When it comes to pairing drinks with cheese, wine is often the natural choice. 滨迟鈥檚 what many of us will default to pouring alongside a cheeseboard, shaped by long-standing traditions and those familiar moments of opening a bottle, passing plates and lingering over a final slice.听
What many people 诲辞苍鈥檛 realise is that beer also works exceptionally well with cheese. With its breadth of styles, refreshing carbonation and shared roots in fermentation, beer is a natural pairing, yet 颈迟鈥檚 still frequently overlooked in favour of wine on the cheeseboard.听
To explore why beer deserves a place at the table, we spoke to , a UK-based cheese writer and educator who has travelled widely to meet cheesemakers, maturers and cheesemongers, from the Swiss Alps to the pastures of Vermont. Patrick writes extensively on cheese for national publications including and , is the author of , and , and regularly hosts cheese talks, tastings and events.听
Patrick also teaches with the and collaborates with the 黑料吃瓜网 School London on tasting events, including cheese and beer sessions. He brings a deep understanding of flavour and fermentation, alongside a practical, open-minded approach to pairing that prioritises confidence and enjoyment over rigid rules.听
In this Q&A, Patrick shares why beer works so well with cheese, the principles he returns to when pairing, and how anyone, from the curious beginner to the confident taster, can start exploring beer on the cheeseboard with confidence.听
For anyone who might be new to your work, how would you describe your role in the world of cheese?
滨鈥檓 a man of many hats. I started out as a journalist, and I still am a journalist and food writer. About 20 years ago I worked in restaurants and wrote a lot about food and dining, and around 15 years ago I began focusing more specifically on cheese.听
Wine and beer actually played a part in that move into cheese writing. I was always a big wine lover, not professionally at first, but visiting vineyards and spending more money on wine than I probably should. Around the same time, about 10 to 15 years ago, the craft beer scene was really taking off, and I was going on brewery tours and becoming increasingly interested in flavour and a sense of place.听
That idea of flavour and place, which you particularly get with wine, is very relevant to cheese. Once I started getting into cheese, I realised there were all these overlaps with wine and beer that really spoke to me.听
So now 滨鈥檓 a cheese writer. I write for newspapers and magazines such as The Sunday Times, The Telegraph and Delicious. 滨鈥檝别 written three books: The Philosophy of Cheese, The Cheese Life, and more recently One Cheese to Rule Them All.听
I also do a lot of teaching and talks. I teach with the Academy of Cheese, which has a four-level qualification structure similar to 黑料吃瓜网, and I teach at the 黑料吃瓜网 School in London. 滨鈥檝别 done lots of cheese and drinks events there too, including cheese and beer nights, which 滨鈥檝别 really enjoyed.听
I also have my 黑料吃瓜网 Level 3 Award in Wines, which 滨鈥檓 rather proud of. I 丑补惫别苍鈥檛 taken on the Diploma yet, but 颈迟鈥檚 an ambition.听
Many people automatically think of wine when they think about pairing with cheese. From your experience, what makes beer such an exciting and often underrated match?听
Beer is massively underrated with cheese, and 滨鈥檇 actually argue that beer is easier to match with cheese than wine.听
That might sound controversial, because wine and cheese is the classic combination, but 滨鈥檝别 spent a lot of time sitting down with cheese and different drinks and tasting my way through things, and beer just works. 滨迟鈥檚 very hard to find a bad cheese-and-beer match. 滨迟鈥檚 very easy to find a bad cheese-and-wine match.听
Wine varies hugely. Vintage, vineyard, producer, cru. There are so many variables. Beer is more consistent. It also usually has carbonation, which works really well with cheese because 颈迟鈥檚 refreshing. Cheese is a rich food, and bubbles help cleanse the palate.听
Beer also often has bitterness, which again is quite cleansing with cheese. And if you look at beer flavour wheels and cheese flavour wheels, 迟丑别测鈥檙别 very similar. You see farmyard notes, fruit, spice and vegetal flavours. 罢丑别谤别鈥檚 a lot of overlap and a lot of complementary flavours.听
Beer is also more accessible. You can buy a world-class beer for five or six pounds, which 测辞耻鈥檙别 unlikely to do with wine. You can open several beers alongside a cheeseboard and have fun mixing and matching, which most people 飞辞耻濒诲苍鈥檛 do with wine.听
Patrick McGuigan at a recent beer and cheese pairing.
