Wine and Cheese Tasting @ Mozzarella Company

By Jennifer Conley on July 16th, 2008

Last night the Company sponsored our monthly event at Mozzarella Company in Deep Ellum. The event was a tour of the Mozzarella factory followed by a wine and cheese tasting. Paula Lambert is the founder and was also our host for the evening. The wine aficionado was John Bratcher who is one of The Two Wine Guys. The factory is very small (maybe 2500 sqft) and the group last night had been her largest yet. After the short tour we sat down Italian style at a long 25-person table, set with our first glass of wine and a plate with 8 different cheeses. My favorite pairing was the Malbec wine with the Black Pepper Garlic Caciotta. However, the Mascarpone Pecan Praline Torta was like a sweet whip cream aired out in heaven! The Marcarpone was paired with a Sparkling Red wine from Italy that also goes great with chocolate. Here is a picture and list of all the wines and cheeses we tasted. The cheeses are numbered on the list.

Firestone Vineywards Riesling (Santa Barbara, CA) — (1) Queso Blanco with Chiles and Epazote

Abbey of Saint-Hilaire Chardonnay (Burgandy, France) — (2) Mozzarella Roll with Green Olives

McPherson Trey Colore (Texas) — (3) Montasio Festivo

Casa Marguery Malbec (Argentina) — (4) Black Pepper Garlic Caciotta

Brachetto d’ Acqui Red Sparkling (Italy) — (5) Mascarpone Pecane Praline Torta

Crossings Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand) — (6) Rosemary Montasio, (7) Goat Log, (8) Blanca Bianca

Mozzarella Company features other classes: beer and wine, tea and wine, cheese and chocolate, make your own mozzarella cheese, and she also coordinates culinary trips to West France. Paula does it all, and she’s doing it very well. She was a pleasant, gracious and solid host, and woman for that matter. I think she said she didn’t start the company until she was 39. Her company was the first to make mozzarella in Texas. Also, all the products come from local, naturally raised farms. A lovely woman and a fun evening for all of us. All of their cheeses can be ordered online, or you can check which stores carry their cheese in your area. But first, check out some more pictures from last night: