Choosing to host a Wine & Cheese party is a smart move! The shopping list is significantly narrower than shopping for any other kind of party and the preparation time can be minimal!
Start with the cheese:
If you live near a Farmer's Market, it's a great place to shop for your cheeses. They carry a broad selection of quality cheeses, and you can buy each cheese in any weight, size or shape to make up your cheese trays, getting the most flexibility on a budget.
What kind of cheese should you buy ... That depends on how many people you are inviting and how many kinds of wine you buy. A round of good aged white cheddar with a little jalapeno sauce on the side, a small chunk of Danish blue is a standard choice (goes well with green seedless grapes), a slab of medium gouda from Holland or a round of Danish Havarti, perhaps a small wedge of port salut and another of the American Monterey Jack, and another of mild cheddar for those who are not adventurous. Perhaps some goat cheese for spreading on whole wheat crackers, a warmed brie with melba rounds and blackberry jam for topping, and a raspberry or pineapple cream cheese with sweet biscuits to finish. That's 8 cheese choices, some in larger portions than others. The cost per piece probably averages $8 or $64 plus tax.
Those are eclectic choices ... you could always opt for a national theme and select only Italian cheeses or exclusively German cheeses, or a selection of British cheeses, or stick with all-Canadian!
Have a selection of cheese boards, cheese knives, Scandinavian cheese slicers, wire cheese cutters for the soft cheese, cheese buttons (to strategically place on the cheese so people don't have to touch it with their fingers in order to cut it), wine bottle stoppers, and finger napkins. Serving a selection of fruits with cheese adds the necessary fiber to the diet and they go particularly well with most wines too: Seedless grapes, apple and pear slices, fruit compotes or jams.
How much you buy depends on how many people you invite and how long your party should last. You know your guests best, but you can generally allow for one glass of wine per hour, 5 glasses of wine per bottle. White, Rose or Red? A basic party for 18 (including yourself) would require about 11 or 12 bottles of wine, at least 1 rose, 4 red and 5 white, one of which could be a sparkling wine for the fruity cream cheese. If you know your guests well, you'll know if they are red or white wine drinkers.
If you opt for a national theme, you could select that country's wines too. Britain is more of a beer and cheese country, but an Italian Wine and Cheese combination works well. Chile has some excellent wine choices, and Australia is a very excellent wine producer, as is Canada and the United States. Of course France is a fine wine producer as well, and Germany has many wines to choose from.
Wine and Cheese parties are appropriate for afternoon or evening get-togethers, indoors or out, and all year round. Decoration is certainly optional, but if you go with an Italian theme, candles in a Chianti bottle and a red & white checked tablecloth is a "kitschy" addition.
Have soda water and lemons & limes available to make spritzers for those who choose to drink their white wine "light". In addition, have coffee on in the kitchen and a supply of chilled bottled water available.
