①VARIETY ISKEY
Besides a mix of base
milks—cow, goat,
sheep—consider
textures.Arrange
crowd-pleasing classics
such as Camembert
andthe goat cheese
Bucheron along-
side adventurous, f ull-
flavored cheeses like the
bl ue-veinedRedRock
cheddar and the bloomy-
rindedItalian buffalo
cheese Casatica. Plan
for 1 or 2 oz.perperson
per cheese.②YOUR PLATE
SHOULDBE CROWDED
Ignore the rule of thumb
that food needs space to
look appealing. “Cheese
plates are impressive
when they’re full,” says
thatcheeseplate.com
founder Marissa Mullen.
Createa wave of f ol ded
cured meat, such as
salami orprosciutto, to
intersect the board,and
fill anygaps with nuts
and fresh and dried fruit.③SWEETSIDES
ARE MANDATORY
Fig jam andquince jelly
have becomestaples
to balance the rich-
nessandaccentu-
ate thesaltiness of
cheese. Moreadvanced
options include hot
honey, cabernetpep-
per wine jelly, and pun-
gentapricot mostarda,
an Italianpreserve
made with mustard.④VEGAN ISNOT
ACRIME
For the inevitable dairy-
free guest, there’s an
expanding category of
well-crafted options
from companies such as67FOOD Bloomberg Pursuits October 7, 2019
Six rules for buildinga better board.ByKate Krader
Photograph by Ted + Chelsea CavanaughCalifornia’s Vromage (try
the truffle brie or “pic-
orino,” with ash),French-
st yle nut cheese from
Treeline, or Dr. Cow’s
Cajun-aged cashew
cheese.⑤TIMINGCOUNTS
Cheese should sit out
for about 45 minutes
before serving to opti-
mize the texture—wait
for it to come to room
temperature before cut-
ting. Serve small-format
fresh andyoungcheeses
(i.e.,chèvre,burrata, robi-
ola) whole; chipfirmer
ones (cheddar, blue)
from a large piece; and
cut semi-hardvarieties
(Alpine, natural rind) into
wedges or chunks. The
goalis to create a tapes-
tr y,accordingtoCheese
BoardstoShare, b y
Thalassa Skinner (Ryland
Peters & Small; $21). Cut
soft cheeseswith athin
knife,or one with holes in
the blade, which stopthe
cheese from sticking to
themetal.⑥THEMESARE A
WOW FACTOR
If you’re serving wine
from, say, France’s Jura
district, try cheeses with
a similar, complemen-
taryterroir (local source).
Advancedcheeselovers
might create a “vertical
tastingplate” made with
Gouda or jack from differ-
ent age profiles, or sea-
sonal, limited batches.
EatalyNorth America
Head of Formaggi
Theresa McNamara rec-
ommends cow’s-milk
selectionsfrom different
Alpine valleys made by
farmers who migrate their
cattleseasonally.