How to create a summer cheeseboard

Cheeseboards are staples of our customers’ tables over Christmas and the winter party season, but don’t miss out on the opportunity to promote cheese sales over the warmer months with inspiring summer cheeseboard ideas. 

As Jessica Summer, founder of Mouse & Grape, puts it, “Is there anything better than sharing a chilled bottle of wine with a cheese and charcuterie board during long, warm evenings?” We think not, so let’s dive in!

What types of cheese to use on a summer cheeseboard

As the mercury rises, it’s time to move towards summer cheeses that are light and acidic, Jessica says. “In the summer, I opt for lactic cheeses with high acidity, like crumbly Feta, salty grilled Halloumi, gorgeously creamy Burrata, and fruity blue cheese like Gorgonzola Dolce.”

With so many cheeses at their best in the summer, for Jen Grimstone-Jones of Cheese Etc, The Pangbourne Cheese Shop, the hardest part is choosing just a handful for a summer cheeseboard. Her formula for creating the perfect cheeseboard at any time of the year is to select four cheeses: a winning combination is a goats’ cheese, a soft cheese, a hard cheese and a blue cheese. 

“Being a huge goats’ cheese fan, I would always start a summer cheeseboard with a cheese such as a White Nancy from White Lake Cheese in Somerset. This is a crumbly cheese which is beautiful on a cheeseboard, but it also goes really nicely crumbled over a salad in the summer months,” Jen says. 

For the soft cheese, she struggles to choose anything beyond perennial favourite Baron Bigod from Fen Farm Dairy in Suffolk. “The Baron is at its very best at about 60 days, so when we’re eating it in June, July and August, the cows have been out in the spring pastures and their milk is deliciously creamy.”

The flavours of a 12-month-old Comté are perfect for summer, Jen says, so that is her go-to hard cheese option. “Being a year old, this cheese would have been made using rich alpine milk, so the cheese will have those classic nutty yet floral notes coming through.” 

And her final pick is Beauvale from Cropwell Bishop Creamery in Nottinghamshire. “This is a sweet, creamy blue which pairs beautifully with apricots and peaches and provides that bit of a kick in flavour.”

British cheese expert Claire Thomas of Cheese with Claire suggests a new favourite, Elrick Log from Errington Cheese in the upper Clyde valley. “I tried this Scottish goats’ cheese for the first time recently. It’s going to be a lovely summer slice with an initial freshness that gives way to quite a spicy centre. Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire will join it on the cheeseboard, as Claire says this year-round favourite is perfect for the summer months. “It’s moreish thanks to that lactic tang and smooth consistency, and something you can nibble all evening.”

Svetlana Kukharchuk of The Cheese Lady, based in Haddington, Scotland, loves a combination of five British farmhouse cheeses: delicate, rich and creamy St Jude; subtly flavoured, ash-coated Driftwood goats’ cheese; nutty, hard-pressed Bonnet, made in Ayrshire; England’s answer to Gouda, Wyfe of Bath; and beautifully marbled, rich Barkham Blue.

Accompaniments to include on a summer cheeseboard

The flavours of these cheeses can be complemented with seasonal summer fruits. As well as apricots and peaches with Beauvale, Jen recommends fresh strawberries and cherries with Comté and Baron Bigod.

Jessica suggests serving grilled peaches with Burrata and watermelon with Feta, but you can’t go wrong with other summer fruits, like raspberries, blackberries, figs, blueberries, plums and grapes. 

Claire opts for slightly sweetened stewed rhubarb, or suggests alternative sweet treats. “If you don’t want to go full Eccles cake on your summer cheeseboard, some raisins soaked in PX sherry are a very welcome alternative. Or, on cooler nights, atop a slice of apple pie.”

For an unexpected pairing, Svetlana says the “deep, slightly bitter flavours of dark chocolate contrast beautifully with Barkham Blue’s rich, buttery texture and blue veins”.

As for the more substantial accompaniments, Jessica suggests fruit-embedded crackers, sourdough crackers or fluffy, freshly baked focaccia, while for Jen, a slice of sourdough bread is the perfect pair to any cheeseboard. “We’re very lucky in Pangbourne as we have Birch, a wonderful bakery, just opposite us,” she says. “I love it in the summer when you can pull together a salad, bread and cheese and eat it outside in the sun.”

If you want to create a real showstopper of a feast, pair your cheese with a range of charcuterie meats. Jessica’s picks are coppa, salami, chorizo or bresaola, “all of which pair beautifully” with her recommended summer cheeses.

