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Charcuterie

You said you’d host.Bring on the people.

Pick what you’re putting on the board. Quantities, wine pairing, shopping list — done. Printable too — for the store, the fridge, or anyone who’s helping you.

Hosting a crowd? Send one link — guests RSVP with what they’re having.

How this works

  1. Step 1: Pick your spread

    Headcount, appetizer or main event, and whatever’s making the board — cheese to cornichons.

  2. Step 2: We do the math

    Ounces per person, crackers rounded up, wine bottles counted. Nobody hovers over an empty board.

  3. Step 3: Shop the list

    One list, by section — printable for the store run or whoever swore they’d help.

We round up — buying extra beats running short. Big crowd? We’ll size it catering-style.

Is the board…

Main event = the board is the meal (a cocktail or grazing spread). We about double the portions.

Picks ten balanced items. You can still tweak them.

Pick at least one anchor.

Add your own

Listed in your shopping list. Won’t appear on the animated board.

Selected (0)

Nothing yet. Pick three cheeses and call it a night — or tap Just pick for me.

The math, in case you wondered.

For an appetizer board we use 2 oz of cheese per guest, split across however many cheeses you pick. 1.5 oz of meat. About 8 crackers per guest (rounded up so nobody runs out). A quarter cup each of fruit and veg. Olives and pickles count in pieces — three olives, two pickles per person, per type. Nuts get 0.2 oz — they’re color, not dinner. Flip to main event and the cheese, meat, crackers, fruit, veg, and sweets about double (≈3.5 oz cheese, 3 oz meat, 12 crackers) for a board that’s the meal — the garnish stays put.

Sweets: 0.5 oz per guest. Dipping ramekins are one per dip, not per guest. Herbs are decoration — a few sprigs and you’re done.

Wine: one bottle per four guests, rounded up. Wine Folly does our pairing logic; the meat pairings borrow from Niman Ranch.

Stuff people ask.

How much cheese should I serve per person?

About 2 ounces if the board is an appetizer before dinner, and about 3.5 ounces if it’s the main event — a cocktail or grazing spread that IS the meal. Flip the appetizer/main toggle and the whole board resizes for you. Split that across two or three cheeses — one soft, one hard, one weird if you’re feeling brave. Eight people works out to about 16 oz as an appetizer — roughly four small wedges from the grocery store. And yes, grocery store cheese is fine.

How many bottles of wine should I plan for?

One bottle per four guests, rounded up. Eight people = 2 bottles. Twelve = 3. Twenty = 5. That assumes a 2–3 hour gathering with food. Longer night, add a bottle. Half your guests not drinking? Scale down — but plan one extra anyway. Leftovers beat running out.

What wine goes with charcuterie?

Salty fat plus acidic wine — that’s the basic rule. For mild meats (prosciutto, mortadella, dry salami): sparkling, a crisp white like Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio, a rosé, or a light red like Pinot Noir or Beaujolais. For bold meats (bresaola, smoked salami, anything truffled): step up to a structured red — Chianti, Tempranillo, or a young Cabernet. Wine Folly’s principle: salt softens tannins, so reds you’d find too sharp on their own can land here. Skip heavily oaked wines — they fight the fat instead of cutting it.

Can I make a charcuterie board ahead of time?

Most of it, yes. The night before: cut and cube the cheese, roll the meat into roses, wash and cut all the fruit and veg, fill the dipping ramekins. The morning of: arrange everything on the board, cover tight with Press ‘n Seal (right against the food, no air gaps), and stash it somewhere cool. Pull it out 30–60 minutes before guests arrive — cheese softens, cured meat tastes better at cool room temp than fridge-cold. Crackers go on at the last second or they get soggy. Berries: keep them whole until the end so they don’t bleed.

What if I have a vegetarian or gluten-free guest?

Vegetarian: skip the meat or put it on its own small board so the rest stays meat-free. Bump the cheese by an ounce per veg guest and add marinated artichokes, roasted peppers, hummus, or a bean dip to fill the protein gap. Gluten-free: Crunchmaster Multiseed and Mary’s Gone Crackers both hold up under cheese without disintegrating. Buy GF crackers alongside the regular ones — your GF guest will notice, the rest of the table won’t.

How much does a charcuterie board cost to make?

Roughly $8–12 per person at the grocery store, $14–18 per person if you’re buying imported prosciutto and aged manchego. So eight people = $65–100 grocery-store, $115–145 fancy. Professional charcuterie and grazing services typically charge $25–40 per person in 2026 (premium tables run higher) — you’re saving most of that by doing it yourself, even if you splurge on one really good cheese.

Do I really need a fancy board?

No. A clean sheet pan works. A wood cutting board works. A marble slab works. If you’re hosting enough that you want one nice piece, we have three boards we like — a starter, a personalized one, and a handcrafted one. Borrowing your neighbor’s also counts.

Can I print all this?

Yes. Build your board, tap “Email me the printable.” You get a PDF with the math, the shopping list, and the wine pairings. Free, no signup, no upsell. Tape it to the fridge or hand it to whoever’s helping you. Prefer a link? Tap “Save / copy my plan” to get one that reopens your exact board.

The rest of the party, mathed.

Every tool is free — no accounts, no upsells, no fine print.

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Done guessing? Let them RSVP.Send one link — guests tap what they’re having, you get the exact list and a grill cook-sheet. Rather drive? Plan the whole night yourself in one pass.