A chardonnay like this one is very cheese-friendly because of its rich mouthfeel, undercurrent of acidity, well-integrated oak, and lush fruit. The mouthfeel is key to its compatibility with creamy cheeses while the acidity is the bridge to cheeses with the same.

Look for cheeses that are creamy, buttery, and/or earthy and tangy.

Here are some examples of cheeses that make particularly good companions for this style of wine. If you can't find these cheeses, try and find similar ones based on these descriptions.

Fromage de Meaux (Brie) - This cheese is extremely creamy with perceptible but not overpowering salt. It's equal parts earthy and buttery. With the wine, that earthiness harmonizes well with the oak in the wine but also keeps the wine's fruit in balance. Equally important is that the weight of the cheese harmonizes nicely with the body of the wine. Note that with a bloomy-rind cheese like this, the pairing is slightly better without the rind.

Garrotxa - This is an aged goat cheese from Spain that is one of the best-tasting and most wine friendly cheeses anywhere. It goes particularly well with this chardonnay because of the cheese's nuttiness, earthiness, and ever-so-slight tang that's inherent to the milk from which it is made. This is a great combination and is worth going the extra mile to find the cheese.

Herbiette - Although this specialized herb-coated goat cheese from France is found mostly in select cheese shops, just knowing that an aged goat cheese with herbs is a surprisingly good companion for this wine should give you an idea of the type of cheese to look for. Although made from sheep's milk, Brin d'Amour or Fleur Maquis, are also good. Why? All these cheeses have a pleasant earthy quality and mellowness that really bring out the fruit as well as an earthy quality in the wine.

Complements
Ripe pear slices, buttered and toasted baguette slices, thin prosciutto slices

SBrie and Buttery Mushroom Toasts
Butter and toast baguette slices. When cool, put a slice of Brie on each toast. Next, sauté 2 finely chopped shallots in about 2 tablespoons unsalted butter until limp but not brown. Add 1 pound of quartered white or brown mushrooms and cook until soft and lightly browned on the edges. Add a couple tablespoons Argyle Nuthouse Chardonnay or other white wine and cook until most of the liquid has boiled away. Add another dab of butter and a little salt and pepper to taste. Let cool slightly, then spoon a few mushrooms on each cheese-topped baguette slice. Sprinkle with a little chopped Italian parsley and serve.

Laura Werlin is one of the foremost authorities on cheese in the United States. She is the award-winning author of five books on the subject, a sought-after speaker at food and wine events, a spokesperson for consumer and trade organizations, and a frequent television and radio guest.

Each of Laura's books has been honored with domestic and international awards including the James Beard award for her book The All American Cheese and Wine Book, She has just finished her latest book, Grilled Cheese, Please, which will be released in March 2011.

Werlin is known for her approachable yet authoritative teaching style and is frequently asked to speak at prestigious events, most notably the annualFood & Wine Magazine Classic at Aspen, the South Beach Food & Wine Festival, the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta, and the Artisan Cheese Festival in Sonoma County in California. She is also a regular instructor at the Cheese School of San Francisco.

Laura's website is laurawerlin.com