Choose 3-7 cheese for your tasting.

Plate up cheese in a tasting order

Find out just how fun and easy it is to host your own cheese tasting.

Cheese Tasting is hip, fun and delicious. Tempted to host your own, but don't know where to begin? With 100 or more selections at well-stocked cheese counters, it can be hard to choose. Will they go with the wine? Will your guests like them? Will they think you're weird?

Before you get overwhelmed, just remember Cheese Chick's Golden Rule: "It's Just Cheese!" Meaning, don't stress. Worrying about whether the cheese is perfectly ripe, if it will pair properly with that snazzy new bottle of wine and whether or not you should seek out a store that doesn't wrap in plastic will simply drain your energy -- energy that could be better spent enjoying cheese!

Here are some tips that will help you make your tasting a smashing success:

Choose 3 - 7 cheeses from several different styles at least two different milk types to provide a nice contrast of flavors and textures. Try a Brie, Goat Cheese, Washed Rind, Aged Gouda and Blue, for instance. An advanced approach is to plan a vertical tasting where several different versions of one style of cheese or selections from a single country or region, tasting them side by side.

A tasting of Blue Cheese might include: Italian Gorgonzola Dolce, Fourme d'Ambert and Roquefort from France, Spanish Cabrales, English Stilton and an artisan blue from Rogue Creamery.

This approach very enlightening -- just make sure your guests are truly fond of the style of cheese you're exploring.

How Much to Buy? For an appetizer or dessert course cheese tasting, plan on two ounces per guest. For a formal tasting or for parties where cheese is the main attraction, plan on three ounces per guest. Follow this simple equation:

Number of Guests  x  Amount of Cheese
Number of Cheeses

For instance, 10 guests at a formal tasting would equal 30 ounces of cheese divided by six cheeses meaning about 5 ounces of each type of cheese. I often round up by an ounce or two on each selection to allow guests to have their fill.

How to Serve While I don't believe in blind observance of rules, here's one that's critical: Cheese is best served at room temperature! Remove cheese from the refrigerator 45 minutes to an hour prior to serving to ensure the fullest flavor.

Plating Up Serve cheese in a tasting order: mellow, mild, softer cheeses first progressing toward big, bold flavors. Generally, I begin with fresh spreadable cheeses and then proceed to Brie, Goat and semi-firm cheeses like Morbier; next I feature aged cheeses like Cheddar, Aged Gouda or Parmigiano and finish with bold Washed Rind and Blue.

Serve with crusty bread or plain crackers. Nuts, fresh and dried fruit and chutney are also lovely additions to a plate of cheese, but try the cheese solo first for the best impression.

Click here for some helpful tasting techniques.