Seal Cove Farm Cheve - bringing the family together.

The past few days have felt like a week and a half, they have been so full of family events.  I met my brother at the Portland, Maine airport in the middle of the night, and we drove up to Belfast to celebrate the life and remember the love my grandmother had for all of us and we for her at a lovely memorial service.  It was the first time the whole family has been together in longer than any of us could figure out, so it served as a family reunion as well.  

My brother and I rented a cottage at the same complex where we stayed as kids, skipping rocks down by the shore and chasing lightening bugs.  A little sentimentality is appropriate at times like this.  Unlike when we were kids, however, we were able to stop at the grocery store to pick up a six pack of beer, a bottle of decent Pinot Grigot and, of course, some cheese and crackers!  As you know, I'm always a little leery of grocery store cheese, but with a little snooping, I found something fun.  Seal Cove Farm herbed chevre from Lamoine, Maine.  Local and tasty!  Good thing too, because our cottage turned into the afterparty spot after dinner on Thursday night for the cousins and a few aunts and uncles.  Serious props to my brother for getting the fire going in the stove.  You warded off the chill and made things just a little more cozy.

It was a little tough to open the package with the giant ginsu knife that we found in the drawer at the cabin, but once it was open, almost everyone was nibbling.  This cheese, from  Seal Cove Farm near Bar Harbor, which comes from the 125 goats that happily grazing on the rocky coast was perfect for the party.  It is flavored with herbes de provence, and while it tastes like there is garlic in the mix, there isn't.  The little bit of tang from the goat's milk combined with the herbs just bring out this great blend of flavors.  It's not a really complicated cheese, but since most of the relatives aren't really aware of my serious obsession with the curd, it's probably better that I didn't have a cheese soapbox to lecture from during the party. What a drag that would have been.  Instead, we just had some laughs, and shared some great stories, and got to know each other again with a little cheese and wine to lubricate the love.  

By the time everyone left and my brother and I were alone with our jet lag and a serious game of Crazy Eights, almost all the cheese was gone.  We took care of that pretty well.  

The next day we gathered at the hillside cemetery to say goodbye to Gram, with the sun shining down and the wildflowers blooming across the way.  It was a beautiful service, and we all came together with love for her and for each other.  I think she would have approved.  

Cheese for a Wednesday - pt. 31 Camillia, a Farmer's Market Find

As the weather changes and the sun stays out longer, my tastes spin toward Sauvignon Blanc, Stainless Steel Charddonay and goat cheese. It's kind of a cliche, but it's how my palate and brain work.  Crisp, clean flavors help keep summer from getting too funky (though some might argue that goat cheese is funky enough...).  Another thing I love about summer is the Farmer's Market.  Around here, it's open all year round, but there is something much more festive about buying apricots and fava beans than rutabega and turnips.

So, the last time I went to the Farmer's Market with my re-usable bag and steel toed boots to protect myself from the profusion of strollers, I stopped by the Redwood Hill Farm stall and picked up a hockey puck sized Camembert style goat cheese named Camellia.  The dairy is up in Sebastopol (far from Los Angeles), but I got a chance to talk with a few people who had just been up at the farm to see the new kids.  I really got a sense that they really care for their herd, who all have names.

Camellia is one of their favorite goats, and the cheese certainly looks like a Camembert (other than the goat on the label).  The bloomy rind has the appropriate ammonia-lite scent, and there is a milky-ness to the nose of the paste.  What's different is the bone white color of the paste - normal for goat cheese but weird if you are expecting the butter yellow paste of a traditional Camembert.  The flavor has a wee bit of goat-y funk, but really it just tastes sweet and creamy with just a touch of salty.  Pretty fantastic!  We tasted ours when the cheese was still young, but it still had a nice richness to it, though it didn't ever get really gooey even when we let it set at room temp for over an hour, but it did get nicely soft. This cheese has won several gold medals at competitions, so other people think it's good too!

I saw this for sale up in Santa Barbara wine country at the local market, and I'll be enjoying it again the next time I head to the Farmer's Market during my continued celebration of longer days and warmer nights!

