Friends, fellow dairy lovers, I've got great cheese news for you: Just in time for the holidays, Costco's $20 cheese flights are returning. I'll say it again, slowly. Costco. Cheese flights. 20 dollars. Whatever your previous vacation plans were, they will now include this cheese board.
The Costco cheese flight includes five different types of cheese. Let’s not waste time meeting everyone. First up is Monteau Alpine from Yellow Door Creamery. It is made from cow's milk and is a hard cheese with a nutty flavor. Next, we have Cabot Clothbound Mature Bandage Cheddar from Jasper Mountain Farm. It's so fragrant and has a strong flavor. It has a natural crust which essentially makes it look beautiful. El Pastor’s Spanish red wine-soaked goat cheese is one of those cheeses that’s fruity, sweet, and delicious. And Pecorino Toscana cheese from Busti Il Tartufo. She's delicious, tangy, and—oh la la—Italian. Finally, there’s the Tuscan Hand-Grub Fontina from Yellow Door Creamery. I know you're focused on the words "hand-rubbed," but I promise, the semi-soft cheese coated with an Italian herb blend is so delicious you'll be able to ignore those words.
If you're looking for the perfect treat for your next holiday party, Costco has you covered for just $19.99.
Costco's cheese flights sent lactose shockwaves through the digestive system of the internet when they were first discovered earlier this summer. It's almost identical to this new cheese, but instead of a Tuscan hand-rubbed fontina, it's a Dijon vanilla hand-rubbed fontina. While Costco no longer appears to carry Dijon Fontina, it is listed on Yellow Door Creamery's website and available for wholesale. So, if you want to get a little crazy with your cheese board, you can start here.
Like the flights earlier this summer, Costco's new cheese flights come packed with nearly two pounds of cheese total (29 ounces, to be exact). If you follow the "1 to 2 ounces of cheese per person" rule, this is about enough to serve a party of 15 to 25 people. If you follow the "cheese is appetizer, main course and dessert" rule, you might be able to split the cheese four ways.
If you're wondering if $20 worth of cheese is a good deal, I'll give you this: You can get a little more than the same amount of brie (2.2 pounds) on Amazon...but it will cost you 3.5x More cheese flights than Costco. In other words, yes, $20 for five different types of cheese weighing nearly 30 ounces is a pretty good deal.
While the cheese flights don't come with crackers or fruit to go with them, Costco offers you more than just that. Place them on a cheese board with Mary's Gone crackers or a one-pound bag of pita bread. Buy a Costco-sized can of grapes and be your family’s Thanksgiving hero. There's no wrong way to eat a cheese board.
If you really want to impress your extended family at Christmas, the back of the pack even lists suggestions for wine and beer pairings. If you need more suggestions, the list of perfect wine and cheese pairings is as endless as the internet itself. Additionally, cheese board Instagram influencers—like those whose entire Instagrams are dedicated to professional-grade cheese boards—are a big deal, too! You won't be short of inspiration or dairy products. Happy cheese!
