Houston Chronicle: Wine & cheese party survival guide
July 20, 2010
“Beer and nachos may never go out of style, but sometimes a wine and cheese party just sounds classier. If you’ve always wanted to throw a wine and cheese bash, but find the chilly cheese aisle itself scary, just remember a few basic principles.
A variety of cheeses ensures different tastes and textures. Wine manager for Spec’s Wines, Spirits, & Finer Foods, Bear Dalton, advised choosing a goat, sheep and cow cheese. Widely available goat cheeses include creamy Humboldt Fog and lively Bucheron. Common sheep cheeses are tangy Manchego and fresh Cacio De Roma. Cow cheese is the most diverse, with cheeses as varied as smoky Gouda to buttery Camembert.
Different ages, from soft-ripened young cheeses to a 9-month-old Compte, also keep the plate interesting. Phil Myers, general manager of Central Market, has a simple rule of thumb — the fresher the cheese, the fresher the wine.”
