There are certain things that are just better together. Peanut butter & jelly. Spaghetti & meatballs. Chuck Bass & Blair Waldorf. The list goes on. For me, one of my all-time favorite pairings happens to be wine and cheese. There’s just nothin’ better than snacking on a cheese plate with a glass of wine in hand.

* Photos by Tory Putnam

To celebrate one of the greatest pairings of all time and make the most of our new apartment’s amenities, I wanted to throw a little afterwork wine and cheese night to catchup with girlfriends and unwind from the week and while at first pulling it all together seemed a bit intimidating, it was actually as easy as can be. A look at how it can be easily done:

I tend to feel a little lost while browsing the wine aisle – there are just SO many options, brands and vintages. To keep it simple and set a theme for the night I grabbed several bottles of Cultivar Wine; it was really fun to try a new vineyard together and taste the differences between vintages. Their Cabernet Sauvignon’s were so good (and I’m typically more of a Pinot Noir kind of girl!)

For the cheese board I wanted to keep it super simple and a quick stop at Trader Joe’s on my way home from work did just the trick. I grabbed a sharp cheddar, smoked gouda, brie and chevre and then paired with some roasted red peppers, salami, olives and cornichons which made the prep work pretty minimal (just slice up the cheddar and gouda and you’re good to go!). To dress the plate up a bit I added a few fresh sprigs of rosemary and finished things off with water crackers and a sliced fresh baguette to go with the cheeses. It looked great, felt fancy yet took under 10 minutes to pull together and made for the perfect little snack to have with our wine.

Are you a big wine and cheese fan? Have you ever tried Cultivar Wines? Any favorite cheese plate ingredients?

This post was created in partnership with Cultivar Wines