Cheese for a Wednesday - pt. 30 Carre de Pitou

I love goat cheese.  Not only is their cheese delicious, smooth, tangy and complex, goats are just darn cute!  And if I can find a goat cheese that also falls into the category of "spreadable" as defined by Darling Husband as something gooey that won't break your cracker when you try to spread it, I buy a lot of it.  A few weeks ago, my friend Andrew - cheese monger extraordinare - gave me a taste of Carre de Poitou a soft, spreadable Loire Valley goat cheese that some might consider part of the second coming.  I try to have a little restraint when tasting cheeses at Andrew's, but in this case, I found myself licking the paste right off the paper so as to get every last little bit!  This rare square (carre is French for square) is the perfect cheese to get any party started.  It is both sweet and tangy, and it's bloomy rind makes it a great brie substitute for anyone with cow's milk allergies.  But don't tell your guests that it's a brie.  This cheese doesn't have the unctuous creaminess of brie nor the ivory paste.  This is a bright white goat's milk cheese with a soft, edible rind and an almost milky interior.  See how it's starting to run after 10 minutes?  Andrew actually sent it home with an ice pack.  That's how sensitive this lovely is.  

I'd love to have a picture of it at full "run," but DH had gobbled most of it before it was fully ready even though I told him he would be able to taste even more of the fresh grassy flavor if he waited.  There were (miraculously) a few leftovers, which he enjoyed as part of a very upscale grilled cheese a few days later.  Look how sad the dog is that he won't be getting any of that cheesy goodness literally sliding off the bread in it's melty quest for greatness.  I didn't get any of these cheesy canapes either, though DH was kind enough to let me take a photo before he snuck out to the "man cave" to inhale his snack while muttering like Golem about his precious cheese.  


If you are lucky enough to find this cheese at your local shop, buy enough to share and enjoy with a nice crisp bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and good friends.  

Italian Cheese and Wine Pairings - with a nod to the martini!

Last night Darling Husband and I went to our first wine club meeting since December, and as luck would have it, the focus was on Italy.  Fantastico!  There are probably as many delicious Italian cheeses as there are delicious Italian wines.  Since we have both red and white wine drinkers in the club, I wanted to bring a little something for everyone to enjoy that would elevate the wine tasting to another level.  Plus, a cheese board isn't really a cheese board with just one cheese, right?

First up (on the right), was a delicious, mild, 4 week old goat cheese from the Piedmont region of Italy called Tumin Rutulin.  The edible ash rind is from the juniper plant.  The one that makes gin, yes.  But it turns out juniper also imparts it's sweet deliciousness to goat cheese.  The sweetness from the juniper was immediately obvious to me, but maybe because I knew about the juniper ash in advance, my mind was playing palate tricks on me.It can't hurt that the goats helping to make this cheese probably munch on nothing but sweet mountain grasses and flowers.  Perfect on a little slice of bread, and absolutely spread-able while retaining a soft crumble.  It would also be amazing in a salad with some spring greens and some blueberries.  In fact, I'm eating it right now with my fingers!  It also helped mellow out an angry little Pinot Grigio, giving it a nice smoothness.  Man Who Sneers at Goats (Cheese) will sadly never give this one a try, but my slightly cheese-phobic friend really liked this one last night (even before a few glasses of vino)!

On the left, cut into cunning little triangles, was the Pecorino Ginepro.  Pecorino identifies this as an Italian sheep's milk cheese, while Ginepro lets you know that the rind is washed with balsamic vinegar and juniper berries during the aging process.  I wasn't planning on having a juniper theme for the party, but there you go.  I must be craving a martini...  Anyway, the sheep's milk here is nice and rich, with just a touch of oiliness on the lips after, and the juniper and balsamic lend a woodsy, salty, sweetness to the cheese.  Sometimes, I find that rind coatings don't make a  huge difference in the flavor of the cheese, but this combination of acid and fruit really come through here.  This cheese was perfect with the red wine from Calabria that I brought.  The gaglioppo grapes in this wine had just enough tannin without being too overwhelming, and the richness of the cheese gave extra body to an already delicious wine.  I'll be snaking on those cheese leftovers after dinner.

I am thrilled to be turning the last few months of Cheese Dreams into cheese realities!  What have you been tasting?

Cheese for a Wednesday - pt 25 The Mysterious Disappearing Cheese

There is a ghost in our house.  A cheese eating ghost.  We're not calling in Ghostbusters (though Fanboy Wife could probably hook us up...).  We're just going to have to get a more realistic about portion control.    See, Darling Husband fell in love with the La Florette cheese at the tasting we went to a while back, and under the influence of lots of Loire Valley wine we ended up with a quarter pound of this goat's milk "brie style" cheese (Easily identified by the cute goat on the label.)

