Enjoy Sake & Cheese Pairing! Seminar Highlights from the Australian Sake Festival 2025
During the Australian Sake Festival Melbourne & Sydney, guests enjoyed a special session titled Sake & Cheese Pairing with Simone Maynard, featuring a curated lineup of premium sake paired with a selection of cheeses.
The pairing comments below were prepared by Simone Maynard, Melbourne-based Sake Educator, recognised Sake Samurai, and host of the seminar, to help you enjoy these combinations again through Sake Selector.
Dainagawa Cheese Label
Tasting Overview: Being unpasteurised, this sake has a freshness and slight effervescence that makes this pairing pop! It has a fresh fruity, floral aroma, a gentle mouthfeel, with the perfect balance of sweetness and acidity; leaving a refreshing aftertaste.
Both the sake and the cheese have a smooth texture and a gentle sweetness. They dance on the palate harmoniously, both allowing the other to shine without any competition.
Selected cheese pairing: Goats' milk Gouda
Goats' milk Gouda typically presents tasting notes of caramel or butterscotch, nutty sweetness, and a refreshing tang, with a fudge-like texture.
Other cheese recommendations for this sake: Swiss, Emmental, Gruyère, Jarlsberg, sweeter style washed-rind soft cheeses, honey gouda, semi-hard goat’s milk cheeses.
It also works well as an aperitif or alongside a cheese-heavy pizza.
Shiwa Snow Label
Tasting Overview: This sake offers a soft, juicy aroma and flavour, with a gentle sweetness. A refreshing touch of umami and delicate acidity harmonise for a smooth, light finish.
The juiciness of the sake and creaminess of the feta blend together perfectly, creating a wonderful textural mouthfeel.
Selected cheese pairing: Greek-style Feta
Greek-style feta offers a distinct salty and tangy flavour with a dry, crumbly, and slightly creamy texture, a result of sheep's and goat's milk and aging in brine. Its complex taste profile includes sharp, acidic notes, a rich dairy richness from the sheep milk, and subtle undertones of lemon.
This pairing highlights complimentary characteristics in both the cheese and the sake. The gentle sweetness in the sake and the saltiness of the cheese dance together beautifully on the palate.
Other cheese recommendations: Comte, Asiago, washed rind soft cheeses, cave aged cheddars, mild blue cheese
This sake also pairs well with shellfish - especially seared scallops, seafood dumplings, and white fish dishes.
SHIN TSUCHIDA
Tasting Overview:This sake is brewed using the ancient Kimoto method and utilises the wild yeasts and lactic acid bacteria native to the brewery.
Woody, and earthy, with a bright acidity and hints of citrus, this sake fits into the rich & dry category. Due to the use of an ancient starter, it also has strong umami and acidity, making it a great pairing with stronger flavoured food/dishes.
The umami flavour and creamy texture of both the sake and the cheese work in harmony with this pairing.
Selected cheese pairing: Taleggio (Washed Rind)
Taleggio is a semi-soft Italian washed rind cheese from Lombardy, made from cow's milk, characterised by its thin, pinkish, and slightly sticky rind, and a smooth, ivory interior. It has strong but pleasant lactic and fruity aromas and a creamy, buttery flavour with a slight tangy and yeasty finish - becoming more intense with age.
This pairing creates a balance of acidity and umami, harmonising on the palate with a wonderfully creamy finish.
This sake also pairs well with blue cheese. It can handle richer dishes and red meats.
Also works well alongside pizza, especially with a mushroom, meaty or cheesy topping..
If you discovered a sake you loved, why not recreate the pairing at home? All three sakes are available on Sake Selector, ready to enjoy with your favourite cheeses.
