How to Taste Cheese With Clarity & Confidence
Since the renaissance of artisan cheese in the late twentieth century, the American dairy scene has undergone a remarkable transformation. Over the past few decades, artisan cheesemakers from Oregon to Vermont have embraced traditional methods and local terroir to create cheeses that rival Europe’s best. Award-winning varieties such as Rogue Creamery Rogue River Blue, Cowgirl Creamery Red Hawk, and Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog have earned their place in the Academy of Cheese library—a testament to the growing reputation and craftsmanship of American cheesemaking.
What Happens When You Soak Cheese in Alcohol?
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s second novel, The Beautiful and the Damned, follows the steady decline of Anthony and his wife Gloria as they dance, carouse, and drink their lives away, hoping for an inheritance that never materializes. As Fitzgerald writes, “Wine gave a sort of gallantry to their own failure.” Although he was referring to the inability of their passion to sustain them through their financial futility, Fitzgerald could have just as easily been remarking upon a specific style of cheese maturation that’s suitable for the Jazz Age: soaking cheese in wine.
How Does Winter Feeding (Hay Versus Pasture) Influence the Flavor Development of Cheese?
For many herds of sheep, goats, and cows, shorter days and colder winter temperatures hinder the ability to graze on foliage. When fresh vegetation is no longer available, our milk-giving ruminant friends are fed dry hay or silage (a type of compacted and fermented fodder). It is a general conceit of the cheese lover that […]
How to Host the Best Fondue Party
November is the unofficial start of the holiday entertaining season and the official start of National Fun with Fondue Month—the ultimate celebration of melting cheese. While February is National Fondue Month, we’ll take any excuse to revive this retro ritual.
Honoring fondue is one thing; having fun with fondue is another. Luckily, the dish is best served with a group of your closest friends and plenty of dippers. This may conjure mental images of conversation pits, shag carpets, and turtlenecks, but don’t fear—there are lots of ways to partake in this time-honored tradition sans donning polyester.
Not sure where to start? Read on to discover tips and tricks for hosting your own fondue party, plus authentic recipes.
What You Need to Know About Aged Cheeses and Tyrosine Crystals
Plus, why hard cheeses don’t always have tyrosine crystals In the ancient Mediterranean, stone was fearsome. When Battus snitched on Hermes for stealing Apollo’s cows, he was turned to stone. From Medusa to Poseidon, Greek mythology is rife with stories of revenge by petrification. Lacking clothbound cheddars and aged Alpine rounds, it is understandable how […]
Why Does Cheese Taste Better At Room Temperature?
Leave it to noted gourmand and cheese lover Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin to deftly capture both the anatomical accuracy and intoxicating romance of experiencing flavor. In his 1825 treatise, Physiologie du Goût (The Physiology of Taste), Brillat-Savarin breaks down the experience of eating a peach: “He who eats a peach. … is first of all agreeably […]
What Causes the Bloomy Rind on Brie and Camembert?
Learn the science behind bloomy rinds with an affineur. As the French literary realist Gustave Flaubert reached the end of his life, he quipped to his niece, “Sometimes, I think I’m liquefying like an old camembert.” This oozing trait of camembert, and all its bloomy-rind kin, develops as the cheese ages: a mature camembert or […]
What Kind Of Cheese Is That? How to identify a cheese style
Repeat after us: brie is not a style of cheese! It’s classified as a “bloomy rind,” and there are all kinds of “brie-like” cheeses across the globe. To cut down confusion when it comes to types of cheese, we’ve crafted a simple chart: TYPEDEFINITIONEXAMPLESBlueThe growth of blue mold on or in cheeses.Roquefort, Gorgonzola, Stilton, or […]
How To Eat Cheese The Right Way
How To Use All of Your Senses When Eating Cheese There have been papers published about the euphoric attributes of cheese and its ability to keep you coming back for more. To teach you how to make the most of your cheese-eating experience, we’ve pulled an article from our Summer 2010 archives, highlighting acclaimed cheese […]
How To Become Friends With Your Local Cheesemonger
Don’t be intimidated by those folks behind the counter! Their job—beyond obvious cheese sales—is to turn skeptics into believers and expose your palate to new flavors and textures. Here are five tips and tricks from Rachel Johnston, sales and operations manager of Chicago-based cheese shop All Together Now, that’ll help you strengthen your bond with […]
