Mokelumne River-Lodi Zinfandel cluster and cheese.
The air is still a little nippy, if not downright damp, which is why I, for one, tend to tucker down in the safety of my four walls at night. Preferably with a bottle of Zinfandel.
I drink Zinfandel with almost everything, including my favorite foods, such as spaghetti and meatballs, pan fried pork chops, Asian spiced barbecued baby back ribs, hibachi grilled salmon, or just plain pasta and garlic. How do you spell comfort?
Zinfandel, as it were, is also surprisingly good with cheese. Especially the gourmet type cheeses you find at Cheese Central, the artisanal cheese store owned by Cindy Della Monica, located in Downtown Lodi.
If you ever catch Cindy herself at her store, go ahead and ask her about her favorite cheese and wine matches. Her experience is such that she is a world class expert on that subject.
Cheese Central proprietor Cindy Della Monica in her Downtown Lodi shop. Lodi News-Sentinel.
I have my own favorites, with an emphasis on the plurality of that word. I will say this, though, which may contradict the live-and-let-live opinion of many a wine and cheese lover: There are certain wines that go better with certain cheeses than others, and vice-versa.
Would you, for instance, boil up some spaghetti to go with beef stew? No, you wouldn’t, because rice or potatoes is a better match. For the same reason, you put ketchup on hot dogs but not ice cream, and
