Our pairing this week is a 2007 Newton Chardonnay from Newton Vineyards in Oakville, California.

This 2007 chardonnay vintage is delicate, with aromas of crisp apple, pear and toasted bread. Upon tasting, flavors of peach, clove and fresh tangerine balance out this bright and richly textured wine. Very versatile, this wine is a great choice for many foods and goes well with a variety of cheeses, from the fresh and mild, to the aged and complex.

Pair this chardonnay with Crave Brothers Cheese Fresh Mozzarella, Bleu Mont Dairy 10-month Aged Gouda and Gingerbread Jersey Monterey Jack.

Noted as Mozzarella Fresca in Italy, its origin, Fresh Mozzarella was first made with milk from the water buffalo. In Wisconsin, it is most often made with cow’s milk. This cheese is known as a Pasta Filata cheese, which means that the curds are kneaded, then stretched and formed into balls or logs. Moreover, this cheese is not cured in brine or aged like the low-moisture Mozzarella that many are familiar with in the Midwest. Instead, Fresh Mozzarella is eaten when only a few days old, and to keep it fresh, the cheese is submerged in water. Crave Brothers Fresh Mozzarella is a delicate, young, milky cheese that comes as ciliegine (cherry size), bocconcini (ball size) and ovoline (egg size), or in eight-ounce balls and one-pound logs. Fresh Mozzarella is great when served in the traditional Italian manner, caprèse style – with sliced tomatoes and chopped fresh basil, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and seasoned with ground pepper – a great dish with a glass of this week’s chardonnay.

Bleu Mont Dairy, in Blue Mounds, produces uniquely aged Cheddar and Gouda cheese from organic milk of pasture-grazed cows. Bleu Mont Dairy 10-month Aged Gouda is a sweet and nutty cheese, which holds up well in a robust fondue dish, as an appetizer or even as a savory dessert aside a glass of Newton Chardonnay. Notably, Gouda is traditionally pronounced “khow da.”

Monterey Jack is the perfect versatile cheese. It can be flavored with almost any herbs, spices or food profiles. Gingerbread Jersey Monterey Jack comes in several unique flavors, including “Taste of Athens,” “Taste of Bangkok” and “Taste of Sicily.” These different cheese flavors are delicious on inventive pizza and sandwich recipes.

Try making one of these pizza recipes with this week’s Wisconsin Cheese pairings – don’t forget the glass of chardonnay:

Flatbread Pizzas with Wisconsin Mozzarella and Gouda

Mediterranean Pizza with Fresh Mozzarella

Spicy Pepper Jack and Chicken Pizza

Grilled Pizza with Wisconsin Three-Cheese Blend

This week our Wisconsin Cheese Cupid pairing is a 2006 Cambria Chardonnay.

Chardonnay is a white wine made from the chardonnay grape and one of America’s most popular wines. Often aged in oak barrels, it is known as a buttery, rich, crisp wine that is often the driest of white wines. The 2006 Cambria Chardonnay is from Katherine’s Vineyard in Northern Santa Barbara County. Named after the proprietor’s eldest daughter, this wine is aged in French oak barrels and has a sturdy acidity. This vintage is bright with citrus, apple, and vanilla aromas.

Pair a glass of this chardonnay with Silver Lewis Cheese Co-op Brick, Yellowstone Cheese Monterey Jack, or Saxon Homestead Creamery Saxony Tilsit.

Located in Green County, Wisconsin, often known as Wisconsin’s cheese epicenter, Silver Lewis Cheese Co-op is well respected for its Muenster and Brick. Brick cheeses resemble Germany’s surface-ripened Beer Cheese or Beer Käse. Wisconsin cheesemakers produce Brick in mild, medium, and aged varieties. Silver Lewis Cheese Co-op Brick atop Oliveto Pizza is the perfect meal next to the Cambria Chardonnay.

Yellowstone Cheese is located in Cadott, Wisconsin and offers more than 20 different flavors of Monterey Jack, including apple wine, black olive, tomato basil, and bacon ranch. The name Yellowstone Cheese is used because the farm is located on the Yellowstone Trail, which is the first automobile route from Plymouth Rock to Puget Sound. Pair a glass of Cambria Chardonnay with some caraway or vegetable Monterey Jack. Looking for an interesting recipe to use with Monterey Jack? Try these Duck Confit Enchiladas.

Saxon Homestead Creamery is a fifth-generation dairy farm in Cleveland, Wisconsin. The cheese from this producer, Tilsit, is a German-style cow’s milk cheese that is smooth, soft, and buttery. One specific Tilsit, branded Saxony, is a sophisticated cheese with a nutty flavor and supple body. Saxony is made from whole, raw cow’s milk. The cheese has light, dry, washed rind that’s ripened a minimum of 90 days.

It’s mid-November. Beloved Oktoberfest celebrations have come and gone. There’s a crisp breeze felt throughout, at least half of, the country. This can only mean one thing. America’s full-bellied, warm-hearted, turkey-loving holiday is almost here. Thanksgiving.

The season of giving has begun. In spirit of the season, why not share a bright chardonnay and Wisconsin Cheese pairing with family and friends?

The first Wisconsin Cheese Cupid “Pairing of the Week” is a 2006 Pouilly-Fuissé from Daniel et Martine Barraud in Burgundy, France. This chardonnay is 100 percent organic, from grapes harvested by hand and bottled without filtration. This vintage is bright yellow, with a full body and firm acidity. It has notes of pear, tangerine and lemon. Pair it with soft cheeses known for their mild flavor and high moisture content, or semi-soft cheeses known for their melt-in-your-mouth texture. Try this wine with BelGioioso Fresh Mozzarella, Roth Käse MezzaLuna Fontina or Edelweiss Creamery Butterkäse.

BelGioioso Fresh Mozzarella is a soft cheese, with a delicate flavor and texture. It is made from cow’s milk by kneading and stretching the curds. This cheese is not cured or aged, and is kept fresh by being submerged in water. It goes well with bread, in salads and in baked dishes.

Roth Käse MezzaLuna Fontina is a semi-soft, Italian Alpine-style cheese, ideal for melting and blending. It has a meaty flavor with a hint of mushroom. It is delicious with poultry, pastas, seafood and mushroom dishes.

Butterkäse is a semi-soft cheese of German origin, literally meaning “butter cheese.” Edelweiss Creamery Butterkäse is pale yellow, mild, creamy and delicate. Try it with cured meats, fruit and bread.