Now, this tasting was kind of belated birthday present for DH, and as such, he decided that he was going to buy some cheese, and not let me eat any of it.  Rude, yes, but you've got to appreciate his passion. I, being a good wife, let him be the boss of this cheese.  Plus, I was at the tasting, so I wasn't completely denied.  DH is a big fan of sandwiches, and as a High School teacher, he enjoys freaking out his students with exotic cheese sandwiches, some with incredible "nose."  I love the fact that he doesn't treat his cheese with kid gloves.  It isn't precious to him.  It's food.  Food that is amazingly tasty, rich, and joy providing, but just food.  So, he made himself a LaFlorette cheese sandwich with some sliced ham.  I'm assuming that he slathered on the cheese pretty thick.  (It has a very soft, spreadable paste.)   He said it was an excellent sandwich, and effectively freaked out his students.  Mission accomplished.  

Unfortunately, two days later, when he went to make another sandwich with the La Florette, he accused me of eating some!  (I hadn't.  Sometimes, a promise is a promise)  His proof?  It was almost all gone!  Had it shrunk?  Impossible!  Had he simply forgotten how much he used on his uber-sandwich?  Ridiculous!  I protested my innocence, blamed it on the dog, and we finally decided that it would just remain a mystery.  So, if you pick up some La Florette, be forewarned!  It has a tendency to disappear.

It is quite a spectacular cheese, so I don't blame it for having a tendency to vanish.  See the sample at twelve o'clock?  With the waterfall of butterfat oozing out of the middle?  That's our cheese!  It's called a brie-style cheese because of it's gently flavored bloomy rind and soft, creamy paste.  It is a goat cheese, so it does have a little more tang - my tasting notes say "barnyard lite."  I would never try this cheese out on Man Who Sneers at Goats (Cheese), but it had a really lovely, delicate, complex grassy flavor that reminded me that spring was coming (eventually).  

We may have to get more La Florette soon.  Not only is a perfect, spreadable cheese for DH's lunchtime sandwiches, but it is great with a nice Chenin Blanc and good conversation too (when it isn't sneaking out of the fridge and disappearing all on its own!)

Cheese for a Wednesday - pt 24 Breakfast Cheese!

It's been quite a week.  As nice as my dentist and periodontist are, I'm still terrified of the dentist's chair.    Lucky for you, this blog is about cheese and not about excruciating dental work that includes extractions and implants.  Sadly, however, my tender gums haven't been up for anything other than soup and soft, soft, soft food that can be easily chewed on one side of the mouth only.  I haven't really been eating cheese since last Tuesday's Loire Valley cheese orgy.  That has probably been more torturous than the healing process!

Anyway, I finally got bored enough to dive back in to the wonderful world of cheese, and decided to start with breakfast.  Why not?  It's the most important meal of the day!

That adorable little white hockey puck (above) is actually an incredibly soft, delicious French goat cheese from the Midi Pyrennes called Cabecou.  I know that Man Who Sneers at Goats (Cheese) won't like it no matter what I say, but this little cheese is so mild, sweet and spreadable that I knew it would be perfect for a woman sporting a bit more exposed gum than usual.  The goats who help make this cheese nibble on hawthorne, mulberry and juniper leaves, making delicious, complex milk and a cheese perfect on english muffin with a little honey and an espresso.  The flavor is subtle, and there isn't any of the "tang" that MWSAG(C) hates so much in goat cheese.

I tend to only think about cheese after dark, or in an elaborate omlette at Sunday brunch.  The closest to a simple cheese breakfast I usually get is a tub of cream cheese and a bagel.  If I could afford to have a refrigerator full of Cabecou, every morning would be as delightful as this one was!

How/when do you eat cheese for breakfast?  Let's start a revolution!

Cheese for a Wednesday - pt 23 Celebrate Goat Cheese!

With all due respect to my dear friend, Man Who Sneers at Goats (Cheese), I just had a fabulous evening with my Darling Husband (who does not sneer at goat cheese) tasting many different goat cheeses from the Loire Valley at the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills.  Just look at that bounty!  In the coming week or so, I'll be highlighting a few, thanks to the 10% discount you get for shopping for cheese after the equivalent of three-four glasses of wine. (Never underestimate the power of the drunken shopping spree at the cheese store!)

