This August 7-9, prepare yourself for a cheesy musical odyssey the likes of which you’ll be jazzed to hear about—culture: the word on cheese is partnering with Napa Valley winery Long Meadow Ranch to bring you Cheese Lands, your one-stop shop for cheesy treats at this year’s Outside Lands Music Festival in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park! Each week until the event itself, we’ll dive deep into the six cheese and charcuterie plates we’ll have for sale; take a look at our main page for the full menu.
If you’ve somehow gone the past few weeks without hearing about Cheese Lands, it’s time to vacate that rock you’ve been living under and get excited! We’re talking wine and cheese here, people! Two of God’s greatest gifts to the Earth! So if you want a break from all that movin’ and groovin’ and want to indulge yourself in feeling a little fancy, stop on by and check out our Red Wine Pairing Plate.
Grand Cru Surchoix from Emmi Roth USA
Based in an area known as Little Switzerland for its source of high quality milk, Emmi Roth USA brings us our first cheese of the plate, the Grand Cru Surchoix. Grand Cru is an Alpine-style, raw cow’s milk cheese, aged for approximately nine months and similar to Gruyère. The texture is smooth and dense, with occasional pinprick holes, and the interior paste is a pale yellow straw color. The rich, full-bodied flavor with sweet, buttery notes pairs perfectly with the bright tannins of red wine.
San Joaquin Gold from Fiscalini Farmstead Cheese
Fiscalini Farmstead Cheese produces a small range of farmstead cow’s milk cheeses on their Modesto, Calif., farm—including San Joaquin Gold, an aged cheese produced from the milk of Fiscalini’s herd of registered Holsteins. Made in the style of a Fontina, but with more salt and a firmer texture, the flavors are mild and buttery, with notes of earth, caramel and salt.
Aged Gouda from Beemster
Adding an international flare to the cheese plate is Beemster, bringing their Aged Gouda to the table (pictured in the feature image up top). All of Beemster’s cheeses begin in the quiet, canal-lined pastures of northern Holland, where cows have grazed freely for 400 years. The milk from this region is renowned for its rich texture and sweet taste, which translates directly to the cheeses. Beemster’s Aged Gouda is developed through natural aging for over 18 months, giving this cheese a bold flavor and a rich feel.
Julian Plovnick
Julian is a die-hard dairy lover from the Boston area, working for culture this summer as an editorial intern. When not studying English at Vassar College, Julian can be found binge-watching Top Chef (quiz him on any season and he’ll know the elimination order, no joke), refilling his coffee IV, or researching new ways to incorporate ricotta into his life.
