Cheese is one of the world’s greatest foods. This is a fact. As such, it is absolutely not surprising that people went bananas when news broke that Costco has $20 cheese flights available now. Cheese flights! From Costco! Yes, yes, yes, and yes. Whether you’re planning a gathering (Casual book club? Sophisticated cocktail party? Anything goes!) or just love having a wide variety of cheese available in your fridge for snacking purposes, this combination of five fancy cheeses is perfect for all your dairy-driven needs. Don’t forget the crackers!
The unofficial, fan-run Costco-themed Instagram account Costco Deals seems to have been among the first to spot the cheese flights; a post from the page on June 22 launched the cheesy, savory collection into the spotlight, leading to widespread pickup from other, similarly Costco-enthused outlets. And honestly, it’s not hard to see why so many people have gotten so excited over the idea of cheese flights from Costco: Cheese is great; Costco is great; these specific cheeses sound particularly great; and they can all be yours for a mere $20. That’s a steal for nearly two pounds of super fancy cheese.
The mix includes three cow’s milk cheeses, one goat’s milk cheese, and one sheep’s milk cheese, each from a notable creamery. From the New Jersey-based Yellow Door Creamery, there’s an alpine monteau; nutty and fruity, it’s a firm, cow’s milk cheese made in the style indigenous to the Alps. Jasper Hill Farm in Vermont, meanwhile, offers the Cabot clothbound cheddar — an aged, crumbly, tangy-yet-sweet cow’s milk cheese. From El Pastor, there’s a creamy, red wine-soaked goat cheese made in the Spanish style. Torero Matador puts another Spanish-style cheese on the table; a sheep’s milk cheese, this manchego has been aged for 12 months. And lastly, there’s the third cow’s milk cheese: The Dijon herb hand-rubbed fontina, which, like the alpine monteau, comes from Yellow Door. All told, there’s 1.8 pounds of cheese here, which sounds like the stuff the cheesiest dreams are made of.
The package even suggests specific wine and beer pairings for each cheese: The alpine monteau is best enjoyed with a pinot noir or an amber; try pairing the cheddar with a Malbec or a hoppy ale; for the goat cheese, break out a tempranillo or a Belgian ale; the manchego will go well with a rioja or a brown ale; and for the fontina, try a Chablis or a hefeweizen. You don’t have to go with these pairings, of course — if you’d rather try a more unconventional match-up, you do you! — but if you’re interested in dipping a toe into the wide world of food and beverage pairings, the suggestions offer a good place to start.
The tricky thing, of course, is going to be finding the flights. According to Costco Deals, they’re only available at “select stores” — and since it’s always kind of a crapshoot what you’re going to find at any given Costco, there’s no guarantee that your nearest one will have them. (I’d suggest calling ahead before you go and asking if they’ve got them in stock; it’ll save you the trip if they don’t.) Also, they’re not currently available on Costco.com, so alas, the average Costco member can’t just order them online.
However, a similar flight does appear to be available on the Costco Business Center website. The mix is a little different — there’s another variety of fontina in the place of the Yellow Door one, and the Torero Matador manchego has been swapped out for a pecorino toscana from a different creamery — but it’s close enough to make a more than acceptable substitute. Here's what it looks like:
The only catch is, since it’s part of the Costco Business Center, it’s only eligible for delivery to, y’know, businesses; businesses also have to be located in certain areas of the country (and they need to have Costco memberships, of course.) If your own place of employment happens to satisfy these conditions, you could always try putting in a request to whoever handles your office supply and snack orders; if you’re lucky, you might be able to enjoy a Costco cheese flight in your break room soon.
In any event, if you want to find out if your own local Costco has the cheese flights available, you can dig up their contact info here and give them a call. Good luck, my cheese-loving friends. May the dairy deities smile down upon you.
