Not much beats snuggling up, while the fabled April Showers beat down outside, and you sip on a well-selected warm wine and palate pleasing cheese accompaniment. Not much at all. But not all of us know the ins and outs of selecting the best vino and which tastes we should be looking to marry between the dairy and the grape. So obviously the Spring Cheese and Wine Festival at the SouthBank Centre on Sunday 29 April was the ideal event to harness which ones are the flavours to savour. The event itself was free, so it had the makings of a lovely Sunday stroll down the SouthBank – of course, a few of the events require tickets – but they’ll be worth it for what you learn in this reduced wine-tasting-course taster. The stalls will be selling and showing a selection of artisan cheeses, wines and related products from all over the world – showcasing the best regions for wine and cheese production, and some quirkier choices away from the Napa Valley and Rioja! There will be talks and demonstrations from experts in the field: culinary expert Valentina Harris and wine journalist Tim Atkin are the more recognized names. And don’t be afraid to step into the festival quarters – so what if you can’t tell your Roquefort from your Bleu d’Auvergne! This is an open forum for the novice to the stilton supremos to learn about cheese (and wine!) so forget succumbing to snobbery and pretentious tasters – you’ll be welcomed to try everything edible and drinkable, no matter what you do or do not know about curdling, ripening, pressing or pigeage, clarification or stabilization! A great thing about this festival is the prevalence of small companies exhibiting their wares – because for these guys, the cheese and/or wine is their passion; which tells in their presentation of their products. And of course, in this double-dip recession, helping smaller companies is always a plus! It is also of course a great alternative to supermarket shopping, as you discover where to source products from small artisan producers, as well as direct producers. The Cheese & Wine Festival is part of a series of specialist food events at Southbank Centre, including Chocolate Festivals and regular Real Food Festival Markets – which WinkBall are regulars at! Presumably this is how people may have heard about the Cheese and Wine event – through attending other foodie days at the SouthBank. WinkBall wondered what peoples’ favourite part of the day was; inevitably the tasting, right? Or perhaps the expert talks and presentations? Of course the attendees had their own ideas about their favourite products and regions for production, so we learned the most popular places to source wine and cheese, according to the festival visitors.