My brother Ollie lives in Bozeman, Montana and I miss him a lot. Bozeman seems even farther than usual because there is really no possibility for a visit. That possibility, even if it was slight, was comforting because I could be with my bro tomorrow if I reallllly wanted to. I’m sure you’re feeling faraway and missing people too, whether it’s your stupid brother who decided to move a million miles away, or your friends who are just a few hours’ drive away, or your parents who you visit every weekend, but can only see over the ledge of a mask on opposite sides of the driveway. We are doing the best we can, so claps for us for protecting each other and ourselves because even if it makes us a little sadder, it’s worth it.

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Since distance is our reality, we have to get creative to bring our friends close. Ollie and I play Bananagrams (if you don’t know it, get the game right this second because it’s the best) over Facetime every Friday, cook together, and since I’m missing him extra a lot today, I think it’s time to cheese together. So, I’m sending that lucky brother of mine a box of cheese and treats, and I’m taking the same goodies home with me. We’ll each grab our favorite bottles of wine and eat and drink together over Zoom as if we’re sharing across the table! It’ll be fun! Since we’ll be having identical cheese boards, I’m going to send him goodies that I want to eat. We can’t travel, so the cheese will travel for us!

For generosity’s sake, I’ll start with an Alpine cheese because Ollie likes that style the most. Hornbacher is my choice because it has a deep, rich flavor of earth, caramelized onions, and herbs that I know he will love. Ok my turn! I’ll send him one of my favorites, the sheep’s milk Dirt Lover, which comes in a cutie little wheel, is soft-ish, and, no joke, tastes the way the forest smells after a rainstorm. And finally, Stilton, the OG English blue, tastes of black pepper and hay with the pleasant sweetness of fresh butter, balancing all that savory goodness. Also, I know Ollie will enjoy crumbling the extras over steak or beets. He works at a farm, so he has approximately a thousand beets hanging around his house right now.

Condiment time, friends! Gosh darn it if that isn’t my favorite time. He’s getting Mike’s Hot Honey to drizzle over the Stilton (that would also be awesome over the beets), and Balsamic Four Onion Spread because Ollie is obsessed with it. It has a very satisfying sweet/savory balance that is killer in any grilled cheese and is best friends with Hornbacher. Oh, and I’m going to send along a stick of Il Porcellino Spiced Juniper salami because it is deliciously SPICY and great with cheese. After our cheeseboard fun, I’ll tell Ollie to chop it up, sizzle the pieces in a pan, and fold into scrambled eggs. He’ll be like WOW you really are the better sibling! And I’ll be like, yes, Ollie, very good.

Connecting, amiright?? Even though it’s not in person, at least we are sharing something we both love, sort of together! And for now, that’ll do.

For the love of cheese and virtual family cheese time,

Kiri

P.S. This combination of cheeses and tasty things is also great for other activities, such as sitting at a table, sitting on a porch, sitting on a stoop, or sitting on your couch with our common frenemy, Netflix. I’m sure everyone’s already seen it, but I’m really enjoying #blackAF on the flix. Especially with cheese nearby. Watch it with me?

Zoomin’ and Cheesin’