Cheese and Crackers....

[N8DCJ]

I know this will seem a bit pedestrian for most of you...

But , go get a box of Toasteds Harvest Wheat crackers and some Havarti with Caraway...

Enjoy...

Dan

[Briandg]

Sounds good to me, I like havarti. We have several pounds of brie throughout the year, we buy big ones for the holiday gatherings

My top favorite is Tillamook aged white cheddar. We don't have gourmet cheese shops here, we can get some good ones at Sam's. We keep a pound or two of jarlsberg on hand.

[N8DCJ]

Brian

Kroger here carries Tillamook , I will have to keep my eyes out for the aged white cheddar.

Dan

[BigO]

Look for the aged Tillamook cheddar around the holidays. I put a couple of pounds of it up in the black wax chunks up each year for later use. Makes an incredible Mac and cheese come summer.

[grtrx]

Try aged Gouda,the older the better (1000 days or 5 year old).

Cheese is something Trader Joes has good prices on.

I am lucky, we have a local grocery that stocks a lot of local cheeses, we are in the midst of a cheese renaissance in the USA (which is part of the rebirth of fermenting in general... think beer)

A great beer for pairing with cheese is the Brother Thelonius from North Coast Brewing

Rather than crackers, try really good bread toasted... a little honey on the side, plus maybe some marcona almonds (which give you some crunch and a different taste)

Last thought, cigars and cheese don't pair well

[Briandg]

That explains why it vanishes.

Damn, it is so good. Creamer than you would expect, sharp, everything you would want. Better than kerrygold. About $6 a pound there. The sharp cheddar itself is about what you would expect from a top grade, comparing the regular grades to the grocery store bricks isn't even close. That entire end of the store pays for the membership. They have ribeye for about seven, all cut in house Angus. We get back ribs for less than three, loin for even less. Burger is even cheap. Basically all fresh foods, even dairy stuff is maybe as much as a third to even half off of grocery prices. But it's all bulk. Family pack.

Canned and dry goods are harder to save on, but coffee mate is a tiny fraction of store prices. I keep Styrofoam cups upstairs to run tea or coffee, and the CASE costs about as much as a pair of tubes at a store. A five pound box of stir sticks was about the price of a case of coke. Ahh, I jest, it was about a five year supply about the size of a shoe box. Throw Hart of them away, and you're still paying ten percent of the price at grocery.

Some of the stuff takes storage space. I hate to give money to that company, but we eat better, and a couple years ago, we picked up a leather reclining couch for about four. It was a floor specimen. Would have cost less than the price of a chair.

[Briandg]

They sometimes have that drop dead good aged gouda. Holy crap, that stuff is like heaven in a wax wrapper. The crystals, the taste, the texture...

Sometimes I will slice store baguette to a quarter inch and slightly toast it, it's wondrous with some cheeses.

The brie that we get is about a seven inch wheel of president, nothing special, but good. We get one for thanksgiving, one at Christmas, and maybe two or more throughout the year. I never would have expected it, but almost the whole family goes after it.

We do a really good spread on the holidays, but damnation and hellfire, there is one that has to interfere at every level.

It's no wonder that I start drinking as soon as the bell rings. I put a shot glass of bourbon on the phone table, and as I go past to open the door, BOOM! The grimace on my face is usually gone before I open the door.

[grtrx]

one of the best cheeses I've ever had is finca de pascuelete retorta

http://www.fincapascualete.com/

the cheese is soft, almost runny and deeply funky

[SLR]

I love crackers and cheese. For me, I add prosciutto, or Serrano ham for something special to the cheese and crackers.

[beevod]

Goat Gouda, room temperature, summer sausage and a bottle of Tempranillo.