Adult Party Ideas and Themes
Father's Day
grazing boards
Seasonal Parties
Tablescape Father's Day
Tablescape Summer
Tablescapes
A Cheese and Beer Tasting Party
Father's Day is this Sunday, and if you need easy, no-cooking-involved, no-fuss but totally delicious ideas to celebrate dad, then this Cheese and Beer Tasting party is IT! I mean, I don't know many dads who'd pass up the chance to taste beer on his special day (or any day...). Or cheese. Or cheese AND beer together!
Cheese and beer might sound heavy for summer, but we kept the cheeses light, serving it alongside fresh and seasonal produce, all washed down with more refreshing, summery types of beers.
A Cheese and Beer Tasting Party
This party theme idea came to me when we were entertaining a couple of weekends ago (you probably saw in my Instagram stories?!). Anyways, the sun was out, the beer was flowing and we were enjoying the garden... Then dinner time came, and I seriously didn't want to cook anything, so I put together a very tasty, but super simple cheese and charcuterie board to complement our beer tasting! Genius, even if I say so myself! 😋
Then I thought that a cheese and beer tasting party might be a perfect low-key but oh-so-fun idea for Father's Day too!
But because we're in summer, the idea of heavy beers (stouts for instance) or heavy cheese didn't sit well, so I chose lighter cheeses like Feta, Mascarpone, Gouda and Gorgonzola to pair with our cold wheat beers, fruity beers, Pilsner and larger.
When having a tasting party of this sort, I'd recommend having at least a selection of four cheeses to please all palates, and the same amount of beers. It keep the tasting interesting enough without going OTT.
We also served the usual charcuterie and cheese board culprits but in a summery, lighter format like cherry jam, cured ham, vegetable crisps, crackers and seasonal strawberries, peaches, oranges and cherries. They all paired so well with our cheese and beer selections!
Not to mention that our boards looked super stunning and so Instagram-worthy! And that's always a plus, right?! 😉
Hostess Tip: If you can use fig leaves from your garden or herbs to live your cheese boards, it protects the board from staining and adds a touch of pretty!
There are some cool info-graphics on Pinterest on the perfect beer/cheese pairings but I prefer to use them as a guide only to selecting my cheeses and beers for a party like this, and then find my own favorite flavor combinations. I'm a rebel like that, what can I say?! 😁
A Cheese and Beer Tasting Party - Table Decor
For the table decor or tablescape, I used a runner on our picnic bench with rattan place-mats to add texture. Since this was a cheese and beer tasting party, I wanted to keep things looking more masculine, so I went with blues, greens and a touch of copper for the tableware.
The food was the main attraction here, so I kept the table centerpiece low-key with a few copper vases (cocktail shaker and vintage teapot re-purposed!) filled with wild flowers we foraged from the garden. Looked so pretty without looking too girly.
To finish each place setting off, I used mini chopping boards that also doubled as coasters, some handy cheese and beer tasting cards, and of course, beer glasses and bottles. Easy, right?!
I loved this tasty spread, and it felt super relaxed, easy to pull-off and convivial for the whole family (serve lemonade or sparkling apple juice if you have kids present), that I can't wait to replicate the concept for any party or event we host this summer!
BTW, my favorite pairing was Feta with Wheat Beer, or the Mascarpone with Fruity Beer! So delicious, especially with dried figs and lashings of cherry jam! My husband preferred the Pilsner and Gouda combo.
But I'd love to hear your thoughts on your favorites too! So leave them in the comments below, k?!
And have a wonderful Father's Day this Sunday with the dads in your lives! 💖
Hi Cristina! This is a fabulous idea for a Summer party! We are entertaining out of town guests soon and this sounds like a very fun (and classy) party to throw for them. I saw your post over at "The Dedicated House" blog party.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun idea for a party! Looks beautiful and delicious! Thank you for sharing! You are one of the fan favorites at The Sunday Showcase from the Make it Pretty Monday party! Here is the link to this week's Showcase so you can check out your feature: http://www.thededicatedhouse.com/sunday-showcase-make-pretty-monday-8-51/ Have a happy week, my friend! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse
ReplyDelete