When 测辞耻鈥檙别 pairing cheese with beer, are there any key principles you tend to rely on?听
Some of the same principles as wine apply. Matching intensity is a good starting point. More powerful cheeses tend to work best with stronger beers, while lighter cheeses suit lighter styles.听
Aged Goudas work really well with stronger Belgian ales. Lighter beers like lagers and wheat beers work well with younger, softer cheeses. Belgian-style wheat beers in particular can be very refreshing and light.听
That said, there are curveballs. A crisp Pilsner can work really well with a strong Camembert because 迟丑别谤别鈥檚 something neutral and cleansing about it that cuts through those funky, cabbagey, garlicky flavours.听
滨鈥檇 always err on the side of experimentation. Give things a go. You can be surprised by what works.听
罢丑别谤别鈥檚 also the idea that what grows together goes together. British beers work very well with British cheeses like Cheddar, Cheshire and Lancashire. Strong washed-rind cheeses from northern France or Belgium work brilliantly with strong Belgian ales. 罢丑别测鈥檝别 naturally been paired together over centuries.听
Those washed-rind cheeses are often very hard to match with wine. They tend to stamp all over it, but beer really holds its own.听
Could you walk us through a few cheese styles and the kinds of beers you feel work well with them?听
Blue cheese with stout is the easiest cheese-and-beer match 测辞耻鈥檒濒 ever find. Stilton and Guinness is a beautiful thing, but any stout or porter will work well.听
Blue cheeses tend to be salty, and darker beers have a chocolatey sweetness from roasted malts. Sweet and salty works. 滨迟鈥檚 the same idea as blue cheese with dessert wine.听
I once served blue cheese and porter to someone who said they 诲颈诲苍鈥檛 like either. When they tried them together, something just clicked. There was an elevation, which is exactly what you want from a great pairing.听
IPAs work very well with alpine cheeses like Comt茅 and Gruy猫re, especially modern IPAs with tropical fruit flavours. Those cheeses are nutty and slightly sweet, and they work beautifully together.听
English beers like Best Bitter are fantastic with Cheddar, Wensleydale or Lancashire. These are classic pub food combinations for a reason.听
Belgian-style wheat beers and saisons work very well with goat鈥檚 cheeses, particularly younger, lactic styles. Saisons also work well. They often have floral or spicy notes that match those grassy, fresh flavours in goat鈥檚 cheese.听
A lot of what we do at 黑料吃瓜网 is about helping people build confidence in describing flavour. In your experience, what helps people talk about cheese more confidently?听
滨迟鈥檚 really about fundamentals and structure. At Level 1 of the Academy of Cheese, the first thing we teach is how to taste.听
We look at the cheese, feel the texture, smell it, and then taste it. Initially, we focus on simple things like acidity, sweetness, saltiness,听bitterness and savoury notes, and then build up to more complex flavours.听
Once people have the words and a structure, they realise they do know what 迟丑别测鈥檙别 tasting. A little bit of knowledge goes a long way.听
We also explain how cheese is made. Once people understand 颈迟鈥檚 a fermented food, like wine, beer, coffee and chocolate, that knowledge really helps them make sense of flavour.听
Cheese is also very accessible. People buy it all the time, and by trying different styles and changing what you buy, you can quickly build confidence and understanding.听
An abundance of cheeses to choose from.
Any practical tips for people trying beer and cheese together for the first time?听
Temperature is really important. Cheese should be at room temperature, so take it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes beforehand. Beer 诲辞别蝉苍鈥檛 always want to be fridge-cold either. Some styles really benefit from being served a little warmer.听
滨迟鈥檚 also worth paying attention to how you pour beer, especially bottle-conditioned beers with sediment. Some beers are meant to be hazy, some 补谤别苍鈥檛, so 颈迟鈥檚 worth checking how 迟丑别测鈥檙别 best served.听
How you cut cheese matters too. 顿辞苍鈥檛 cut the nose off a wedge. That takes the heart of the cheese. You want cross-sections from rind to centre so people can taste the full range of flavours.听
Some people are cheese purists and 诲辞苍鈥檛 want accompaniments. 滨鈥檓 not one of those people. I like crackers, chutneys, honey and nuts. Playing around with flavours is part of the fun.听
And beyond beer pairings, what are your go-to tips for putting together a great cheese board?听
The orthodox advice is variety. Different milk types, textures and styles all have a role to play. In the UK, the classic three cheeses are Cheddar, Brie and Stilton.听
Odd numbers tend to work better visually. Three, five or seven cheeses usually look best.听
If you go bigger, bring in different milk types such as goat, sheep or buffalo, and different styles like washed-rind cheeses, leaf-wrapped cheeses or something a bit unusual.听
That said, you 诲辞苍鈥檛 have to follow the rules. If you love goat鈥檚 cheese, have five goat鈥檚 cheeses and compare them. Think of it as a horizontal tasting.听
Cheese is meant to be fun. There are rules, but you can make up your own.听
Beer鈥檚 ability to work so naturally with cheese comes down to understanding flavour, balance and style. These are the foundations of 黑料吃瓜网鈥檚 beer qualifications, which guide students through beer tasting, production and styles in a clear, structured way.听
If 测辞耻鈥檙别 curious to explore beer in more depth, from how different styles are made to how they work with food, discover 黑料吃瓜网 Level 1 and 2 Awards in Beer.
, Patrick鈥檚 most recent book, is a celebration of 100 award-winning cheeses from around the world, shaped by decades of tasting, travel and judging at the World Cheese Awards. Co-authored with fellow judge Carlos Yescas, it explores how cheese is made, how it tastes, what to drink with it, and the people and places behind each cheese. 听
