Best Wine & Cheese Classes Near Me: Find In-Person & Virtual Training

Learn More About Wine & Cheese Courses

What are Wine & Cheese?

Both wine and cheese are important preserved foods in many cultures, with extensive histories, diverse variations, and fine distinctions. They are often eaten together not just out of convenience or tradition but also because they naturally complement one another. In fact, many regions have intentionally created cheeses to match their native wines. Wine’s tart and sweet flavors match well with the milkfat and salt in cheese. Their textures both contrast and improve one another, and in some cases, their component chemicals can interact at sensory receptors to create new flavors. Thus, combining wine with cheese creates both clarifying opposition and pleasing harmony, making both foods taste better, especially when each is selected for ideal compatibility. Knowing how to match the right wine to the right cheese enhances the experience of both, whether eaten alone as hors-d’oeuvres, with other foods as a snack, or in concert with a meal.

Proper cheese pairing is considered part of wine expertise, a part of refined culture and skillful entertaining. Many classes about identifying and tasting wines include lessons on their best cheese pairings, and vice versa. Learning how to create desirable wine and cheese pairings is a necessary skill for caterers, chefs, and restaurant owners, to provide more satisfying dining for their customers. It is also useful knowledge for diners and travelers seeking to improve their food experiences abroad and for home cooks and party hosts wanting to offer delicious combinations to their guests.

Why Learn About Wine & Cheese?

Knowledge about effective wine and cheese pairings can be personally beneficial by improving the experience of a snack or meal. This skill can also be helpful when serving guests at a meal or party. While one can rarely have a bad experience eating cheese or drinking wine — in reasonable amounts — a poor combination can diminish otherwise desirable and potentially expensive foods. Good food and drink pairings, in addition to increasing pleasure, demonstrate one’s skill, culture, and desire to provide a positive experience.

Wine and cheese pairing is also one of many culinary skills needed for work in fine dining or hospitality. A chef can benefit from knowledge of wine, cheese, and their pairings to create dishes incorporating these ingredients. A restaurant manager planning a menu similarly needs to consider good food and wine pairings, and a host or server who can recommend good wine pairings is more valuable. A facility’s hospitality director similarly can plan and purchase better wine and cheese offerings for their events. Similarly, wine and cheese pairings are useful knowledge for those who operate or work in small businesses like cafes, event planning, or catering. Additionally, someone working in a wine or cheese shop would be better able to advise customers seeking matches for the other product. A vintner or cheesemaker, as a professional or hobbyist, could also benefit from knowing what pairings to recommend.

Above all else, learning about wine and cheese pairings is fun. The usual venue to enjoy these foods is a party, and many wine and cheese classes are social first and educational second. Students might want to study this subject, in part, to meet people with similar interests, sharing knowledge and conversation. Wine and cheese classes can also include interesting topics and stories, especially when they feature the products of a particular region, either local or foreign.

What Will You Learn in a Wine & Cheese Class?

A wine and cheese class is partly informative and partly experiential. The information presented in class helps students identify and differentiate different wines and cheeses. An instructor’s discussion of wines will often be similar to the introduction of a wine tasting class, discussing grape varieties, growing conditions, winemaking techniques, and the resulting wine types and their distinguishing properties. Some classes elaborate on the chemistry and flavor components of wines, to provide background for their interactions with cheese. Depending on the focus of each class, the instructor may elaborate further on the varieties of wine from a particular region or finer distinctions between wines of the same general type, such as dry reds. Similarly, most wine and cheese classes address basic cheesemaking, types of cheeses, and their distinguishing characteristics like texture and flavor. More in-depth classes might teach the chemistry of cheese or delve deeper into the varieties of a particular region or kind of cheese, such as Cheddar. The educational portion of a wine and cheese class culminates with an explanation of why these foods are often eaten together: how their components interact with taste receptors to produce new and more enjoyable sensations.

The experiential part of a wine and cheese class involves the actual tasting of both foods, individually and together. Taking a class makes the tasting experience more meaningful and educational by matching a student’s sensations with an instructor’s knowledge. The instructor may even explain how to taste these foods more carefully for better identification of flavors and increased enjoyment. A live, in-person class is the easiest way to get this direct experience, but online wine and cheese classes often include or sell sample kits so that students can exactly match their instructor’s examples.

Certain classes go further by teaching students how to properly evaluate, purchase, store, and serve wines and cheeses. These added lessons are especially likely in courses for professional skill training in food-related businesses but might also be included in a hobby course on home entertaining. Students in these hospitality courses learn how to pour wines, choose proper glassware for each wine variety, and cut and serve different kinds of cheese. Timing concerns like air exposure and temperature are particularly important for both foods, and some classes also address how to identify a low-quality or ruined product. Finally, some classes include wine and cheese as part of a wider course on food pairings; students in these classes can learn about combining both foods as part of a full meal and complementary pairings for wines and cheeses separately, such as meats, breads, or chocolates.