For the finishing touch, add fresh herbs, like basil or thyme, or a touch of elegance with edible flowers. And Jessica’s final tip is for the sweet-and-savoury lovers: “Drizzle acacia or lavender-flavoured honey over the cheeses for added sweetness.”

Drinks to pair with a summer cheeseboard

In the warmer weather, there’s nothing that quenches the thirst quite like a chilled glass of wine. Jen opts for rosé in the summer, “and Folc from southeast England is coming into its own at the moment. Crisp and dry with hints of strawberries, it can hold its own against all the cheeses,” she says.

Jessica also recommends a classic Provence rosé or English wine, “a refreshing white wine without oak or lees aging, or a chilled light red with low tannins, which perfectly complement the flavours of summer”.

Read about more drinks to pair with cheese here.

Tips for creating your summer cheeseboard

Once you’ve chosen your cheeses and accompaniments, Paul Heasman of Rowcliffe shares his advice for building your board. “Contrast colours and textures and be creative with cutting and shapes,” he begins.

“Fresh goat, semi-aged sheep, mature farmhouse Cheddar and a blue are good cornerstones, then build around this with cheeses that are more pungent and funkier, sweet, or flavoured with additives such as fruit, and a salty Feta, ideally in oil to drizzle on bread and other cheeses. This should provide a catch-all for all grazers of the board,” Paul says. 

And don’t forget that melted cheese isn’t only for winter. “If you have the BBQ fired up, remember to bake a Camembert or melt a nice big wedge of Brie,” he adds.

If you’re struggling with too many cheese options, however, Tom Badcock of Harvey & Brockless suggests choosing a theme. “This could be where all the cheeses are made by female cheesemakers or where all the cheeses come from Sussex,” he says.

“The nature of cheeseboards having to be a bit of everything is like serving a rainbow when there is lots of pleasure in, perhaps, just the greens.”

How to sell a summer cheeseboard

Most of us need no excuse to indulge in good cheese, but if you find yourself having to explain to customers why a cheeseboard is a summer must-serve for their next family gathering or al fresco meal, we’ve put together some summer cheese selling pointers.

Summer cheeses are made using milk as animals move onto lush new summer pastures

“Generally, cheeses made in the summer are created using milk from animals that are grazing outdoors, whereas winter cheeses are made using milk from animals which are being fed on winter feed,” explains Jen. “This means that summer cheeses are often more herbaceous.”

“Winter cheeses didn’t exist historically and are a miracle of hay, silage and winter fodder,” adds Tom. “The spring cheeses are green, and they often ripen differently. There are a number of reasons why, and amongst them is the inclusion of enzymically rich Colostrum,” a form of milk produced by mammals just prior to and after giving birth, “as well as the switch from rich silage to young pasture.”

As Paul explains, “Hard cows’ cheeses become more golden due to Beta-carotene in the grass, and flavours become more complex. Young cheeses just feel and look fresher, taking on more floral and grassy notes; goat and sheep cheeses exhibit more character from the milk, making the animal origin more pronounced – spring and summer is their optimum time.”

Summer cheeses require extra care

“Keep as little stock as possible,” Tom advises. “Keep the cheese consistently cold, and avoid over-trimming or cutting into pieces that will dry and lose their fresh vibrancy.”

“The softer cheeses are perfect for eating,” Jen adds, so advise customers to buy them as near to when they want to eat them as possible. In the shop, “keep them wrapped up well and in the fridge. If it’s particularly warm they don’t take as long to come up to room temperature for eating,” Jen explains, so be sure to let customers know they can take them out of the fridge half an hour before serving. 

Vegan cheeses for summer

Emily Kelly of La Fauxmagerie offers her picks for a perfect dairy-free board.

- Vegan Burrata - Julienne Bruno, Burrella or La Fauxmagerie’s Fauxrata: pair with fresh tomatoes, grilled peaches, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, crushed pistachios and agave or honey.
- Summer Truffle by Kinda Co.: super smooth and rich with a bright refreshing truffle flavour and a zesty finish.
- Camemvert by La Fauxmagerie: served on a crusty baguette with a glass of champagne or frizzante.
- Goat-ee by La Fauxmagerie: served on a crispy cracker/toast and topped with a drizzle of agave. The Goat-ee is a soy-based cheese infused with sauvignon blanc and dusted with nettle powder.
- Rigotta in Garlic Oil by I Am Nut Ok: a freshly curdled, summery vegan ricotta infused with rich and punchy garlic oil. This lovely, tangy cheese is made with fermented, activated cashews, making its texture light and fluffy.
- Fetamorphosis by I Am Nut Ok: the perfect briny and salty addition to any salad.