The Prodigal Wench Returns!

It has been a terribly long time since I last posted, and I’ll tell you why.  I gave up.  When I moved to Vermont I was very excited about working in cheese.  Unfortunately, there were not a lot of jobs to be had outside of cheesemaking.  I am not a cheesemaker.  I don’t have the strength for it, or the talent.  So I went back to cooking.

I spend the past several years doing something that I liked, but didn’t love.  I took my baking hobby and I started baking and selling my nummies at several farmers markets during the summer I stopped paying attention to the cheese world because it was a bit too painful to think about what I wasn’t doing anymore.   I had regrets about leaving my cheesy job in Chicago and moving back to Vermont.  I contemplated moving back.  Would they take me back at the shop?  What if I begged?  What if I offered to work for significantly less monies?  Would they take me back?

Why did I leave?

As you might be able to discern, I was lost.  And depressed.

Just about a year ago a fantastic job opened!  It was cheese-centric and felt like the right thing to do.  I was so excited!  I aced my interview because I’m a goddess in birkenstocks clogs and a few days later I got a call.  I had a job offer!  I was going to spend the night thinking it over,   but I knew that I was going to accept the offer.  I hung up the phone and was just about to dial my best friend when the phone rang.

“They’re rescinding the offer. “

“They found someone better.”

“I knew it was too good to be true.”

It was my friend.  The one I was just about to call, gushing over how happy I was, and how this job had come in just the right time because I was going crazy at my current job.

She was crying.

She told me that she had cancer.

I don’t remember much of that conversation.  I just kept a mantra in my mind

Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcrydon’tcry.

Somehow I got through that conversation and I didn’t cry.  I hung up the phone and sat on my bed for a bit trying to think about what this meant.  I’m not going to get into detail, because this isn’t a blog about cancer.  Or my friend.  Or my friend having cancer.  After thinking it over I knew that I couldn’t accept the job.  I knew that I had to make myself available to my friend.  That if she needed me to move back to Chicago to help her out, that that’s what I was going to do.

I called the employer back and told her what happened, but honestly, I don’t know if she believed me or not.  I told her about the phone call, and that I wouldn’t feel right taking a job if I thought there was a good chance of me moving out of state within a few weeks or months.

My friend is in remission now, growing hair and eyebrows and is doing much better.

I stayed at my chef job.  But I kept looking for cheesy work.

One day I was searching through craigslist and did a specific search for “cheese” in the job category and something popped up!

Once again, I rocked the interview (same goddess, different clogs) and was offered a job. This time I was able to accept!  I’m back in cheese!  I cemented it with my first visit to the Vermont Cheesemaker’s Festival in three years!  I am as happy as can be!    So, I’ve decided to start writing again.  My philosophy is still the same.  I won’t lie to you about what I like.  I will not knowingly give you false information.  I will own up to any errors I do commit.  I do not like Armenian String Cheese.  Get over it.

My name is Cheesewench and I love cheese, shiny things and the number seven.

P.S.

Cancer is a fucking asshole.

P.P.S.

I will do my best not to turn this blog blue.

>Montasio Vino Rosso

>One of the things I love most about cheese is that there’s always something new to discover. Today we’re taking a look at Montasio Vino Rosso from Italy.

This cheese is made of cows’ milk, aged for ten months or so and is covered in Cabernet and Merlot must. This is also one of the more interesting rinds I’ve encountered in my cheesy travels.

No, this isn’t some alien skin under a microscope, it’s the super cool rind of the cheese.

Very similar to Drunken Goat from Spain this cheese has a nice sweetness to it, and the aroma is…winey.

Reading that just bored the pants off of me. Let me try again.

Here goes. So you’re out on a second date with this guy/girl, and the first date was pretty good, but you’re still kind of nervous and trying to figure out what you’re going to say because you’ve already talked about your respective jobs, pets and hobbies and so you decide to get a glass of wine with dinner to take the edge off, but instead all you end up doing is spilling some of it on your shirt, but luckily they’re a dark color so it’s not noticeable until the next day when you go to do laundry and you smell a faint, sweet hint of wine from the night before.

Although subtle, in this cheese the wine is noticeable in the paste as well. Since it is made from cow milk it has an additional sweetness and some dry hay notes. it’s absolutely delicious! I would use this on a cheese plate, or shaved over a salad of greens (arugula would be fantastic).

>Mini-Grayson

>

It’s official! I left my job, packed up the apartment and moved back to Vermont. I’ve been in town for just a few days and I thought it was about time I checked in with everyone.