While MWSAG(C) may sneer at goat cheese, it is remarkable how many different flavors can come from lowly goat milk.  I also love the many shapes goat cheese comes in.  In front here (and obviously a goat cheese b/c of the cute goat on the label) is the grassy, and only slightly barnyardy La Florette, which is a perfect goat equavalent of Brie.  The big log is Bucheron, which has a dry, delicately sour flavor that would go wonderfully in a pasta with sauteed rapini or other "bitter green" and some sun dried tomato.  The four leaf clover is the Chevre Feuille, a true goat cheese with a tangy, almost ammonia scent that is made much more palatable by a slightly acidic Cabernet Franc.  The cute little nugget is a "La Bonde d'Antan" from the Poitou region (as are the others I've pointed out).  This one is quited well aged, hard and flakey.  you could probably paint it black and use it as a hockey puck for a few minutes!  I would much rather enjoy it with a little apple/vanilla jam.

Goat cheese is just so versatile.  It can be sweet, it can be tangy.  It can be mild and accessible, but it can also be complex and difficult to appreciate without careful pairing.  It is also great to serve to your friends who can't process cow's milk.  There are so many varieties out there - both from the Loire Valley and much closer to home.  Last week's Wabash Cannonball comes to mind!

Do you have a favorite goat cheese?  Let me know!

Cheese for a Wednesday - pt 22.5 Johnny Cash edition

As promised - video!!!  I believe that even people who don't like country music can't help but start tapping their feet when they hear Johnny Cash and the Carter sisters.  Feel free to disagree.  Did you know that the Carter Family were the first to sing Wabash Cannonball back in 1929?  Did you know that Capriole Dairy's Wabash Cannonball goat cheese was one of the first prize winning American cheeses back in 1995 - practically the dark ages in American cheese years?

Anyway, I've been waiting to share the Wabash Cannonball with you ever since New Year's eve when this was the "sympathy cheese" for my lactose intolerant friend who couldn't partake of the orgy of Emmenthaler, but whose delicate system is fine with goat cheese.  I was immediately chagrined by the fact I had promised to let him eat the whole thing and took back my promise - helping myself to two crackers worth for myself.

This little cheese is a perfect single serving cheese.  I would absolutely serve one per person (or perhaps one per couple) at an elegant dinner party.  At approximately 3 ounces, it's a little bigger than a golf ball.  If you are familiar with antique firearms, you might also see the similarity to a Civil War era small cannon ball due to its coating of vegetable ash.  But far from being a sad reminder of the War Between the States, this Wabash Cannonball is rich, tangy and crumbly, with just a hint of lemon.  The cheese makers at Capriole Dairy in Southern Indiana suggest it for dessert, served with figs or a simple syrup infused with lavender and vanilla bean.  It sounds like an elegant juxtaposition of tangy and sweet - a complex explosion of flavor.  I think a nice espresso or mint tea might really complete a final course.  Unfortunately, I read that suggestion well after having scarfed it down dry with crackers.  I always seem to forget the accompaniments.  Next time!

The legend behind Capriole Dairy is wonderful as well.  In an attempt to get back to the land and live a more sustainable life, the cheesemakers ended up buying property in S. Indiana that had belonged to the husband's great great grandfather many years before.  They built their home on the same spot where the original log cabin had been.  A really lovely story, I think.  A fine pairing for a lovely cheese.

Sweet cheese dreams all!  (and for those sticklers out there - please note that I'm posting at 11:06 PST on Wednesday, so I still haven't officially missed a Wednesday cheese!  Wish me luck on Friday for another exciting dentist encounter....

Lazy Cheesemakers? Perish the Thought!

Today is the first in a semi-regular series showcasing cheesemakers across America and beyond.  I'll share them as I learn about them, so no promises on a regular Friday series, though I may tend to share these stories on Fridays...

This Friday, we celebrate laziness!  Not that there is one cheese maker alive that could even remotely be considered lazy.  What with the waking up at 4:00 am; herding goats, sheep or cows to the tastiest foraging; milking all these beasties twice a day when they're full; not to mention the processing of the milk, turning it into curds, shaping the curds, and watching over the infant cheeses as they age into politically correct cheese ready to take their place in society - there is absolutely no time to be lazy!

Enter, Lazy Lady Farm in Vermont where Laini Fondiller makes cheese with her herd of 40 darling goats, working 14+ hour days to bring the world cheeses like Tomme Delay and Barik Obama.  Hee hee!  Apparently, she listens to National Public Radio while she milks the herd, makes and tends to her cheeses, and generally goes about her day.  Why does she call her farm the Lazy Lady given that in addition to her goat and the many, many, MANY tasks involved in exquisite cheesemaking, she and her husband (along with a cheese apprentice) are responsible for cows, pigs, chickens and a vegetable garden?  And did I mention that they are totally off the grid - their milking machine is solar powered?!  (For more info on how to run an "off the grid" goat farm and cheesery, check out this fun little paper from University of Vermont)Well, it turns out that goats have a definite "season," and they just don't produce cheese-quality milk when it's been too long since they've given birth.  As the availability of goat milk declilnes, she begins to add cow's milk to the mix.  Totally lazy, right?  That's it.  That is how lazy Ms. Fondiller is.  But keeping with her political cheesiness, she calls this cheese "Bipartisan."  I love this totally un-lazy lady!  She works her butt off and still has time for a sense of humor!

