Wedding cakes made with whole cheese and sometimes called cheese towers, are suitable for use at birthdays, anniversaries or any other special event or party.

WHAT IS A CHEESE CELEBRATION CAKE?
It is not a cheesecake, rather it  consists of several cheese rounds arranged one on top of the  other in much the same way as the tiers of a traditional wedding cake. To make it look like a traditional cake, rounds of cheese with different diameters are used. The stacked rounds of cheese can then be decorated as you like. Fruits and berries are very popular decorations. Ribbons and flowers can also be used. It is simply a matter of deciding on the style of cake your event  requires.

WHY A CHEESE CELEBRATION CAKE?
A cheese cake is suitable for anyone who would prefer a savoury cake or who would like to have a cheese course included at a special dinner. Of course you can serve a traditional cheese board if you prefer, but celebration cheese cake is certainly a great centre piece that is also useful and practical.

HOW MUCH CHEESE?
A rule of thumb in creating a cake is to allow around 100 grams of cheese per person -  or 10kg of cheese for 100 people. With a little imagination you can easily create the cheese celebration cake yourself.

HOW TO ASSEMBLE A CHEESE CELEBRATION CAKE
The first and easiest way to assemble a cheese celebration cake is known as the American style. You simply find a number of cheese rounds of differing diameters and stack them one on top of the other - using the smaller rounds as you near the top. As you can see in our Fromagerie there is a wide range of cheese rounds available of differing sizes. Don’t use too many different sizes -keep it as simple as you can.

The second style of cheese cake involves using stands and pillars much like a traditional fruit cake. You can use rustic bases cut from clean and polyurethane rounds of native timber.

WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO DECORATE THE CAKE?
Foliage, dried fruit, flowers, berries  and fruit all seem to work well. In reality it depends on the style of the celebration. Find someone artistic to decorate it and you can organise it all yourself.

While we try to maintain good levels of wheels a minimum of 2-4 weeks is recommended for order.

At Moore Wilson Fresh we happily supply the cheese  and accompaniments but we do not supply finished decorated cakes.

To select your cheese rounds, ask to talk to our cheese specialists at Moore Wilson Fresh.

Just outside of Renwick, in Marlborough, John and Brigid Forrest have been crafting wines since the late 1980’s.

A pair of dedicated Doctors with a yearning to find something new, they kept asking “what’s next?” And their curiosity led them to the traditions of winemaking and the idea that wine’s future lay in mixing the old ways with something new. The creative seed that would grow to be The Doctors’ range was planted when they decided to lower the alcohol content to up the enjoyment factor.

Returning to family roots and generations of farming in the Marlborough region seemed a natural progression for the couple after successful careers in scientific research and medicine. The young family returned from living and working overseas amongst the burgeoning wine industries of California and South Australia to get a start on a fairly green New Zealand wine industry.

The first vintage for Forrest Wines came in 1990, when an over-filled red wine fermenter “accident” resulted in a trophy winner Merlot Rosé.

Fast forward almost 30 years; many awards and accolades, 5 labels and vineyards across the country. Forrest is set for generations.

Find the Forrest Wine and Doctor's Range in store or online for nationwide delivery here.

Bring your blunt kitchen knives along (wrapped in a teatowel) and have them brought back to life by Edge Revival while you have a coffee and do your weekly shop!

Upcoming Knife Sharpening Dates:

Monday 11th March
Monday 1st April
Monday 6th May
Monday 1st July
Monday 5th August
Monday 2nd September
Monday 7th October
Monday 4th November
Monday 2nd December

From: 11am-12pm (this is the time Edge Revival will be in store - knives can be dropped off any time prior to 11am).

Where: Moore Wilson's College Street Fresh Market

Price: $10 per knife or $9 per knife for 4 or more.
Scissor sharpening $16 each.

Waiting times may vary depending on demand.

Edge Revival reserves the right to decline to sharpen a knife or scissors if it is not considered practical to sharpen. In this event a full refund will be given.

Bostock's Organic Free Range Chicken was started in 2014 by Ben Bostock.

Ben and George Bostock grew up on their family’s organic apple orchard in sunny Hawke’s Bay and share a family passion for healthy, safe growing practices where there is control from the farm to plate. This means no chemicals, no antibiotics, no hormones and no genetic modification.

Ben began raising the chickens on pasture in open paddocks near the family apple orchard where he grew up in Hawke's Bay, and when his brother George joined the business last year they moved their chickens on to an apple orchard and built uniquely designed French chalets, which are clean and spacious and enable the chickens to roam freely outside once they are fully feathered.

