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by Resident Cheesemonger
Serving a variety of cheeses before dinner, after dinner, or as horsdoeuvres, makes an elegant and tasty snack. With very little preparation, a cheese plate or two can liven up and pull together any occasion. To ensure your gathering gains the full benefit of ambience that only cheese can impart, keep the following tips for properly serving cheese in mind.
Choose between three and five different kinds of cheese. More than five cheese types will just overwhelm the guests (even if it's a large gathering). Less than three doesn't provide enough choice, on the one hand, to satisfy those with picky palates, and variety, on the other hand, to keep the cheese connoisseur's happy.
Speaking of variety, be sure to choose from at least three different cheese families. Unless you have an experienced distinctly cheese-loving audience, choose at least one "safe" cheese: gouda, gruyere, or jarlsberg for example. Then, you could pick one particularly stinky or strong cheese to please those with a stronger palate.
After that, it's a matter of your own taste preferences. You're going to be eating some cheese too, right?
If you plan to cut your cheese into pieces ahead of time, consider a slightly different shape for each cheese (rectangles, triangles, sticks, etc.). To achieve cleaner cuts, cut the cheese while it's still chilled. If you're going to allow your guests to cut their own pieces of cheese, be sure to provide a separate knife for each cheese to avoid contaminating the flavors.
Serve fresh cheese slightly chilled. For other cheeses, it's best to let the cheese warm up for 30 minutes before serving.
In terms of cheese presentation, the most important thing to remember is to keep the milder cheeses separated from the stronger cheeses. Otherwise the stronger flavors may overwhelm and mingle with the taste of the milder cheese. After that, go ahead and be creative. Have some fun setting up the cheese plates as your own personal work of art. Perhaps you might add some fruit, nuts, or even flowers as an artistic garnish.
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