Cheese of the Month Club, February 2008
March 7th, 2008
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For most girls, Valentine’s Day is about chocolate and flowers. For me, the best Valentine’s gift ever would have to be cheese. Leave it to my best guy ever to hook me up with the best gift ever - a cheese of the month club - from the best cheese-house ever, Artisanal. For those of you who don’t know - or just don’t know me - Artisanal is my number one favorite restaurant in the world. It’s all about cheese, cheese and more cheese. From the gougeres puffs to start, to multiple fondue choices to the absolutely insane amount of cheese their fromagieres let you choose from (not to mention the vino, vino, vino!), this place is tip-tops!So let’s get on with it, shall we?
The first cheese of the month shipment came with the three cheese Rick describes below. One goat, one cow and one sheep. Now I love all cheeses but I mainly tend to love the really creamy stinky stuff. Goats are full of flavor (and better for you than other kinds) but this one was a little dry and spicy for my taste. I think it was all in the rind. Rick liked it - I could take it or leave it. It’s interesting, but definitely was not my favorite.
Now, the cheddar I had a lot of hope for. I love a good cheddar - especially from England. Anyone who’s ever been in London with me knows that the one saving culinary grace in all of the UK and Ireland is their double-cheddar sandwiches from Pret a Manger. (They have outlets of this sandwich chain in New York too but those discontinued the double cheddar for some ill-advised reason years ago.) Cheddar with that brown relish stuff, mayo, lettuce, tomatoes and that super grainy farm bread is just the best sandwich in the history of sandwiches. Well, the Quicke’s Cheddar falls short from the magic of cheddars that tempt my palate. It was okay - but that was all. It wasn’t sharp, didn’t have a strong bite or anything really aggressive and memorable about it like most of my favorite cheddars. Rick loved it - and I let him. I’ve had better.
Finally, the “piece des resistance,” as they say. The Bleu des Basques was probably the absolutely best blue cheese I’ve ever had. It had the strong, tangy tartness that you expect from blues, but it also had a strong creamy texture, like all those rich cheeses we’ve come to expect from France. Think brie meets blue and you sort of get the idea. Rick didn’t care for this one - which I’m not sure was because of the cheese itself or just because he’s less versed in cheese than I am and blues are always hard to take when you’re first starting out in the world of cheese-connoisseurship - but I was more than happy not to have to share my super-yummy-creamy-perfect blue with him. Smushing it again and again on some fresh white bread - oh, so good! Bleu des Basques was definitely the winner from this shipment.
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We here at Artisanal Premium Cheese are excited to launch the second collection of our Cheese of Month membership for 2008 with cheeses and cheese collections of quality unparalleled in the United Stares. The selection our affineurs put together for you each and every month includes a well-rounded variety of textures, flavors, and types; and the cheeses you will taste in the coming year arc the absolute best examples of cheese types, cheese making regions. and seasonal specialties available.
Majorero Pimenton, goat milk, Spain
Majorero, Pimenton, is a hard, unpasteurized goat’s milk cheese made from the Majorcra breed of goats on Fuenevenrura, the Canary Island closest to Nonhern Africa. It is coated in Pimenton, a traditionalpaprib spice produced in the same region. The pimenton was origniaIly used to protect the rind of the cheese from unwanted mold and bacteria. In this case, it gives a unique appearance to the rind and smokey, spicy flavor to the paste. The name Majorero comes from the ancient word for a goat’s skin shoe, “mahos,” which evolved into Mahorero, the word used to describe contemporary inhabitants of the island as well as the ancient people who caIled Fuerteventura home before the European invasion. All Majorero cheese production is artisanal, and over half the goat milk produced on the island is converted into Majorero cheese. The dry, pleasant climate produces a rich, fatty milk tdeal for cheesemaking, and the milk is coagulated with animal rennet. Majorero, Pimenton, pairs well with Sauvignon Blanc as well as many Spanish and Portuguese varietals.
Quicke’s Cheddar, cow milk, England
Quicke’s Cheddar is crafted by Mrs. Mary Quicke from the milk of 340 head of cattle on her farm in Devon, England. Her cows produce milk year-round and are grazed on grass for as many as 10 months each year, yielding a more flavorful end product. Quicke’s Cheddar is made in the tradttional style of English fannhouse cheddars - that is, it is bound in cloth, larded, and left to age for 18 months or more. The result is a spicy, caramely cheese with a hugely complex flavor profile and tight, crystalline texture. This cheese pairs ideally with a creamy English stout or pale ale. With wine, try a lighter red such as Pinot Noir, Gamay Burgundy, or Beaujolais.
Bleu des Basques, sheep milk. France
Bleu des Basques Brebis is an artisan sheep’s milk blue cheese made in the Pyrenees mountains, a region of the French Basque country. These verdant hills are full of the wildflowers and fresh grass that give the milk its complexity, subtlety, and lightness. Bleu des Basques has a wonderful combination of earthy spiciness and hints of apricot. Pair this cheese with Sauternes or Port.