Port, The Brits and Stilton

[Roy Hersh]

I am being asked to pen a piece on the above topic. Before doing so, I am going to have to learn more about the 3 way connection.

How many of you do enjoy Stilton and Port and if so ... what is your favorite category of Port to go along with Stilton?

The big questions for me remains: where and when did Port and Stilton get its start? Does anybody have a specific answer to this?

[Moses Botbol]

Port and Stilton> Yuck!

Although traditional, I think it's a horrible pairing. There are so many better fitting cheeses to pair with port.

I am curious to hear the history of the two as well.

[Alan C.]

Roy,

I hope you find an interesting answer, but I suspect you wont. To me the 'tradition' is somewhat mundane and goes back to Victorian Britain. Fine dining, which people aspired to was quite formalised. At the end of a meal, there were a few ways you could go to end it. Port was with dessert or shortly after it. So was a selection of cheeses. Another common touch was a bowl of nuts, or chocolate teases. There would often be cigars and brandy, at the very end.
Of course in reality, there was a lot of overlapping, and people began to find their favourites. Cheeses of the time were more prestigious if they were smelly, and Stilton was a classic of that era.
I personally love cigars and port, yet all the modern day anti-smoking laws are so tiresome.
Anyway, as I said, I hope you find a much more fascinating origin, but I suspect it is as I've just explained.

Alan

[Otto Nieminen]

I don't know anything about the history of the combination and am not British, but I like the combination, so I hope you don't mind me replying with some reflections on the nature of the pairing. I generally find cheeses and wines a very difficult match (I prefer good beers with cheese). I have often heard from those more knowledgable than I that there are two ways of pairing food with wines: either provide a similar wine to the food, or then make the wine provide sensations that the food doesn't have in order for the pairing to make a satisfying whole. I think find that the latter is the case with Port and Stilton: the saltiness of the cheese combined with the sweetness of port makes the whole greater than the sum of its parts. This sort of synergy is rare for me with wines and cheeses (Champagne and old Parmigiano Reggiano is one of the few other "halleluja" moments I have had...).

But I think that the texture of the cheese is very important for the pairing. The Stilton I get in Finland is dry in texture and "brittle", so it doesn't coat the mouth. I like other such blue cheeses with port also, but if the cheese is a bit soft, I find that it coats my mouth and makes any wine taste dirty.

Though my tastes are gravitating towards oxidative Port styles, I actually find that I prefer a fruity Port (a maturing VP, say '80's right now) with Stilton the ideal match. I haven't figured out why I don't enjoy woody ports as much (but I am having a great deal of fun experimenting ), so I would love to hear others' views.

-O

[Alex K.]

A few discussions have gone by on this in the past and I mostly think it doesn't work but sometimes it does. I am happy with a tawny and Stilton and sometimes a youngish VP goes well, normally a drier style. However, most of the time the creaminess of the stilton coats the tongue and kills off the Port.

[Moses Botbol]

However, most of the time the creaminess of the stilton coats the tongue and kills off the Port.

I agree with that. Same for any kind blue cheese

[Derek T.]

I will cast the 3rd consecutive vote as a Brit who does not generally think this is a good combination, certainly not with a quality VP. Like Alex, I have often enjoyed a lesser style of port with this or other cheeses but if I have a good glass of port in front of me there will be no cheese, blue or otherwise, to be seen.

As far as I can tell this combination is being kept alive by Marks & Spencer and the UK supermarket chains who sell little wicker baskets with a small bottle of ruby port and a lump of stilton as Christmas gifts. The most hilarious example I have seen of this was one sold to my ex-mother-in-law as a gift for me on Christmas Day about 10 years ago that had a "Best Before" date of 20th December

Derek

[Todd Pettinger]

I have refrained from commenting simply because I do not like Blue Cheese period, but on the two occasions where I have tried blue with Port, I have disliked it both times. (I thought maybe the combination of the Port would make the blue cheese more bearable... sadly, I was mistaken.)

[JacobH]

As far as I can tell this combination is being kept alive by Marks & Spencer and the UK supermarket chains who sell little wicker baskets with a small bottle of ruby port and a lump of stilton as Christmas gifts. The most hilarious example I have seen of this was one sold to my ex-mother-in-law as a gift for me on Christmas Day about 10 years ago that had a "Best Before" date of 20th December

The only good things about those “sets” is that they are massively discounted immediately after Christmas (albeit if the cheese is still in date…). If you are the sort of person who likes blue cheese, then you can pick up a “deluxe” one, with a full bottle of something like a 10yo Tawny, at the same price that the cheese would normally sell for. It’s probably the only time of the year where one can get a free bottle of Port!

-Jacob

[Richard Henderson]

As we so often say here on this board, it is a matter of taste and personal preference. This is one Texan ( I have never supported a Bush) who likes port and Stilton very much with ruby port, butter, whole meal biscuits and roasted walnuts. Maybe some Brits are ignorant of the best way to enjoy this traditional pairing. The Stilton must be high creamy quality. Some of it gets old and starts to taste of amonia. When it is fresh and creamy , with the biscuits, it is superb. It has been a dessert tradiion at our house for 20 or more years. When it is done right , there is no better pairing. If done wrong it can be awful.

[Derek T.]

As we so often say here on this board, it is a matter of taste and personal preference. This is one Texan ( I have never supported a Bush) who likes port and Stilton very much with ruby port, butter, whole meal biscuits and roasted walnuts. Maybe some Brits are ignorant of the best way to enjoy this traditional pairing. The Stilton must be high creamy quality. Some of it gets old and starts to taste of amonia. When it is fresh and creamy , with the biscuits, it is superb. It has been a dessert tradiion at our house for 20 or more years. When it is done right , there is no better pairing. If done wrong it can be awful.

