“Cheese and Wine” evening, a French feast!

French people love to treat themselves with “Cheese and Wine”. There are thousands of choice for cheese and wine….

Would you like to entertain without preparing food? Why not offer your friends a “Cheese and Wine party”, an evening around cheese and wine? This is ultimately the most gourmet and convivial!

Cheese: how to prepare a beautiful cheese plate

To make a success of your “Cheese and Wine” evening, it is of course essential to buy good Cheeses. Visit a cheesemaker who will be able to advise you and offer you the best products. But don’t hesitate to consult our directory! 

Gathering as many cheeses as possible does not guarantee a nice platter! The main thing is that it should be made up of different families that complement each other. Count about 250 g of cheese per head. Among the eight large families, you will choose three or four according to the tastes and preferences of your guests: 

– uncooked pressed cheeses: edam, mimolette, gouda;

– Cooked pressed cheeses: Emmental, Comté, Beaufort;

– soft cheeses with a bloomy rind: brie, chaource, saint-marcellin;

– soft washed-rind soft pasta: reblochon, pont-l’évêque, munster; 

– blue-veined pasta: roquefort, fourme d’Ambert, bleu d’Auvergne;

– goat’s cheeses: crottin de Chavignol, cabécou, pélardon; 

– processed cheeses;

– fresh or white cheeses.

Three quarters of an hour before the start of the festivities, arrange the representatives of each family on the different trays. A cheese must be eaten at room temperature. To create an early evening entertainment, do not indicate the names of the cheeses and let your Guests guess! Finally, pay attention to the order of tasting: starting with the mildest cheeses is highly recommended.

Wine: propose an appropriate range of wines

Contrary to popular belief, not all cheeses can be enjoyed accompanied by red wine. While some blue-veined varieties, such as Roquefort, go very well with a tannic red wine (Cahors, Saint-Émilion, Madiran), sweet wines are better suited to lighter wines. Thus, to accompany your platter of soft cheeses with a washed rind, a dry, light white wine is best suited. Why not a Gewurtztraminer or a fine Chablis? As for goat’s cheeses, they will be enjoyed with a softer and sweeter white wine, such as a Sancerre or a Muscadet. Vary the pleasures in your selection, but make sure to respect certain accords!

Cheeses, wines, but not only!

To decorate your table and your cheese platters, arrange a few bunches of wine grapes. They will remind you of the theme of the evening and will bring some freshness to the meal. Also propose dried fruits: grapes, nuts, hazelnuts, pine nuts. To pick while savouring goat’s cheese. Accompany the tasting with a green salad, simply seasoned with olive oil and balsamic dressing: the ideal way to switch from one cheese to another! You can also “rinse off your mouth” with pieces of apple or pear.

Finally, good cheeses are even more enjoyable with nice bread! White bread, country bread, rye bread, cereal bread, wholemeal bread… No rules apply, it’s a matter of taste! You will make a great impression on your guests if you give them the choices. Some will also prefer to toast it.

During your “Cheese and Wine party”, announce the colour: all combinations are possible! The important thing is the taste…