How Long Will It Take to Learn About Wine & Cheese?

Basic knowledge about wine and cheese pairings can be communicated quickly. Some general, introductory classes take only one hour yet still cover the subject thoroughly. However, most wine and cheese classes run around one and a half hours to allow time for sampling and discussion. Wine and cheese pairing is partly a social skill, after all, and students should have time to enjoy the setting and converse with the instructor and one another. A few wine and cheese classes last two hours, either to provide additional information or to give more time for socializing. For example, a class on the wines and cheeses of a specific region might include details on that area’s history, culture, and culinary habits and address finer distinctions between its products (e.g., the many types of French blue cheese). Another kind of long class is structured as a party, allowing students to mingle and sample from an array of cheeses and wines. Finally, classes that address wine pairings for many kinds of food, including cheese, will naturally take longer to include more information.

What are the Advantages of Taking a Wine & Cheese Class?

The most obvious benefit of a wine and cheese class is drinking wine and eating cheese. Especially in an in-person class, students can enjoy samples of wines and cheeses they might not ordinarily try, separately or together. Online wine and cheese classes often include or sell curated selections of their featured samples. More important, though, than the simple enjoyment of these foods, a class selects samples that best demonstrate its lessons. Students can experience the flavors of each wine and cheese separately, then together, comparing how they combine and change and confirming their instructor’s explanations with personal experiences. An instructor may also have students sample undesirable pairings so that they understand how these combinations clash and reduce the enjoyment of one or both foods.

While students could buy and taste wines and cheeses on their own, without an instructor’s guidance they might waste time and money with trial and error. A well-organized class demonstrates its points quickly and effectively. Just as important, a live class lets the instructor and students taste samples together, grounding theory and vocabulary in specific, shared sensations as they discuss their experiences. An instructor can highlight sensory details that an individual alone might miss, and students can compare their individual impressions for further understanding. People differ in their preferences, their experiences, and their tasting ability, and exposure to these differences can generate additional knowledge.

Beyond the food itself, sharing a culinary class is an enjoyable social activity. A food instructor is an expert in their field and may have interesting stories and insights to share. Many wine and cheese classes include time for socializing, allowing students to share their thoughts about the class or other mutual interests. A wine and cheese class could also touch on other kinds of knowledge, especially if taught at a kitchen or culinary school. Rather than being the focus of a class’ curriculum, these experiences are side benefits of its setting. For example, chefs might share recipes incorporating their class’ lessons, such as cheese fondue. Travel experts discussing the wines and cheeses of a particular region might talk about that area’s history, food culture, and sites of interest. Students could also gain insights from a restaurant’s menu, wine selection, or working chefs.

Best Wine & Cheese Classes

New York City’s oldest cheese shop, Murray’s Cheese, hosts a variety of in-person classes including cheesemaking, cheese types and regions, and multiple cheese and wine pairing classes. The shortest and most basic of these classes, Wine & Cheese Crash Course, is a one-hour guided tasting of three cheeses and three wines. During this sampling, the instructor will explain the principles of wine and cheese pairing and the reasoning behind each combination. Another one-hour class, Cheese & Wine Tasting: Taste of the Caves, focuses on Murray’s own cave-aged cheeses, with a sampling of three aged cheeses paired with three wines. This class includes a lesson on affinage, the art of aging cheese, in addition to its discussion of wine and cheese pairing principles. Further wine and cheese classes covering specific regions last for 90 minutes and sample four wines and four cheeses each. These classes include: Mediterranean Cheese & Wine Tasting, Spanish Cheese & Wine Tasting, Italian Cheese & Wine Tasting, French Cheese & Wine Tasting, Autumn Cheese & Wine Tasting, and Tour of Europe: Cheese & Wine Tasting.

Studio 45 is a creative space in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY, featuring several in-person art and culture classes. Cheese Club is their evening gathering of cheese enthusiasts and includes wine and food pairings in its exploration of artisan cheeses. Guests gather for two hours in an intimate dinner party atmosphere to sample cheese, wines, and other snacks and discuss their culinary interests. An instructor acts as host and provides information on cheesemaking, cheese varieties, and effective wine and food pairings for each cheese. In addition to the class’s samples and lessons, guests can enjoy socializing amid the studio’s artistic displays.

