Humboldt Fog Haze Remix
- Producer
- Cypress Grove
- Country
- United States
- Region
- California
- Size
- 6 in diameter x 3 in height
- Weight
- 3 lbs
- Website
- www.cypressgrovecheese.com
- Milk
- Goat
- Treatment
- Pasteurised
- Rennet
- Microbial
- Rind
- Mold Ripened
Ashed - Style
- Soft-Ripened (Brie-like)
- Flavor
- Flavor added to paste
Cypress Grove is located in foggy Humboldt County, in the temperate northwest coastal region of California. Its origins date back to the 1970’s, when founder Mary Keehn became interested in goats while searching for a healthy source of milk for her young daughters. After starting with two animals, she quickly developed a passionate interest in breeding high quality Alpine goats. Within a few years, the herd increased significantly; finding herself with excess milk, Keehn began experimenting with cheesemaking, founding Cypress Grove in 1983.
Keehn was a pioneer. At that time, commercial goat cheese production was virtually unheard of in the US. As the company grew, Keehn decided to sell her animals to a number of local farms and buy back the milk. Today, each dairy still operates under an incentive program, ensuring consistent high quality.
As the company expanded, Keehn was approached with many acquisition offers. However none of the proposals seemed an appropriate fit until 2010 when she received a proposal from Emmi, a Swiss company, majority-owned by a cooperative of small farmers and dairy operators. Emmi committed to keeping the company headquarters in Humboldt County as well as maintaining Cypress Grove’s long-standing commitments with the community, environment and milk suppliers.
Keehn first dreamed up Humboldt Fog in 1993 after returning from a trip to Europe, inspired to create a cheese that visually echoes the typical thick white fog that frequently settles over the dark green landscape of her native Humboldt County. In 2017 that famous cheese has gotten an update: a “Haze Remix” version which is laced with a layer of lavender and hand-harvested wild fennel pollen.
Tasting Notes
Apart from the horizontal line jutting through its center, the interior paste of Haze Remix is snow-white in color when young, with a smooth, dense, and slightly crumbly texture. With age, the paste starts to break down under the rind, becoming smoother, slightly translucent, and ultimately runny. Aromas are yeasty yeasty, grassy, and lemony. The fluffy paste melts in the mouth yielding a citrusy and herbal flavor, almost like gin.
Pairings
Try Haze Remix alongside a finocchiona or other Italian salami, a country pâté, or honey.
