5 Ways To Celebrate National Cheese Lover's Day in YGK
Updated: Jun 2, 2022
Did you know that the oldest solid cheese in the world was found recently inside a broken jar in Egypt, and is over 3,000 years old? Or that the largest cheese platter on record weighed close to 4,500 lbs with around 145 varieties of cheese?
While Kingston may not be setting world records with cheese, our city has so many 'grate' ways to support local and celebrate National Cheese Lover's Day on at the same time (cheesy puns fully intended):
Try a new cheese
Make or buy charcuterie
Have a wine and cheese night
Learn a new cheesy recipe
Eat poutine
TRY A NEW CHEESE
When I first met my partner she claimed she was a cheese lover and addict. A few months into our relationship I realized that this self-proclaimed "cheese lover" only ate two types of cheese: marble and mild cheddar. Slowly I started introducing her to new types of cheese and she has been hooked ever since!
Although my partner is not into wine (crazy, I know), there is a delicious sounding red wine cheese located at Flight Cheese Shop in west-end Kingston (inside Wine Expert). Their Ubriaco al Vino Rosso by Latteria di Moro selection is soaked in red wine for two months, then aged for another six-to-eight months. It is said to take on some of the flavours of the wine and I can't wait to try it! There are so many unique cheese options to choose from at Flight that I am sure you will find one you have never tasted before!
MAKE OR BUY CHARCUTERIE
MAKE
Without a doubt, homemade charcuterie is the way I will be celebrating National Cheese Lover's Day.
The best part? You can buy local products in most grocery stores, if not all of them in Kingston!
If I need a one-stop shopping place, I usually head over to the local section of a grocery store to buy some old cheddar by Wilton Cheese, a little double-smoked cheddar from Balderson Cheese, and then a couple other cheese options from local suppliers.
Now meat is a different story, at least for me. I would highly HIGHLY recommend taking a trip to Brothers Quality Meats. They literally have everything you need to make charcuterie. I just recently picked up some peppered salami for the big day myself, and they have a very large variety of other salami to choose from: Mild Dry, Mexican, Hungarian, Gypsy, Hot Dry, All-Beef, Genoa, and more!
BUY
For the busy bees of the world who struggle to find extra time in their lives, you could pick up a grocery package and charcuterie at the same time if you pre-order at The Grocery Basket. Extra bonuses: they have TWO different sizes of boards to choose from AND they use all local meat, cheese, and spreads!
Otherwise, there are actually a couple of businesses in the area dedicated to the charcuterie food group. Yes, charcuterie is now a YGK certified food group.
Harmony Flavours Charcuterie is a gourmet deli-style store that has everything you need to create your own charcuterie board AND they even do arrangements if you want to get extra fancy. They have THREE different sizes to choose from starting at a 2-4 person serving, all the way up to a platter that can feed 8-10 people!
I would also suggest looking into a micro-business called Charcuterie Kingston. Their arrangements are stunning, but I don't need to tell you that if you're looking at their Instagram page! You can really tell so much care and thoughtfulness goes into their arrangements!
Made for pre-order by DM only on Facebook or Instagram.
HAVE A WINE AND CHEESE NIGHT
I will admit that there is a high chance I will be pairing a glass (okay maybe a bottle) of red wine with my celebration of Cheese Lover's Day. The taste of cabernet sauvignon and aged cheddar, can life get any better than that?
If you're a bit of a newbie to the pairing world, and are unsure of what wine or alcohol goes well with different types of cheese, Cooke's Fine Foods has a full-service cheese counter where staff can answer all of your questions about pairings. An added bonus is they actually have pairing suggestions right on their website!
There is a reason they have been in business since 1865!
LEARN A NEW CHEESY RECIPE
If you're the kind of person who likes to make food, then why not learn a new cheesy recipe, or an alternative version to one you already know?
Maybe I am the last person in Kingston to come out from under their rock, but I was just introduced to a local food blogger, The Staycationer, and wow! Kingston is filled with so many interesting people and Rosalyn is no exception!
In September she posted about how to make an easy cheesy egg breakfast sandwich, and the pictures alone will make your mouth water! I also found a few other of my favourites she posted:
Jack Astor's Bruschetta (feta cheese counts!)
You can check out Rosalyn's Pinterest page here for more recipes.
EAT POUTINE
It's maybe not the most obvious way to celebrate National Cheese Lover's Day, but you can't have poutine without cheese!
Maybe it's because I'm reminded of my younger years when I was a student at Queens, but when I think of delicious local poutine, Bubba's is always at the top of my list!
Their original Quebec-Style Poutine is the perfect amount and balance of cheese, fries, and gravy, but if you're looking to venture a little from the norm, they a few other alternative poutines available, including: Greek, Italian, and Onion Ring.
Very affordable and extremely delicious!
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Thank you for reading, we hope to see you in-person some time soon.
Are you celebrating National Cheese Lover's Day? Show us how by using the hashtag #ygkcheeseloversday, we'd love to see what you made or bought!
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