Cheese

[elakin]

i haven't been there, but i've been reading a lot about terrance brennan's new restaurant, artisinal. they specialize in cheese, have 3 separate climate-controlled aging "caves," 14 types of fondue, and over 200 cheeses available at any given time. they have two full-time "fromagiers," so i guess that's what you'd call the cheese guy, shroom.

manchego and guava paste is a truly amazing combo and one of my favorite things from when i lived in spain. another great spanish cheese is idiazabel from basque country.

has anyone ever heard of bergader? this is a blue cheese that i used to get in italy. i prefer the "sharp" blues over the sweeter gorgonzolas, and this one was my favorite. i think it might be german. strangely enough, we used it in the restaurant i worked at to make the gnocchi alla gorgonzola.

[shroomgirl]

Sounds like my kinda place, now if only my gall bladder will believe that!!!! I've got a goats milk cheese coming to the Winter Pantry....moving the farmer's market indoors for the winter.....The farm is goatsbeard from Columbia, Mo and they sell to Dean and Deluca as well as their farmer's market. Pretty cool!!
I'm STILL getting people asking what is available from farms in November.....this is another thread I think.

[Isa]

How about chocolate cheese? Apparently Brie and Camembert are perfect stuffing for a dark bittersweet chocolate.

[shroomgirl]

Russians coat cheese or cheese with raisins in chocolate.
The texture of Camembert or Brie with chocolate and the flavor combos wouldn't get it for me.

[Pete]

Ah, the power of Cheese

I am surprised that no one has mentioned Livarot yet, it's STINKY, but it is oh so GOOD. Also, what about Explorateur, a great triple-creme. A few of my other favorites include all blues (including Cabrales, a Spanish blue made from a mix of cow's, sheep's, and goat's milk), Petit Basque (a sheep's milk cheese, mild and slightly nutty, with a texture similar to cheddar), cheddars (my favorite being Sharp Cheddar from Cabot in Vermont), Dry Jack, and Saint-Nectaire. Though there are few cheeses I can pass up. Luckily here in Chicago we have a purveyor with a great cheese selection, Tekla. Sophia, who oversees the cheeses does a great job. She seeks out beautiful cheeses from smaller producers. Her cheeses tend to be pretty expensive, I have seen prices upwards of $20 a pound and that is wholesale price. It is amazing the difference in quality from cheeses made in large scale production houses and those that come from small producers. If you have never tried a Saint-Nectaire or Explorateur from a small producer, be prepared for a revelation. Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to a great cheese. That said, I still love my hot, spicy Velvetta-Chile dip!!!!

[Isa]

Not sure I would eat a whole lot of chocolate cheese but I'd be curious to taste it once.


I do wonder if the guy who makes them has managed to survive....

[shroomgirl]

The russian cheese is sorta like cheesecake, sweet ricotta like...

Pete~ what can I say? Your my kinda guy, eat whatever you like and not be intimadating or a food snob. <though I stand by velvetta is not really food>

[Suzanne]

Just found a website for a Monty Python sketch on cheese which I hope others will find amusing.

How'd you find that silly thread, Suzanne? I almost lost control of myself laughing over it.....

[momoreg]

Don'tcha just love those guys?? They're so odd.

[Peachcreek]

I got my cheese order today and have two new ones, at least for me. One is called Pierre Robert, a triple cream (75% fat in dry matter). It is a soft ripener- similar to Brillat-Savarin. The other is called Epoisses. Its a washed rind cheese (50% bf) from Burgundy. The box says "Fromage au lait cru entier affine au marc de Bourgogne". I don't speak French but I do know that it is a raw milk cheese, and isn't marc a Burgundian brandy? I liked the Epoisses a lot- very runny, complex flavor, silky consistancy and stinks to high Heaven.
I also got a few small wheels of L' Edel De Cleron, one of my other runny favs, along with Vacherin. I prepare the L' Edel by trimming off the top rind with a paring knife, leaving the bark-wrapped sides intact. After the cheese comes to room temp, it is as runny as fondue. A warm baguette and I'm set up....

[Kimmie]

A French term (known as pomace in English) for the residue (skins, pips, seeds, etc.) remaining after the juice has been pressed from the grapes.


Marc de Bourgogne is a wine from Domaine de la Romanée. Try a 1949, if you're ever so lucky!

[Peachcreek]

I will look for Marc the next time I go to the Big City. The "Best Cellar in Town", where I live is the drug store!
I found this written at the top of the wine list at a restaurant in Montana a few years ago-
Mike sez "Try a beer and a shot, our specialty"!