Ms. Fondiller started her cheese making career in Corsica, and has been creating high quality cheeses for 22 years.  Her advice to people wanting to leave it all behind for the romantic notion of living off the land with a herd of friendly goats?  "Don't.  It's a lot of work."  I think I'll stick to eating it, and keep that cheese dream for another day!

For more info, there is this great New York Times article about the Lazy Lady Farm from last weekend.  I think it is a testament to the "cheese revolution" that I am convinced is sweeping the nation!  This slide show is fun too!

Cheese for a Wednesday, pt. 16 - Majorero

As we hurtle toward 2010, I look forward to many more Wednesday night cheese discoveries!  I think it only fitting that the last Wednesday night cheese of 2009 be something festive, spicy, creamy, exotic and dee-licious.  From the Canary Island of Fuertaventura comes Majorero.  This rich, creamy, smooth goat cheese is a beautiful white on the inside - par for the goat course, I think - with a beautiful red rind, courtesy of spicy pimemton pepper.  The pepper was originally used to keep the bad bacteria out during the aging process.  The fabulous side effect was a delicious spicyness that permeates at least 1/4" into the cheese.  The rich paste keeps it from being too overpowering, and don't think it's anything like Pepperjack (though I actually love a good Pepperack cube from time to time!).

This cheese is named for a word for special shoes made from goat leather (um - ew?).  Majorero is also the name given to the current residents of this Canary Island.  (Many thanks to Wikipedia for this amazing photo of the island - another place to put on the dream travel list!)  I think that I'm definitely becoming a fan of the cheese of the Canary Islands.

The happy goats on this island are protected/herded by local dogs of the same name (you must click this link for a picture of the cutest puppy ever!), and something about the grass on the island and the (perhaps inbred) goats themselves, the milk produced on this island is especially high in butter fat, which makes the cheese all the more tasty.

We enjoyed this cheese first with a tasty hard cider, and then with a delicious Tempranillo red (made from traditionally Spanish grapes.  Go figure.).  We finished up the ends by melting them onto a piece of toast for a tasty, spicy snack.  A great cheese for the last Wednesday of the year!

Cheese for a Wednesday, pt. 13 I've got the Blues!

Unlucky #13!  Sigh.  It has been quite a week.  I have been eating cheese, and taking notes, but between team meetings for class, late nights at the office, and a Basset Hound puppy visiting for the weekend drooling on everything and amping up the energy, I just haven't been able to share.  I've missed you guys!  Hope the feeling has been mutual.

Anyway,  I have been meaning to share with you the joys of Blue Cheese (again!).  I picked up my favorite Roaring 40s from Australia, and decided to compare it with Bleu de Bocage from France.  This was a crazy "Pepsi Challenge!"  The Roaring 40s, as you know, is a sweet blue that comes in a pretty blue wax shell.  I don't have to go on about that one again, other than to bore you with my undying love for it.  Blah, blah, blah.

Bleu de Bocage, on the other hand, was not an immediate love.  In fact, if you are a fan of CheeseDreaming on FaceBook, you might have seen me comment on how I had finally found a cheese I didn't like.  Egads!  This cheese is really unique.  It is one of the few goat cheese blues out there.  Obviously Man Who Sneers at Goat (Cheese) wouldn't be a fan.  I didn't even ask him to try this one.  My first taste made me tear up.  It is really "assertive."  I put it down and ran!  Embarassed, I went back to try again.  And again.  And again. It really grew on me.  There was a really interesting crunch to it from the salt crystals (I think that was the source).  There was a complex minerally sweetness underneath that tang that made me cry.  This one is not for the faint of heart, but give it a try!

So, in the "practical application" department, I put some crumbled Roaring 40s on my steamed Brussels Sprouts last night with some fresh ground pepper.  Yum!  The Bleu de Bocage on a cracker went really well with a Cosmo made by Darling Husband this evening.

Don't be afraid!  Get the blues.  Sometimes its ok.