How to put together a cheese plate

1. Have a theme. Actually, there is no hard and fast rule about a theme, but it sure makes it easier for cheese novices to choose from the dozens, if not hundreds, of cheeses available at the cheese counter. Country, milk type, texture, producer, cheese type, rind, matching a wine you are serving – all of these are potential themes for a plate. Alternately, a non-theme will work too. Picking one cheese each from the category of milk types –sheep, goat, cow – can create a cheese plate with textural, flavor, and visual variety. If you are totally lost, ask your friendly cheesemonger for advice – that’s what they are there for!
2. Keep your numbers odd. Cheese plates should have an odd number of cheeses – 3, 5, 7, etc. – rather than even. This is a guideline; you could serve 4 or 6 if you like, but the balance of odd numbers is visually pleasing and is reflected in other arts, particularly Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arrangement.
3. 
   
   Arrange your cheeses from mildest to strongest if you are serving cheese as a course. Lay out your cheeses with your mildest cheese at twelve o’clock on the plate, and place the rest of the cheeses – mildest to strongest – clockwise, down and around. Your mildest cheese will end up next to your strongest cheese, if you have a sizable cheese plate. Blues are almost always the strongest cheeses on the plate, followed by washed rind cheeses.
4. Add accompaniments. Other foods can intensify and even change the flavor of cheese. Serve cheeses with a variety of accompaniments like toasted nuts, quince paste (membrillo), slices of pear or apple, dried fruits, wine jelly, Italian mostarda, fig cake, or date cake (and any number of other treats available today). Crackers are good if they are to be used as a palate cleanser, but bread is far more interesting as a vehicle for cheese. Try a bread with nuts and fruits, like a pecan-raisin loaf or cranberry-walnut bread.
5. Pick a drink to go with it. Water is nice, but wine is finer. If you are serving cheese at the end of the meal, the last wine you serve with the entrée can be served with dessert if you don’t want to fuss too much. You can also choose a wine to pair with your cheese course, if you really want to create a dazzler (ask your cheesemonger for advice if you have a broad range of cheeses). With strong blues, nothing beats dessert wines like Port, Tawny Port, Muscat, late harvest Zin, Sauternes, etc. Milder cheeses can be overwhelmed by syrupy dessert wines, so avoid them if you are not serving strong cheeses.