You can setup your room in a couple different ways which really depends on how much room you have and the shape of your room or rooms. One way is to use a long buffet table against one wall with different sections. Another is to have several "stations" around the room by using little tables each with certain wines and their complimentary cheeses. You'll want to add some other foods too as man cannot live on wine and cheese alone!
Decorations
A wine and cheese party should be somewhat elegant but not too gaudy. You could have simple white tablecloths with white candles. Perhaps decorating the table with grapes and grape leaves or something seasonal such as fall leaves if the party is in the fall or holly, pine boughs and ornaments if it's at the holidays. A summer party might be cute with light floral bouquets. Fruit - especially grapes go great with wine and cheese so you could have a 3 tiered centerpiece or large antique bowl filled with grapes and other fruit on the tables too. If you choose one large table a big centerpiece would be a nice focal point, you could even use and old architectural urn filled with ice and wine bottles or a large tiered platter with various tidbits on it.
You'll want to have labels for each cheese that states the name and general flavor - you can expand on that by adding the origin and maybe some history if you feel ambitious. Each section of cheese could have it's own cutting board and cutter - A cute idea would be to use the cheese boards that are made out of flattened wine bottles to cut the cheese on.
Glasses and Plates
You'll want to make sure to use the right type of wine glass with each wine. Red wine should be poured into a round ball shaped glass and white wine is more fluted but not as narrow as a champagne flute. Keep a bunch of each type of glass out so your guests can be sure to have the right glass at all times. For dishes you could get wine themed plates or go with an eclectic mix of little antique plates. Make sure you have plenty of little plates around to encourage quests to try small samples of cheese with each wine.
What To Serve
A wine and cheese party needs more than just wine and cheese! You'll also want to provide lots of interesting breads and crackers. Maybe some caviar? And don't forget dessert - a cheesecake would be in keeping with the theme but any dessert will do! And finally, some coffee might be in order after all that wine and please make sure that no one drives after having too much wine.
Of course, you'll want to make sure you serve the right wine with the right cheese and in fact complimentary wine and cheese pairings can produce interesting and unusual tastes. Half the fun of a wine and cheese party is experimenting for yourself to see what new combinations you can come up with, but heres some tips to start you off:
Tips On Choosing Your Next Bottle Of Wine
Tonight s the night. You ve got that special dinner party with friends and you want it to be perfect. You ve got the menu completed but the question is which wine will compliment the meal best? Here are some tips for choosing fine wine.
Lighter foods need lighter wines while heartier foods need full bodied wines. For example, fish is light and thus a wine like Pinot Noir goes very nicely because it is also light.
The way the food is prepared will also influence the type of wine you choose. Whether your meal is grilled or roasted as well as the spices you use will affect your win ..
Wine And Cheese Party Pairing Tips
* Wines usually go well with cheese that is from the same country or region
* An acidic cheese usually goes well with acidic wines
* Roquefort goes well with Port
* Camembert, Cheddar and Brie go well with Cabernet and Champagne
* Cream Cheese and White Zinfandel make a nice pair
* Mix muenster with Beaujolais
Wine is in the momentAs a winemaker I spend more time than most people sniffing and peering at wine, holding it to the light, making notes. Eventually I take some in my mouth and roll it around over my tongue with great slurping noises as I mix it with air to test every edge of the wine for the flavors I find there. Then I spend even more time talking about what I have discovered with other wine tasters, some experienced, some not.
I have realized, in the years since I started making wine in 1975, that this clinical approach to wine tasting can deliver a detailed analysis of different wines, complete with numerica ..
* Colby and Gouda go good with Reisling
* Pair provolone with Chardonnay
About the Author
Lee Dobbins is a writer for Online Gourmet Foods where you can
find out more about gourmet foods and appetizers. Lee DobbinsHave a Wine And Cheese Shower or Party
