Drunken Goat

|Drunk-en-goht|

Dressed in a party-ready, violet rind, Drunken Goat is likely to grab all the attention on your next cheese plate. This lovely goat’s milk wheel owes its tint to a bath in Doble Pasta, an extra concentrated and high tannin wine made from the Monastrell grape. In picture-perfect contrast, the interior stays a startling white but gains a mild fruity flavor. Take a whiff and you’ll find that the paste retains a flirty grape aroma.

Drunken Goat, a version of Queso de Murcia DOP, is produced by Central Quesara Montesinos in the village of Jumilla in Spain’s Murcia region. Though Murcian cheesemakers have been making versions of this wine-soaked wheel for years, only three or four producers of the DOP cheese remain today. To make the cheese, milk from Murciana goats—known for a high protein and fat content—is formed into wheels and aged for around 75 days. Towards the end of this aging process, the wheels take their Doble Pasta dip.

Go gaga for grapes by pairing Drunken Goat with a medium-bodied red, especially one from Spain. An excellent snacking cheese, serve Drunken Goat with fig cakes for holiday festivities. Or for an unconventional pairing, try it with a nut butter. With Peanut Butter & Co.’s Cinnamon Raisin Swirl, it’s like an ultra-sophisticated PB&J.

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