Ready for the picnic.
You’d think there would be hard and fast rules for a proper picnic, but there’s not. I checked.
You can have a picnic anywhere you like at any time of year. Snowing outside? Throw a blanket down infront of the fireplace, grab a couple of plates and a knife. Done.
Hiking the Appalachian Trail and need a nosh? Repeat the steps above, just leave out the blanket and plates and now you’re eating like any other devil-may-care picnicker basking on a lush green lawn.
What I’m saying is a picnic is what you make of it and with these two ingredients you can make it pretty great.
In This Installment
Downeast Cheddar from Maine
Beef Summer Sausage from Colorado
Downeast Cheddar from Maine
Sometimes you find a cheese you just want to always have around. Putting together a cheeseboard? Don’t miss the Downeast Cheddar. Looking for a cheese to crumble and cube into your salad? Downeast Cheddar is your bag. Want to capture all the complex yet approachable flavors of a great American cheddar? Friends: meet Downeast Cheddar.
Made by our friends at Pineland Farms Dairy in New Gloucester, Maine, this cheese is everything we love in a New England style cheddar. It has a wonderous aroma that gives way to deep flavors including a little vegetal, a little sweet, a little bitter, a little bright, with a smooth texture and a lingering flavor that goes on and on till you grab your next bite.
Great for picnics, backpacking, car rides, or anywhere else you like to spend some time snacking on good cheese. If you’re looking to turn a few friends onto the beauty of a good American cheddar, this is the one to share. It’ll click right away.
Beef Summer Sausage from Colorado
This top-notch version of a midwestern classic comes from Bill Miner and his crew at Il Porcellino in Basalt, Colorado. They’re sourcing local, humanely-raised meats and they’re turning them into some super delicious salamis.
Their summer sausage is lightly fermented and smoked so its flavor is bright, meaty, rich and spiked with spices like coriander and mustard seed and even a touch of garlic. The grind is fine, making sure all the flavors are married together.
Great any time of day, it’s fine for hours outside the fridge so it’s naturally a favorite of backpackers and picnic goers alike. A great tasting food without pretense. Whenever I add it to a charcuterie board, I find it’s the first thing to disappear. Just saying.