The brothers are determined to give their organic chickens the best life. Their apple orchard provides the perfect environment to farm organic chickens. The birds enjoy a happy life roaming freely among the apple trees and are housed in uniquely designed french chalets, which are clean and spacious and enable the chickens to roam freely outside once they are fully feathered.

Find a range of Bostock Free-Range Organic Chicken at Moore Wilson's Fresh.

John and Barbara Thomas love ice cream. So much so, they’ve perfected the recipe for a distinctly luxurious, refreshingly smooth ice cream made with all natural ingredients, including premium Jersey Girl Organics cow’s milk containing A2 protein and a whole lot of love and care.

From humble beginnings in their home kitchen back in the eighties, the duo passionately set out to create something truly unique for New Zealand’s many ice cream lovers. And after decades of experimentation, they did. Thomas’ ice cream was launched in 2010 and they’ve been scooping up fans ever since.

With John’s extensive background in food technology and some good
old-fashioned hard work, together the couple have dreamed up the Thomas’ range of ice creams, sorbets and desserts. A big hit in restaurants, cafes, shops and homes all over the country, Barbara puts much of their award-winning success down to John’s exceptional taste buds.

"He's got a knack, a palate that can develop gorgeous tastes and textures that are just right. I loved the ice cream that he created so, as the salesperson for Thomas', it was completely natural for me to say to people "this really is the best ice cream in the world!" says Barbara.

John, at 71 years young, insists it's the combination of exceptional flavour, silky texture and the delectable taste of perfectly combining real, home grown ingredients in just the right way that wins over everyone.

John and Barbara have retired to a beautiful, green valley in the small New Zealand town of Waihi. Nearby, their ice creams are still hand crafted with the same love, care and attention - an essential element of the Thomas’ heritage.

Now known as Indulgenz, the couple’s hand crafted, luxurious ice cream continues to win hearts in New Zealand and around the world.

Find your new favourite Indulgenz Ice Creams and Desserts at Moore Wilson's.

So we are all in love with Gin right now – and following our passion for ‘G’ is an increased interest in ‘T’ – with a vast array of Tonics arriving on our shelves in the last year or so.

But what if you’re after a long drink with a little less punch than a Gin & Tonic – well you’re in luck! The Spanish and Portuguese (who are both big consumers of G&Ts) have been experimenting for generations…

P&T
White Port – yes, it’s a thing – made from white grapes, but otherwise made in the same way as other Ports, fortified part way through the fermentation, so there is always a nice amount of residual sweetness from the grapes. Add Tonic, and you have a long refreshing drink at around half the alcohol of a G&T, enjoyed in the North or Portugal for years, and increasingly in Gin bars all over the world

How to make a thirst-quenching P&T:
-    Fill the glass ¾ full with ice
-    Add 50ml white port (we have Dow’s Fine White Port and Quinta de la Rosa)
-    Add 100ml good quality tonic (Fever Tree Indian Tonic is a classic, or try Fever Tree Elderflower for a lifted style)
-    Gently stir to ensure a good mix in the glass
-    Add a twist of lemon, orange or grapefruit as a garnish

V&T
Vermouth has followed the rise of Gin, with the similarities being clear – Gin is a spirit infused with Botanicals (always with Juniper at the fore) – and Vermouth is an aromatised wine – that is, wine infused with Botanicals (traditionally lead by wormwood). There are even a number of craft gin producers who have turned their hand to making vermouth – locally, Reid & Reid from Martinborough have done extremely well with their red Vermouth, and their dry white Vermouth. Dry Vermouth makes a delicious and again, lighter alternative to a G&T, with more herbaceous botanical character than an P&T.

Here’s a Dry Vermouth and Tonic Recipe from Laura MacFehin’s recent article in the Dom Post:

“Last summer, some hip young things were proclaiming the death of the G&T in favour of this drink. This is a ridiculous suggestion. The gin and tonic will never die because it is a superlative drink that brooks no rival when you're in the mood for it.

However, you can tire of even great things and I urge you to give dry vermouth and tonic a go. It is lighter in alcohol and therefore easier on your head, and is one of my favourite summertime drinks.”

Dry vermouth and tonic:
60ml dry vermouth
30ml tonic
Fill a tumbler with ice, add the dry vermouth and top up with the tonic.

Have fun, experiment with different vermouths, different tonics, and let us know how you get on!

Cheers!

In the Moore Wilson's Calendar this month you'll find Vicky from House of Dumplings' recipe for mouth watering handmade dumplings filled with red gurnard, karengo and shiitake mushrooms. They are delicious, easy to make and can either be steamed or fried.

The recipe makes 30 dumplings.