I will cast the 3rd consecutive vote as a Brit who does not generally think this is a good combination, certainly not with a quality VP. Like Alex, I have often enjoyed a lesser style of port with this or other cheeses

Richard,

I don't think our views are far apart. My point, and I think that of some of my fellow Brits, is that the combination works best when the quality of stilton is high and the quality of port is low. A good stilton will do a cheap ruby port many favours by making it very quaffable. However, any stilton or other strong cheese will be an unwelcome distraction and a bad influence on a quality VP. I totally agree with the view that doing it the right way is essential. I don't think that is a view based on ignorance, but based on experience of seeing it done badly many times.

Derek

[Richard Henderson]

I have had the Stilton port combo work with high quality VP's and prefer them with the Stilton. Maybe I am ignorant here or do not know any better but I have had it many times as a dessert course after a fine meal with the best VP's, not the lowest quality. It is simply my personal prefernce and my wife's.

We try the port alone and with the Stilton, buttered cheese biscuits and roasted walnuts. Maybe we will try it sometime with cheap ruby .

[Alex K.]

I have a great fondness for Stilton, it is one of my favourite cheeses. I am a big fan of both Cropwell Bishop and Colston Basset with Long Clawson having the honour of being the one I can get huge wheels of at extraordinarily low prices yet still high quality. There are only three other producers: Dairy Crest, Tuxford and Tebbutt and Quenby Hall. I have tried all six at various ages and am convinced that the best age is about two to three weeks after its sell-by date. At this point the cheese becomes crumblier and creamier, losing its sharpness. Much longer than this the mould takes over and it becomes less appealing.

I like tawnies with Stilton as they can break through the creaminess better. I am not a big fan of cheap ruby but a youngish VP can work well. I had Croft 1977 with a Colston Basset from Neal's Yard and it was a good combination: the Croft has a dry and slightly acidic finish which is dulled by the creaminess thus allowing the fruits to come more to the fore. I've found other VPs are just killed off by this cheese so I find a way of cleansing my palate afterwards and taking the Port clean.

I love Port and Stilton but not together.

[Alan C.]

Roy,

As I suspected, no clear answer as to origin. Have you had any luck elsewhere? Or are you going to have to go with my generalised version?

Alan

[Roy Hersh]

No definitive answer so far Alan. Also I think that when Derek mentioned (paraphrasing) high quality Stilton is best paired with a low quality Port, I wonder if he is talking about a lower category of Port, or truly a cheap poorly made Port?

[Derek T.]

No definitive answer so far Alan. Also I think that when Derek mentioned (paraphrasing) high quality Stilton is best paired with a low quality Port, I wonder if he is talking about a lower category of Port, or truly a cheap poorly made Port?

Just to clarify, I'm not talking about Cruz Ruby here. What I meant was that some of the lower end red ports such as Reserves and LBVs that some here may find a little bland or harsh to drink on its own may benefit from being paired with a good cheese.

Cruz Ruby cannot be saved

Derek

[Roy Hersh]

That is why I thought you meant and I agree. Some LBVs and Ruby Reserve Ports which have a bit of heat or even some over ripe tannins can easily be tamed by the flavors and ph of cheese, Stilton especially, but others as simple as Brie too.

[Glenn E.]

I have found that a good English Coastal Cheddar will mellow out and offset the strong tannins of a lower level and/or young Port quite well. My favorite comes from Ford Farms and you can usually find it at Costco or QFC here in the Seattle area.

A Coastal cheddar has a sweet note to it even though I would classify it as at least a "medium" cheddar.

[Roy Hersh]

More information as to the origin of Stilton cheese, as the owner of The Bell Inn sent me an email with a link to his site and let me know that:

Renowned as the birthplace of Stilton Cheese and situated in the village of Stilton, The Bell has stood on its present site since 1500, though earlier incarnations, (as long as 1437) have been recorded.
The current buildings date from 1642.

Equally fascinating are the tales of more recent guests. In the early days the Great Duke of Marlborough was a notable guest. Earlier still, Cromwell's troops were here. Cromwell himself was based at Huntingdon only 12 miles south of Stilton. In 1725 Lord Harley tasted and disliked the cheese sold at the Bell. On October 3rd 1813 Lord Byron slept there. These figures, however, did not popularise the Bell as much as the 18th Century Innkeeper, Cooper Thornhill.

Thornhill was landlord from 1730 to his death in 1759, aged 54. He is invariably referred to as the man who popularised Stilton Cheese, which was served, mites and all, at the Bell.

Theories about the origins of Stilton Cheese are legion. According to most accounts it was never made in Stilton. There was a locally made cheese in the early 1700's but it could not compete with the popularity of the rich Stilton Cheese. Tradition has it that the famous cheese was first made by Mrs. Paulet, housekeeper at Quenby Hall in Leicestershire, just south of Melton Mowbray. She supplied the cheese to her brother-in-law Cooper Thornhill at the Bell. He served the cheese and named it after the village. Soon the cheese's fame began to spread. By the time Daniel Defoe wrote his Tour Through the Whole Island of Great Britain (1724-27), he could say that he "passed through Stilton, a town famous for cheese". The cheese was made at least as early as 1720, if not earlier. More significantly, its association with the innkeeper of the Bell put both the cheese and the village on the map.

[Derek T.]

Great story, Roy.

I've been to The Bell with Tom a number of times. It's a great example of an old English pub and a fantastic venue for an Off-line. Perhaps we should have it on the list for October?

Derek