Top 5 Cheese and Cannabis Pairings

Cannabis and Cheese Pairings

Cheese Lover’s Day is on January 20 and it could not be a more perfect time since charcuterie boards are everywhere right now and we take cheese very seriously around here! The culinary cannabis connoisseurs are bringing them to the next level with cheese and cannabis pairings. 

These pairing are not your stereotypical, eat this suspicious brownie and then dive into a hunk of cheddar. We are talking about real deal, professional, cheese and cannabis pairings. So grab your cheese boards and let's get started! 

But first, Terpenes 

Terpenes are a naturally occurring chemical compounds found in fruits, herbs, and plants. They are responsible for creating the aroma, taste, and sometimes color of specific foods. More than 30,000 terpenes have been identified in nature and they can create subtle to extreme differences in taste and smell. For example, myrcene is the terpene commonly found in mangos and bay leaves while limonene is the terpene found in citrus fruits like lemons, limes, and oranges. Like in fruits and plants, different terpenes can be found in different cannabis strains, and they will produce different scents and tastes. Terpenes by themselves don’t get you high but cannabis contains extremely high concentrations of terpenes so they will have an impact on the taste and smell of each cannabis strain. 

Using the terpene profiles of various cheeses and cannabis strains, we have outlined our Top 5 Cheese and Cannabis Pairings for you to Celebrate Cheese Lover’s Day Like a True Professional. 

The Strain: Sour Tangie 

The Cheese: Camembert

Omlie Tip: The Sour Tangie strain boasts citrus flavors with strong tangerine and lemon undertones that perfectly compliment this soft, creamy cheese. We lean towards a camembert over a brie because they are very similar but it has a lower fat content. 

The Strain: Birthday Cake 

The Cheese: Ricotta 

Omlie Tip: Ricotta’s light flavor and low salt content allow it to work well in sweet dishes as well as savory, which makes it a perfect pairing for the vanilla, nutty notes found in the Birthday Cake strain. If you are looking for a recipe for whipped ricotta for your spread, we like this one. 

The Strain: Bruce Banner

The Cheese: Blue Cheese 

Omlie Tip: Sweet earthy undertones, help cut this sharp and salty cheese. Don’t love strong blue cheese? We recommend this more mild one from whole foods. 

The Strain: Blue Dream

The Cheese: Asiago 

Omlie Tip: Blue dream users consistently report that it smells and tastes like sweet berries which make it the perfect match to this semi-soft and mild flavored cheese. Blue dream is 18% THC but has a low CBD percentage, making this potent strain a fan favorite of both novice and veteran cannabis consumers.

The Strain: GG #4 aka Gorilla Glue

The Cheese: Cheddar Peppercorn Cheese

Omlie Tip: For the high flyers looking for something a little more bold, this strain delivers heavy-handed euphoria and relaxation, leaving you feeling “glued” to the couch. We recommend pairing this with a peppercorn cheese just in case at any point you feel too high. GG4 may be overwhelming for a beginner. We love this strain now but only after working up to it. We recommend staring with our beginner fav, Harlequin, before advancing to GG4.

To maximize the ability to differentiate the flavor profiles we recommend using either a vape pen, vape, or flower. Learn more about the differences here.