Cheese for a Wednesday Night

I actually googled that phrase earlier today. "Cheese for a Wednesday Night." I was looking for a little inspiration. Sort of pathetic when you are turning to a search engine for that kind of thing. Turns out there is a wine and cheese tasting group in Austin, TX that meets on Wednesdays. Kind of fun, but not quite what I was looking for.

Anyway, the DH and I didn't get into the tasting tonight, which is sad, but there was a cancellation for tomorrow, so we're excited about that. Australian wines and cheeses. I've never thought of Australia as a cheese place, but I'm sure that is just because I have only really started thinking about cheese in a serious way a short while ago. I'll be sure to pass on the info!

In the meantime, I needed a cheese fix for today, and after mentioning penicillium roqueforti last night, I was in the mood for a little blue cheese. I visited the local megamart, and found a Pt. Reyes Farmstead Blue Cheese waiting for me, just down the aisle from the steak, arugula, red onion and avocado that I put together to make a delicious dinner! The cheese was so smooth and creamy, with just enough bite to it. Tangy, but not like goat cheese tangy. Tangy like happy cows eating organic grass while looking at the Pacific Ocean. Rich and delicious. It was perfect in the salad, and will be perfect again tomorrow eveningn with a little after dinner port.

Blue cheese is such a special thing. Many blue cheeses are poked with long skewers a the beginning of the ripening process to allow air to get in and interact with the penicillium roqueforti to make those amazing blue/blue-green streaks. When I cracked open my hunk of Pt. Reyes blue cheese tonight, it was fun to see how the skewer holes on the outside translated to these beautiful green-blue streaks on the inside. Some day, I definitely want to try making my own blue cheese, just to be able to poke at it with a stick!