How to Make an Appetizing Wine and Cheese Board

Wine & Cheese Board Set up Step by Step.

Party season is in full swing everywhere. So you plan to host a party for family & friends and impress upon them, then it’s time to plan out on the culinary delights to be offered. First of all, take count of the number of people whom you plan to invite. Second, try avoiding beer guzzlers when hosting a party as they tend to become too complete with the brew, making them rebuff the culinary spread. 

On finalizing the list, decide on the culinary spread to be served, starting from the appetizer to the main course. For example, if you plan to start with the legendary wine & cheese board as an appetizer, then narrow down to the types of wine, cheese platter, fruits, cold-cuts crackers, etc., you plan to serve to delight your guests. Mainly after drinking wine & snacking from the cheese board, many would not have the appetite to devour further into dinner. Therefore, planning out the best layout for the wine & cheese board when hosting a party while going light on the dinner spread is essential.

It is crucial to select the cheese first before selecting the wine when hosting a wine & cheese board party. But first, it’s picking a base for the cheeseboard.

Picking a Base

The base can be anything ranging from wooden boards to plates or even a pizza board but large enough to hold the different spread of cheese & assortments. 

Laying Out the Spread on the Board

Importantly, cheese plays a pivotal role equally to wine in a wine & cheese board party. The other assortments are irrelevant but not crucial as cheese & wine are the principal entertainers. Therefore a spread of the best cheese is recommended. 

Arranging the Cheese: Spread the board with the best & different types of cheese available in town, such as:

Soft & Mild Cheese

• Brie
• Camembert
• Fresh Mozzarella
• Burrata
• Cream Cheese

Crumbly Stinky Cheese

• Danish Blue
• Gorgonzola

Hard Full Bodied Cheese

• Cheddar
• Gouda
• Edam

Arrange the spread of cheese with ample space between each other so that each can be picked out while consuming. Also, keep cheese knives or small knives on the board so that the guests can cut & devour from the various cheeses spread on the board. Keeping all the three different types of cheese is essential when hosting a wine & cheese board party as everyone has their preference. 

Other Accompaniments

• Adding Cold-cuts & Salted Nuts: Cold-cuts are very much favored with wine, especially on a cheeseboard. Cheeseboards are usually decked up with meats such as salami, French ham, pepperoni, etc. & sure crowd-pleasers. 

 Salted nuts too take up the board, which many people like snacking in between portions of cheese & other accompaniments. 

• Salty Bites: Salty bites from the fridge such as olives and pickles also find a place on the cheese board to add to the flavor. 

• Sweet Exotic Fruits: Fruits are very important for a cheeseboard. After tucking into a lot of cheese, biting into a sweet fruit is highly refreshing & turns your taste buds around. Fruits such as strawberries and grapes accompany the platter as the sweet quotient.

• Bread & Crackers: Mild cracker & multigrain bread usually accompany the cheese board as add-ons to be had with other accompaniments or to scoop up from the platter.

Choosing the Best Wine to go with cheese

All have their wine preferences. Some prefer red wine & some white wine. Taking that into consideration, it’s better to provide both wines to your guests when hosting a wine & cheese board party. There is a variety of red & white wines to be picked. Some of the recommended wines are:

• The Merlot: A dry, medium-bodied red wine that goes well with the cheese & other accompaniments of the cheese platter.

• The Cabernet Sauvignon: A full-bodied, dry red wine with the mild flavor of fruit, eucalyptus & oak. Goes well with crumbly stinky cheese like the Danish blue. 

• The Chardonnay: White wine with fruity tropical aroma lazed with the mild flavor of hazelnut & crème Brulee. It tastes very well when taken with soft, mild cheese, smoked cheese, including fruits & nuts. 

• The Bellissima: A sparkling white wine laced with the aroma of pears & apricot. This smooth & velvety wine goes well with the salty tartness of blue cheese. 

Drive down to your nearest supermarket or the winery to get the best products if you are planning to host a wine & cheese board party. Choose from the best, add more accompaniments & create your ultimate wine & cheeseboard platter.