4 Cheese and Wine Pairings for the Ultimate Spring Cheese Board

Our ultimate spring cheese board not only highlights the best of spring pastures—meaning grassy, young, lean cheeses that speak to the grazing lands—but also harmonizes with the wines you want to enjoy as winter winds down. We picked a super-smoky lean goat cheese that adds heft with flavor instead of fat, as well as a melty, ripe combination of cow cream and goat milk that delivers buttery decadence. Match them with wines and small bites that offer balance but also open new notes in each cheese. Check out our four favorite cheeses, plus pairings to help you get the most out of every creamy bite. (To order any of these cheeses, visitmurrayscheese.com.)

A bold and smooth-textured cheese, the Hudson Flower is coated with the very herbs the sheep graze on each spring. Smear it, rind and all, on a crusty baguette; pair with an oily, textured Riesling and dried California apricots.

A blend of cow cream and goat milk, this cheese offers an indulgent bite with a buttery finish. Add a drizzle of honey to bring out the hint of lemon in the cheese. The minerality of the grazing land in the Adirondacks comes through and begs for a dry rosé Champagne.

With a beautifully wrinkled rind and creamy interior, the Coupole is a classic spring goat cheese. The grassy flavors of the terroir shine through and are balanced by undertones of pear. Try it with Sauvignon Blanc to play up the fresh, verdant notes of the cheese.

Wrapped in maple leaves misted with bourbon and drenched in an intensely smoky aroma, Up In Smoke offers a wintry transition into spring. Balance this tangy goat cheese with a pile of Marcona almonds. Pour aPinot Noiror a crisp Palo Cortado sherry.

As a pair, cheese and wine can heighten each other’s subtle flavors or mellow strong ones, keeping each bite in balance. To taste wine and cheese together, first smell and taste the cheese alone, then the wine alone. Then bite and sip together.