unique terroir for the Garnacha vine. The vines are on average over 50 years old and stand at an altitude of 600 meters. From these grapes, Bodegas San Martin produces a finely spicy red wine with subtle acidity.

The Fat Cow is flavoursome cheese with complexity, and why it is perfectly paired with Alma de Unx Garnacha which also shares the same complexity of fresh fruit and powerful structure.

Wine tasting note - A well-balanced, red-berried, lively wine. Aromas of red fruit and floral notes, well integrated with lightly toasted notes from oak. Powerful, structured, flavourful, and fruity on the palate. A perfect combination of the fruitiness of Garnacha and the freshness that the region imparts into this wine.

Alma de Unx Garnacha Navarra 2022 | San Martin de Unx (Bodegas)

Alma de Unx Garnacha Navarra

Washed Rind Cheese

A washed rind cheese gets it bold flavours from the bacteria developing in the washing process! These stinky cheeses are often paired with Epoisses, Maroilles, Munster, Langres.

MINGER, our infamously stinky rind-washed cheese. Mildly nutty and lemony, hinting at flavours of the farmyard but becoming decadently pungent and runny when ripe. Pair this with - Côtes-du-Rhône Nobles Origines Tardieu-Laurent 2021

Tardieu-Laurent is essentially a super-selective négociant-éleveur, family owned and run. Michel Tardieu is at the helm working alongside his oenologist son Bastien with his wife Michelle and daughter Camille on administration. The concept of the company centres around Michel’s and increasingly Bastien’s Tardieu's abilities in sourcing small parcels of designated wines from quality fruit, then taking care of their élevage in the Tardieu’s cellar in Lourmarin. Michel has worked tirelessly to build relationships with small growers, over many years, encouraging best practice and sourcing, in the main, low production, old vine fruit.

The fruity and nutty notes of Minger match the distinguished, ripe red-berry fruit of the wine. The 2021 was a cool vintage, giving the wine a more peppery note complementing the spice of the Annatto covering of the Minger.

Wine Tasting Note: 65% Grenache/35% Syrah blend. A gorgeous focus of sweet, ripe red-berry fruit, violets, toast, spice, herbs & pepper leading to lovely round mouth-filling palate, supple polished tannins with enough grip and structure.

Cotes-du-Rhone Nobles Origines Tardieu-Laurent 2021 | Tardieu-Laurent

Cotes-du-Rhone Nobles Origines Tardieu Laurent 2021

We've included links to Corney & Barrow for you to order any of these wines. As you'll know our own cheeses are available to purchase both online (on our website with weekly delivery options) and at a growing list of suppliers across the UK. Check out our Locator Map to see if you can find a location near you.

Our Cheese Stockists