Recommendations
Baked goat's cheese with Ferreira Dona Antonia Reserva Tawny
On the plate is goat's cheese that has turned soft and runny in the oven, with honey, thyme and walnuts over it and toasted bread alongside. The reserve tawny sets ripe plum, apricot and a nutty tone against it.
From the shelf
The bottle
Dona Antónia Reserva Tawny is the reserve tawny of the house Ferreira in the Douro, made from Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Cão and Tinta Amarela. The technical sheet gives 20 percent alcohol, 104.9 grams of residual sugar per litre and a total acidity of 4.28 grams per litre tartaric acid. The wines for this blend are usually between four and twelve years old and come together at an average age of about seven years in oak casks, which corresponds to what is usual for tawny reserve: an average age of five to seven years. The house describes ripe plum, apricot and marmalade with a floral and nutty tone, a full and rich palate and a long finish, and serves the port lightly chilled between 12 and 16 degrees. The bottle holds 75 centilitres.
The combination
Why this works together
Goat's cheese has two qualities that call for a sweet wine: acidity and salt. The taste research by Green and colleagues from 2010 shows that sweetness strongly suppresses saltiness in a mixture, and with almost 105 grams of residual sugar per litre this tawny has more than enough of it; the cheese therefore comes across as creamy rather than sharp. The honey from the oven is the bridge between plate and glass, because marmalade and dried apricot are exactly the notes the house names for this wine, and the walnuts echo the nutty ageing in cask. At the same time the cheese turns liquid in the oven and leaves a lot of fat on the tongue; the acidity of 4.28 grams per litre and the twenty percent alcohol clear that away again. The weight fits too, because a small, intense cheese dish calls for a glass with a full mouthfeel rather than a light wine.
At the table
The dish
- For 4 people
- Ready in 20 minutes
- Type cheese course
What you need
- 2 slices of goat's cheese of 110 g, cut from a log
- 3 tablespoons liquid honey
- 6 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 35 g walnuts, coarsely broken
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- a sturdy bread, sliced, for toasting
- freshly ground black pepper
How to make it
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
- Rub two small ovenproof dishes with the olive oil and place a slice of goat's cheese in each dish.
- Spread the honey evenly over the cheese, lay the sprigs of thyme on top and sprinkle the walnuts over it. Add a twist of black pepper.
- Place the small dishes in the oven for twelve to fifteen minutes, until the cheese is melted and runny and the honey starts to bubble.
- Meanwhile, toast the slices of bread.
- Carefully take the ramekins out of the oven and let them stand for a few minutes before you put them on the table. Serve with the toasted bread to dip in the cheese.
In the glass
Serving
The house serves this reserve tawny lightly chilled, between 12 and 16 degrees; the Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e do Porto specifies 10 to 14 degrees for tawny. Twelve degrees falls within both ranges and works best with a warm cheese dish. A small tulip-shaped glass, filled to a third, brings together the nutty and fruity notes. Decanting is not necessary. Once opened, this style keeps for a long time: according to the same institute, an opened tawny or tawny reserve keeps for three to four weeks, provided the bottle is closed and stored cool and dark.
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