One of the things I loved best about working in the cheese shop was I had fantastic cheese at my fingertips every single day. The negative was that even though I got an employee discount, I ended up blowing a lot of my income on cheese.

A little while back (pre-Vermont move) I splurged on some nummies to share with some friends. Today we’re talking about Grayson (wedge with deep russet coloring) and a brand new cheese Mini-Grayson (isosceles triangle in the front)

Both cheeses come to us from Meadow Creek Dairy in Virginia. In fact, I wrote a post about Grayson here if you want to check it out.

Grayson comes in a large 4# format, is made of raw cows’ milk and bathed in a brine solution. The wheels have developed a strong, mammalian odor mixed with hay and barn stall. Mini Grayson on the other hand is a wee little thing coming in at about 1# per wheel. The other big factor in this cheese is that it is washed in beer from Highland Brewing Company.

So how does a beer wash and a smaller wheel change the flavor and texture profile of the cheese? Since both cheeses are made from raw milk they have to be aged for 60 days before they can be sold to the public. In the smaller wheel, this means that the cheese is ripening a bit faster, and when we get it in the stores it’s not just creamier than the regular sized Grayson, but has developed more of its flavor by the time it reaches us.

While Mini Grayson definitely brings the funk to a party, it’s milder than her big cousin. Now, part of that is because it’s wintertime, and the cows have a different diet going on, so you’re not getting those big grassy, sunshiny flavor components that can be found in summer and autumn wheels. What it does have is a nice yeastiness that comes through, and some flavors of hay, licorice, hops and a very faint browned butter aroma. Quite yummy and a must for spreading on toasted bread.

So which one is my favorite? I’m sticking with the original, preferably the wheels that we get in the late summer. Those wheels might not be as creamy in texture as those made with winter milk, but the depth of flavor and stinkiness is right up my alley.

I Resolve to Eat More Cheese

It’s a new year which usually means making a resolution, keeping it for a few weeks, breaking it and then feeling bad about yourself for not having the willpower to continue going to the gym. In the grand tradition of my family I’ve decided to make resolutions I know I’ll be able to keep.

1. I resolve to eat more sheep milk cheese. I have been loving on the goats for years now. It’s time to bring more Baa Baa to my life.
2. I will accept orange Cheddar (I’m already halfway there)
3. I will cook more cheese-centric recipes.
4. I will renew my membership to the ACS in a timely manner, not wait until I get a second reminder letter like I did last year.
5. I will visit cheesemakers outside of Vermont. (Maybe Maine?)
6. I will never watch Sex and the City part 2 ever again. My eyes, ears and soul are still recovering.
7. I will convince my once cheese-loving nephew to stop being a wicked beastie and to love cheese again. He’s 3 1/2 so this could be an uphill battle.
8. Fondue.
9. I will finally clean out the fridge.
10. Battlestar Galactica is awesome!

Okay, so number 10 isn’t really a resolution, but seriously, it’s so good. Just thinking about watching another episode right now has got me thinking that maybe I should stop writing and just take 45 minutes off. So tempting. All I have to do is press “play”. Fine. I’ll continue with the post.

Hopefully you all had a fantastic holiday season and are having a great start to the new year! I spent the Christmas holiday with my brother, sister in-law and wicked beastie. For dessert we had a traditional-ish cheese plate.

You’ve just got to have a blue for Christmas and I brought back some Stichelton. A raw milk delicious blue that tastes like Stiltons’ wilder, more flavorful cousin. Next up is the Kunik from Nettle Meadow Farm in upstate New York. I have been pushing to get this cheese into our store for at least six months. Finally, my boss relented and agreed that this would be a fantastic cheese to bring in for the holiday season.

Kunik is a triple cream cheese made with goat milk and Jersey cow cream. It’s also one of my favorite triple creams.

Founded in 1990 Nettle Meadow Farm primarily raises goats, although they have some sheep, some guard llamas (don’t mess with a llama they will frack you up real good) and a rescue sanctuary filled with older goats, horses, and other farm animals.

When you first open the wrapping of the cheese you get notes of grass, herbs, pepper and mushrooms. The paste ripens from the outside in which means you get a nice creamy layer of cheese right under the rind and a more dense middle. On their website they call this cheese buttery, and while I agree I would like to add some more descriptors. This cheese is mushroomy, acidic, slightly salty, silky and is a bit like raw broccoli on the rind. A fantastic cheese good for a holiday, special occasion, or really any day that ends in the letter ‘Y’.

