Articles written by
Anne-Marie Pietersma is an actress, comedian, writer, and cheese educator based in Brooklyn, New York. She is the co-creator of the podcast "Is This a Brie?" and owner of The Cheese Basement, where she curates custom food and beverage experiences.
The Best Cheeses to Pair with Beaujolais Nouveau
Every November, France raises a glass to one of its most playful wine traditions: Beaujolais Nouveau Day. Made from the gamay grape in the rolling hills north of Lyon, this vino defies any expectation or stereotype of French wine. Instead of spending years aging, Beaujolais nouveau is bottled and sold just weeks after harvest thanks to a winemaking technique called carbonic maceration. This method speeds up fermentation, producing fresh, fruity flavors with soft tannins. Bursting with notes of cherry, strawberry, and even hints of banana (to me, specifically banana Laffy Taffy candy), it is meant to be enjoyed immediately. But not too soon.
By French law, Beaujolais nouveau cannot be released until 12:01 a.m. on the third Thursday of November. But that moment transforms what might otherwise be a humble village wine into a nationwide fete. And it just so happens, I found myself in Paris on this day last year.
The Silicon Valley of Dairying: Chino’s Brief, Brilliant Dairy Legacy
The Chino Valley sits about 35 miles east of Los Angeles. In the 1970s, Chino, California, was home to more cows per square mile than anywhere else on earth. Today, not a single dairy remains. The skyline of silos and barns has been replaced by warehouses, tract homes, and distribution centers. But Chino’s story isn’t […]
culture’s 2025 Annual List of the Best Award-winning Cheeses
At culture, we eat a lot of cheese—funky cheeses, flavored cheeses, ones with bloomy rinds and ones sans rinds, cheeses made of several animal milks, cheeses made from plants, so on. We also attend national and international competitions each year alongside makers and folks in the biz so that we can add award-winning cheeses to […]
How Cheese Unlocks Personal Myths and Memoirs
Humans are innate storytellers, and cheese is an edible story. When we actually slow down and commune with ourselves, each other, and, yes, the cheese itself, parts of our own world can be opened up to us.
Ruminations: Taste Transformation
How exploring the unfamiliar can lead to unexpected discoveries in cheese, and in life.
