As we continue our lap around the seasons and summer is left far behind, our appetites also make a move. Hearty foods—including dense, ripe cheeses—now become as appealing as do warm sweaters and soft flannel sheets. Our fall cheese plate selection (available from most cheesemongers) satisfies these cool weather cravings with big, nutty, buttery flavors and supple wedges, served with a sampling of easy autumn accompaniments. Just unwrap the cheese, dish out the condiments, and add a few knives. Mmm, what a delicious season.

Garrotxa
Gray-rinded, with a bone-white interior, this signature goat’s milk cheese (pronounced gar-ROACH-uh) comes from Catalonia, Spain, where the goats feast on thyme and rosemary. Close your eyes and slowly savor this nutty, dense cheese to taste its herbal subtleties.
Serve with: Tangy-sweet Sour Cherry Preserves from Harvest Song; harvestsong.com

Rogue River Blue
A raw cow’s milk blue cheese from Rogue River Creamery in Oregon, this creamy, flavor-rich gem is wrapped in grape leaves that have been macerated in locally produced pear brandy.
Serve with: Tender sweet-spicy Lazzaris Apple Mostarda; lazzaris.com

Tomme de Levezou
This ivory-colored, raw sheep’s milk wheel is crafted in Aveyron, France, where it’s aged for two to four months. The texture is supple and moist, with a rich grassy flavor and a heady fragrance of pastures.
Serve with: Herb-and-spice-flavored toasted Luxury Almonds from Valley Produce Company; valleyproducecompany.com

Umbriaco Rosso
From Veneto, Italy, this dense cow’s milk wheel is soaked in red wine, giving it spectacular rind color and a fruity, grapey flavor that brightens the lactic notes in the cheese.
Serve with: On-the-stem chewy, natural dried Muscatel Clusters from Yarra Valley; valleyproducecompany.com

Wildspitz
This stunning mixed cow’s and goat’s milk cheese is bursting with complex flavors of the Swiss Alps. It is silky smooth and buttery on the tongue with hints of hazelnut and alpine grasses.
Serve with: Dense, chewy, tart-sweet Apricot & Pistachio Pyramid from Valley Produce Company;
valleyproducecompany.com