Our final cheese on the plate is Ardrahan. Oh man, I really want to talk about this cheese with you right now. The problem is that talking about Ardrahan is more complex than just mentioning a cheese and what it tastes like. If I talk about Ardrahan I have to talk about Irish farmstead cheeses. If I talk about Irish famstead cheeses I have to tell you about how the industry had all but disappeared, and the people who helped bring it back, and how I want to go to Ireland and how washed rind cheeses are particulary delicious and it becomes it’s own post all together.

For now I’m going to stop here and start working on the Irish farmstead cheeses post* in which I’ll hopefully be able to do justice to lush green land, hard work, beaurocracy and deliciousness that all comes together to make some of the most delicious cheese on earth.

If you manage to see any Irish washed rind cheese at your local cheese counter or shop in the next few days, buy it, then when you read the upcoming post you’ll have first-hand experience on the tastiness of Ireland.

*Truth is, I’m going to take a break just for 45 minutes to watch an episode of Battlestar Gallactica. Dang it! I just can’t lie to you guys.

Rush Creek: Tasty Cheese or Dirty Sin?

It’s hard to talk about Rush Creek without also talking about Winnimere and Mont d’Or (AKA Vacherin Du Hauts–Doubs) and maybe even Forsterkase as well. I’ll do my best to tackle all of them today.

Every fall customers call on the phone to ask one very important question:

“Do you have Vacherin Mont d’Or?”

Every year I give the same answer:

“Unfortunately, sir/ma’am, we don’t carry raw milk Vacherin.”

I loathe having to give any customer a “no” and so after hanging up with the customer I go into the back of the shop and weep salty tears.

*shakes fist at the ceiling*

“Why isn’t there an American made artisan cheese that has the silky, naughty texture of Vacherin Mont d’Or but is more accessible to me and my customers?!”

Finally this year there is a very good representation of the custardy cheese from France (and Switzerland).

Her name is Rush Creek and she’s my precious.

To the uninitiated Rush Creek might look a lot like one of my favorite seasonal Vermont cheeses, Winnimere. Lets compare and contrast.

The following are my notes from a side-by-side tasting conducted with both cheesemakers when they came to Chicago in early November.

WINNIMERE: A raw cow milk cheese, belted in spruce bark, washed in beer and seasonally made from autumnal and winter milk*. It weighs about one pound per wheel. Wheels are creamy, though not runny, and have aromas and flavors of smoked bacon, toasted nuts, cured meat and savory flan.

RUSH CREEK: A raw cow milk cheese, belted in spruce bark, brine wash and seasonally made from autumnal and winter milk. It weighs about 3/4 of a pound per wheel. Wheels are uber creamy, runny and gooey like a ready-to-eat fondue. Flavors and aromas of smoky bacon, campfires, custard, sweet milk and a bit wheaty. Perfect for a 9 1/2 Weeks movie re-enactment.

So what is the cheese commonly known as Vacherin Mont d’Or all about and why do people go crazy for it? Although we usually attribute this cheese to France, truth is due to the location of the mountain that the cheese is named for both France and Switzerland make a version of this cheese. The raw milk French cheese is also called Vacherin Du Hauts–Doubs or just Mont d’Or while the pasteurized cheese of Switzerland is usually called Vacherin Mont d’Or.

The cheese is made seasonally. According to AOC regulations set in the 1980’s, can only be made from September through early May. She’s belted in bark and is a creamy dreamy fondue-esque cheese that people go just gaga for. Or so I’ve heard. Although I’ve has pasteurized versions of the cheese I’ve never had raw milk Vacherin before.

Before Rush Creek came onto the scene people would compare Winnimere to Mont d’Or, but to me it’s always been a bit more like the Swiss cheese Forsterkase. Creamy yet solid paste, woodsy aroma, a bit baconish.

For this year, Mateo has changed the consistency of the Winnimere somewhat. It’s not as creamy as in previous years. The cheese also looks darker than in previous years, and doesn’t have the right funkatude to it. I usually wait for the wheels that arrive in March when I think the funky aromas and creamy mouth feel are at their peak.

No matter which cheese you manage to find in the cheese case, they’re all delicious. We’re in the best part of the year, WASHED RIND SEASON! Nom nom nom.

*autumn and winter milk has a higher butterfat content and the structure of the milk makes it especially good for making washed rind cheese like Winni, Rush Creek, Forsterkase and Vacherin.

http://www.youtube.com/v/DwW6GR5Q8I8?fs=1&hl=en_US

When I promise you an overwhelmingly mediocre video I deliver! This week is Christmas and I’m wondering, what’s going to be on your cheese plate?