Highland Park’s Congregation Ohav Emeth hosted an evening filled with Torah, cheese and wine featuring a shiur by Assistant Rabbi Meir Lipschitz highlighting the histories, halachot and mitzvot associated with them. What could be a better way for the more than 100 people in attendance to celebrate the arrival of the month of Adar? Since so much of the holiday of Purim occurred with wine, it was fitting to have it be an integral part of the latest iteration of the “Tastings and Torah” series that previously featured whiskey and bourbon.

Brent Delman, also known as “The Cheese Guy,” brought a large variety of his artisanal cheeses and related products to be sampled with paired wines. Kosher blue cheese, balsamic vinegar, distinctive fresh mozzarella cheese and other soft and hard cheeses were available for tasting, along with crackers, preserves and other goodies. Delman’s knowledge and products proved that the world of kosher cheese has greatly expanded beyond American processed cheese food and Muenster with the orange rind. Sampling cheeses and paired wines ranging from the mild to the most intense definitely produced an evening where everyone agreed that “mishenichnas adar marbim b’simcha.”

Deborah Melman is a staff writer at The Jewish Link.