Why It's Hard To Pair Cheese With Scotch (And The Best Cheese To Pair It With)

Pairing whiskey with cheese can be a daunting prospect thanks to all the big, bold flavors involved. That's especially true when your drink of choice is a smoky, peaty Scotch whisky rather than another type of whiskey. But it's not impossible to find a perfect partner. To get some expert advice, Food Republic consulted John Montez, Assistant Manager of Education at Murray's Cheese, to discover how to match dairy with the dram.

The reason it's tricky to find a cheese that tastes great alongside a smoky whiskey comes down to the very thing that gives the drink its distinctive aroma and flavor. "The phenols released from the peat can easily become astringent if paired with a cheese that has a lot of bitterness or umami," Montez explains. In the places where you'll find the peatiest Scotch whiskies, such as the Scottish island of Islay, the barley used to make the whisky absorbs the smoke from burning peat fires. That act of lighting the peat produces several phenolic compounds, such as phenol and guaiacol, which affect how intensely smoky the resulting whisky smells and tastes.

Rather than umami-rich cheeses, it's worth looking for something with a sweeter flavor profile which won't be tainted or overwhelmed by this powerful smokiness. "I recommend an aged Gouda like Ballerina Aged Goat Gouda or L'Amuse Gouda," says Montez. The caramel and nutty notes within aged Gouda enhance the peaty flavors of Scotch whisky, which in turn brings out the sweetness of the cheese.

Gouda gets its sweetness from the way the curds are washed in hot water, which reduces the amount of lactic acid produced. Aged Gouda — the type cheese expert John Montez likes to pair with smoky Scotch — means the cheese is stored for between nine months and two years to mature. This aging process changes both the texture and flavor. It becomes harder and more crumbly, with crunchy crystals and notes of butterscotch, or brown butter.

Montez's picks are especially flavorsome. The Goudas from L'Amuse in the Netherlands, some of which are exported to America, are aged at a slightly higher temperature than usual. This gives them a delicious complexity — think notes of rich burnt caramel and toasted hazelnut. Ballerina Aged Goat Gouda, meanwhile, combines sweet caramelized flavors with the subtle tang of goat milk plus a little saltiness. Try pairing the aged Goudas with single malts from Scotland's different whisky regions, such as a supremely smoky Laphroaig, or the lighter and more florally peated flavor of Highland Park.

If you're not a fan of Gouda, there are other aged cheeses you could match with peaty Scotch. Aged Parmigiano-Reggiano or parmesan work well with even the smokiest of spirits, or try aged Pecorino Romano with an earthy, slightly briny Talisker. Or for a different style altogether, go for creamy yet tangy and slightly salty Roquefort with a sweeter style of smoky whisky such as Lagavulin.