Eleanor’s Guide to the Ultimate Cheese Board

August 8th, 2023

“If only Eleanor could get a job where she ate cheese for a living…” This became the running joke in my family starting at age 5 after my sister walked in on me downing the bowl of leftover grated parmesan from dinner. I’ve always loved and respected cheese. A dairy girl through-and-through and an impulsive grocery shopper, it only made sense that I’d become a specialty buyer and cheesemonger when I grew up. While I initially fell in love with cheese for the taste, I’ve remained in love with cheese because of the history, chemistry, and ingenuity that cheesemaking requires. Luckily, Jubilee’s dedication to using honest ingredients and independent farms was perfectly in sync with how I wanted to source our cheese! Though not all of our cheese is local (we import from small cheesemakers in Italy, France, Spain, and Switzerland), all of our cheesemakers are dedicated to their craft and refuse to sacrifice quality for quantity.

Here at Jubilee, we want to provide a variety of options for every cheeseboard! This means having a range of price points, funk, and familiarity. Cheese should be accessible and unintimidating; it’s one of the world’s most fun and experimental types of food that depends on so many variables. When it comes to curating the “perfect” cheese board, I think the most important aspects of choosing cheese are:

1.  Believing in the cheesemaker’s values. The best cheeses come from creameries and cheesemakers who value and respect their animals. Happy animals = great cheese!

2. Not being intimidated or encouraged by price point – an expensive cheese is not necessarily better than a less expensive cheese. The most important thing to keep in mind is quality. Good quality cheese comes in many different prices.

3. Asking questions! Your cheesemonger will have recommendations for you based on how adventurous you’d like to go and can also suggest things that you may not have thought of. Cheesemongers love talking about cheese, so don’t feel intimidated to ask questions. It’s their favorite thing to do!

4. Imagine your cheese board as a visual representation of your taste buds. Add different items that apply to each “bud” – sweet, salty, sour, bitter, umami! I like to have a few berries and fruits along with jams and honey, some salty, cured meats like prosciutto, speck, or bresaola, along with tangy mustard, olives, cornichons and / or pickled veggies. Cherry tomatoes, radishes, and raw nuts make great palate cleansers and pairings along with plain crackers and pieces of a great baguette too – you need to have a good vehicle! And of course….plenty of tinned fish.

5. Fill your cheese board with things you like and things that are edible. I don’t see the point in making a cheese board with things only for Instagram. Cheese is beautiful on its own and will make a very social media-worthy photo

Ultimately, if you are choosing a variety of cheese that sounds appetizing to you, you will have a great cheese board. The best cheese boards inform and teach you about cheese and get you excited to try like-cheeses from other creameries.