From 6:30 to 9:00pm, we’ll be tasting the finest soft and oozy cheeses that our local cheesemongers have to offer.

Park in the lot or along the side of the road
(so cars can still exit)

The event is at the top of the hill in the caves and promises to be awesome.

We have a date and location for the next Cheesewhizzes event.

You’re invited to a spectacular pre-holiday Cheesewhizzes on Saturday,  November 19, 2011.

Thanks to Josh at Anderson’s Conn Valley, we shall taste the cheese and pair it with the perfect beverage in the most gorgeous location.

Verdict’s still out on the theme, any and all suggestions welcomed in the comments.

Thanks to the awesomeocity of Cosentino Winery, we’ll be getting our French on, Napa Valley style.

July 16
Cosentino Winery
7pm-10pm

Bring a French cheese and a French wine.
(Or other French beverage.)

See you there!
(I said that in a French accent.)

My ladypal AB Chao and I presented about how to style quick appetizers for your blog. We covered last minute nuts, dips, a chocolate plate and a cheese plate.

We went through how NOT to take photos:

And what makes a good photo:

For the cheese plate, we headed over to the St. James Cheese Company for their expert opinions.

We wanted keepable cheese, cheese that could hang in your fridge for a while.
We wanted beautiful cheese, cheese that would photograph beautifully.
We wanted delicious cheese, because our butts were on the line.

They helped us for waaay longer than they needed to, carefully listening to restraints of budget and aesthetics.
And man, it was beautiful.

Our cheese plate held the following cheese:
Neal’s Yard Montgomery’s Cheddar
Robiola Tre Latte
Jasper Hill Bayley Hazen Blue

And now yours can too.

Huge thanks to sponsors Culture Magazine and Brix Chocolate.
Chocolate and cheese do go together.
Quite beautifully.

On Saturday, April 16th, at exactly 3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) cheesemongers in our stores across the U.S., Canada and the U.K. will simultaneously crack into 372 85-pound wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano.
See more details — and the store locator.

The generous folks at Peju Winery will host our next Cheesewhizzes event.

Time is also updated, we’ll be meeting at Peju on Saturday, April 9, at 7:00pm. Theme forthcoming!

Mark your schedules for the next cheesy Napa Valley event.

Cheesewhizzes is coming back from its hiatus with a tasty new event Saturday, April 2.

Hire a sitter,
pencil us in,
pace impatiently.

And while you’re waiting, watch something about cheese why don’t you?

WHAT (#1): The Terroir Exchange

WHAT (#2): An informal, walk-around gathering of top French and Northern CA cheesemakers with their handiwork, washed down with Napa wines.Taste an incredible assortment of cheeses and talk to the cheese producers directly. Also, meet the people behind culture magazine, Oxbow Cheese Merchant, the French Cheese Club, Mahoney Vineyards & Waterstone Winery, and Tony’s Fine Foods.

WHEN: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 from 5–8:00 pm

WHERE: Taste at Oxbow, 708 First Street, Napa, CA 94559; 707.265.9600; www.tasteatoxbow.com

WHO: From California—Bellwether Farms (Valley Ford, Sonoma County), Cowgirl Creamery (Petaluma), Cypress Grove Chèvre (Arcata), Marin French (Nicasio), Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese (Point Reyes), Redwood Hill Farms (Sebastopol), Laura Chenel’s Chèvre (Sonoma)

From France—L’Etoile du Sud (Lot-et-Garonne), Berthaut (Burgundy), Graindorge (Normandy), Lincet (Burgundy), Rivoire (Jura), Rouzaire (Seine et Marne)

COST: $50, which includes cheese and wine. Advanced purchase is required. For tickets, go to culturecheesemag.com/subscribe. Terroir Exchange tickets are the first thing on the list. A donation to the CA Artisan Cheese Guild will be made from the proceeds of this event.

OKAY I WANT TO GO NOW WHAT?
Call Thalassa and let her know you’re a Cheesewhizzes member to reserve your spot.
707-321-8094.

Yay for Cheese events!

Wanted to give big thanks to Rubicon Estate for hosting the most recent Cheesewhizzes event, “Tales of the Traveling Cheesewhizzes.”  More info on how we put it all together in the next newsletter.

Did you attend?  Share your pictures by posting to Flickr and adding the tag “Cheesewhizzes” or by posting to the event wall on Facebook.

You, get out.
Here, I have something for you, I have some Thanksgiving cheese.

I have a big platter of it.
Crackers, grapes and cheese.
Now take this out to the living room.

You mean you haven’t started planning your Thanksgiving cheese yet?
(I joke.  I haven’t either.)

A well-curated cheese plate is a great way to keep turkey pickers and kitchen grazers from munching their way through your kitchen.
Here are three of our can’t lose favorites for your Thanksgiving munchers.

These are all made in the USA.
These are all grandparent approved.
These all pair well with the relaxed pickery of the day.

Chaumes cheese
	Chaumes is a staple of in-home cheese plates all over the Napa Valley. It’s mild, yes, but also flavorful, a favorite with kids and amazing in macaroni and cheese.
Franklin Teleme
	Franklin Teleme is the cheese we go mad for. Seriously, it has Cheesewhizzes everywhere bumping elbows with each other on their way to the platter. It’s runny, it’s fancy, it’s local and quite frankly, it tastes damn good.
Rogue River Crater Lake Cheese
	We had this cheese at the Cheesewhizzes tasting at the Broad Summit in October and let’s just say, the ladies were blown away. There’s a reason this cheese won best American cheese. It’s neither too stinky nor too pungent, a fabulous cheese to please even non-blue cheese lovers.