The Chopping Block Lincoln Square, a cooking school and gourmet shop in downtown Chicago, hosts public, private, and virtual events, including cooking and fine dining classes. Their wine and cheese class, Culinary Heaven: Wine and Cheese Pairing, is a 90-minute tasting seminar featuring five cheeses and five wines that cover a wide range of types for both. The instructor, an expert sommelier, uses these samples to explain and demonstrate the principles of wine and cheese pairing. Students interested in learning more can also attend one of The Chopping Block’s several wine tasting classes, each of which includes a selection of snacks and discusses ideal food pairings for its featured wines. In particular, Spanish Wine and Tapas Pairing, a two-hour exploration of Spanish wines and small-plate dishes, focuses on the interplay of this region’s wines and foods.

As the largest wine school in the United States, the San Fransisco Wine School offers classes suitable for industry professionals but accessible to novices and casual students. Cheese is one of many foods addressed in their wine and food pairing classes, which are presented both locally and online. Intro to Food Pairing is a shorter introductory course, two hours long, focusing only on wine’s structure, flavors, and interactions with foods. Although it spans an in-depth discussion of wine and food pairing theories, this class does not include tasting samples. For a full course of wine and food tasting, students should take the three-hour Food Pairing Lab, which features 36 different combinations of wines and foods. In addition to the same information presented in the introductory class, the lab class adds lessons on food pairing errors and exceptions, combinations across a multiple-course meal, and finding wine pairings for challenging foods. Online students can have a tasting kit delivered, for an additional fee, so that they can share their experiences with the class.

The Texas Wine School is based in Houston and has additional campuses in Austin and Dallas. As part of the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET), this school offers a full diploma course of classes on wine appreciation, service, and tasting suitable for both industry professionals and interested consumers. They also host additional certificate courses and one-night classes on wine and related topics. Wine & Cheese Pairing with the Houston Dairymaids is a two-hour class held jointly with The Houston Dairymaids, a Houston cheese shop. This class provides substantial lessons on both cheese and wine: the cheese portion covers the manufacture, structure, styles, service, and flavors of cheese, while the wine portion addresses wine styles and production and an introduction to wine tasting. The majority of the class involves tasting multiple cheeses, individually and paired with an array of six wines, while discussing the principles of good wine and cheese pairings.

Live Online Wine & Cheese Classes

CourseHorse, a virtual workshop provider, offers team-building activities combined with classes on practical and hobby skills. Their online workshops feature a wide array of topics including culinary arts like wine and cheese pairing. These classes can provide social bonding experiences for work groups, clubs, and other organizations. Each class is taught online via Zoom by a live instructor. CourseHorse’s Virtual Wine and Cheese Workshop is an introduction to wine and cheese pairing taught by a professional instructor. The workshop can run for up to one and a half hours, or shorter if preferred, and covers general wine and cheese varieties, details about their manufacture, and the tasting methods and vocabularies for both foods. Participants then taste wine and cheese combinations along with the instructor, sharing their impressions and discussing any questions that arise. Groups must book this workshop at a base rate covering up to 10 students but can expand it up to 500 attendees at an additional per-person cost. The class fee includes a sampling kit with two wines, a French Sauvignon Blanc and an Argentinian Malbec, and two cheeses from Murray’s Cheese, all shipped to each participant in advance.

The online classes of The Good Food Project encourage students to invest time, thought, and action to improve themselves and their meals. The program’s offerings include four 90-minute themed classes exploring wine and cheese pairings: The Wine & Cheese of France, The Wine & Cheese of Italy, The Wine & Cheese of Spain, and Bubbles & Sparkling Wines. The fee for each class includes a kit of three wines, three cheeses, and crackers shipped to each student in advance, preparing them to join the instructor and their fellow students in a guided tasting session. The three regional classes feature wines and cheeses from the featured countries, while Bubbles & Sparkling Wines matches three sparkling wines with complementary cheeses. Due to the required delivery time, this school recommends booking tasting classes at least 14 days in advance.

In addition to public and private in-person classes at their store in downtown Chicago, The Chopping Block Lincoln Square hosts online classes teaching culinary skills and gourmet knowledge. Their Virtual Wine and Cheese Tasting class is taught by the same expert sommelier as their local wine classes. This instructor guides students through a tasting menu of three wines and three cheeses. The two-and-a-half-hour class includes time for education, questions, and discussion about wines, cheeses, and their favorable pairings. The class’ wine and cheese selections, along with an accompaniment of crackers, dried fruit, and nuts, can be picked up at The Chopping Block’s store. More distant students can purchase matching wines and cheeses according to a provided guide.

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Learn More About Wine & Cheese Courses

What are Wine & Cheese?

Why Learn About Wine & Cheese?

What Will You Learn in a Wine & Cheese Class?

How Long Will It Take to Learn About Wine & Cheese?

What are the Advantages of Taking a Wine & Cheese Class?

Best Wine & Cheese Classes

Live Online Wine & Cheese Classes

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