Spring Cheese: Your Essential Guide to Eating Cheese Seasonally

Spring is just around the corner, and we’re gearing up for the season with a gourmet cheese board. Bursting with all the bright colors and flavors just coming into season, we’ll walk you through the best Springtime cheeses and the tastiest seasonal accouterments with which to pair them!

Seasonal Eating

While many of us purchase our produce seasonally, waiting eagerly for the time of year when our favorite fruits or vegetables are at their zenith, that same method of shopping and cooking is often not applied to items we consider kitchen staples, like cheese. However, cheeses are also impacted by the season in which they’re made. Two wheels of the same cheese, one made in Winter rather than Summer, will come out looking and tasting worlds apart.

The Art of Pairing

Another reason to think seasonally when it comes to your cheese is that, as luck would have it, often the fruits and vegetables in season pair best with the cheeses made within the same time of year. The crisp, juicy apples and grapes of Autumn make the ideal partner to a wedge of Cheddar, while Winter is a blur of Champagne and triple-créme cheeses. Spring, however, is perhaps our favorite of all. Asparagus, rhubarb, ramps, and strawberries demand the subtle notes of lighter cheeses with tart, almost citrusy flavors.

Spring Cheese

When looking for the best varieties of Spring cheese, seek out fresh, young options made from new milk. Because the tastes of the season directly impact the final flavor of fresh cheeses. Creamy and luscious selections like fromage blanc, brebis, and chevré offer the ideal transportation for all the renewed flavors of Springtide. Quick and easy to make, these varieties go from milk to finished cheese in as little as three days, meaning you're getting the most authentic tastes of the season and the terroir of the region.

Bloomy Rind Cheese

Soft ripened wheels, especially the petit varieties, are aged for a month or even less. Made with new milk: these relatively young cheeses should be available just in time for the warm weather, the ideal moment to get reacquainted with delightfully creamy cheeses like Nettle Meadow’s Kunik. Unique among the bloomy rind varieties, it is made from a combination of goat’s milk and cow’s cream. This triple créme is rendered extra luxurious thanks to its infusion of extra cream and the ideal partner for the other heralds of Spring: fresh strawberries and rhubarb.

Goat Cheese

In the world of goat cheese, Kidding season, which hits in the early Spring, is synonymous with bounty. The flood of fresh milk that accompanies this time of year is transformed into log after wheel of delicious, quick turn-around Chevrés and Crottins. Lightly aged, Crottin Maitre Seguin and a chilled glass of Sauvignon Blanc, like Sancerre, is a classic combo. Vermont Creamery’s Award-winning Bonne Bouche, with its light, airy quality, and citrusy highlights, sings when served with a drizzle of Spring honey and prosciutto.

Hard Cheese

While a majority of cheeses featured on Spring menus and charcuterie boards will be the aforementioned fresh chevrés and triple creams, there is also room on the plate for aged cheeses that hold the flavor of Spring's past. Alpine varieties made the previous year at the peak of the season, then slowly aged to perfection, offer a mature taste of the lush valleys and fresh mountainside blooms. Spring Brooke Farm’s Reading Raclette, with its grassy undertones, makes a great addition to your seasonal spread.

The Supporting Cast

For the best accompaniments for a Spring-focused cheese board, look to seasonal produce like fresh strawberries, sweet jams, and the tart zing of rhubarb compote. Floral honey to drizzle over chevre; even a few pieces of dark chocolate can provide the perfect balance of flavors. In this time of abundance, don’t forget about the tender greens that are just emerging. Make the most of their bright colors and sweet flavors by including micro greens, pea shoots, stalks of asparagus, and gold, red, and striped baby beets.

If your ensemble is feeling too ‘organic’, try using each ingredient in a prepared component. Peas make an excellent addition to hummus, and asparagus spears neatly trimmed and wrapped in prosciutto feel more elegant. Include some artisan crackers or a crusty baguette to round out your board. A few edible flowers tucked here and there make the ideal garnish for your gourmet Spring cheese tray.

Putting It All Together

Now that you know what to look for, you may be asking yourself where to buy Spring cheese. Look no further than our selection of artisan offerings to get a taste of what’s in season.

Begin by choosing a variety of cheeses of different textures, profiles, and milk types. An aged cheese, a soft-ripened option, and, of course, a fresh variety are the ideal places to start. Build the board around them using your favorite accouterments, and before your eyes, the true tastes of Spring will begin to emerge.