#fromagefriday

You just bought some amazing, artisanal cheese for a friends dinner because everyone knows you're the friend who loves cheese the most. But you're also the friend who forgot all the information the cheese monger told you about the cheese.... so let me help. The Idea is easy... pull up the search bar and search the cheese you just bought. Set up with bullet points, you'll be able to take away information quickly and to share freely. This is an index of what we love most, cheese.

[fromageforyou]

Sapore del Piave

(sa-pore-ay del pee-ah-vay)

Those are super clean cuts in the picture, I was using a wire. But this cheese crumbles and shaves like the best of em.

Milk:pasteurized cow

Location:Traviso, Italy

Texture:hard

Flavor:salty and buttery yes, but it has a bright, red fruit sharpness, like that of a grapefruit or under ripe raspberry.

Notes:because of the texture and flavor of this cheese, it makes a perfect Parmesan Reggiano substitute.

Age:12-16 months

Accompaniments: in the act of using it as Parm, shave it over cooked pasta or a salad, or add to a risotto. Pair it with Italian wines of course, or a medium-light body wine with not too much acidity. I would definitely want something crispy like a pear or apple slices, or fresh bing cherries.

[fromageforyou]

Landaff -Jasper Hill Farm/Landaff Creamery

Milk: raw cow

Location:Landaff, New Hampshire

Texture:semi-firm

Flavor:It ranges. I've had wheels where it has super bright, fresh grass notes but also where it's been on the tangy, salted caper and beef broth side. (It was on the riper side by far.)

Notes: It is a Welsh style cheese that is made in New Hampshire and finished off aging in Vermont. I love this cheese and highly recommend it to everyone.

Age:4 - 6 months

Pairings:chocolate covered toffee, a spicy jam like ghost pepper peach jam, white wines ranging - from a Reisling even to a crispier, drier Sauv blanc. Hefeweizens would go good with Landaff.

[fromageforyou]

Sarvecchio - Sartori Cheese

(sar-vek-ee-oh)

Milk:pasteurized cow

Location:Plymouth Wisconsin

Texture: firm

Flavor: flavors of sweet, spiced nuts and caramel

Notes: A world winning cheese, Sarvecchio has a creamier texture than Parmesan Reggiano but it can hold up to grating and crumbling as well.

Pairings:A fig mostarda with honey and walnuts and a Riesling.

[fromageforyou]

Campo de Montalban

A Manchego style, nutty, raw milk delicious cheese!

Milk: raw cow, raw goat, raw sheep

Location:La Mancha, Spain

Texture:Semi-firm

Flavor:nutty, rich, and buttery. More cream and butter heavy versus tangy and "goaty".

Notes:It's aged in reed molds to give it that interesting rind. It was also considered "the" Manchego before Manchego became a protected name.

Age:90 days

[fromageforyou]

Cabot Clothbound Cheddar (Cabot Creamery - Jasper Hill Farm)

This is a huge-crowd-pleasing-delicious-on-point cheddar.

Milk: pasteurized cow

Location: Cabot, Vermont, USA

Texture: firm and dense, can definitely be crumbly and crunchy in the best way possible

Age: minimum of 10 months

Flavor: A personal favorite, it's nutty, has hints of salty caramel, on the verge between sweet and savory. This cheddar is full bodied and delivers. 

Notes: It comes in huge wheels that weigh near 30 lbs. It is wrapped in muslin and brushed with lard before it's aged.

Accompaniments: Almonds, an apple or pear chutney, mild cranberries

[fromageforyou]

Bianco Sardo

A firm sheep’s milk cheese that would make a great Pecorino substitute.

Milk: raw or pasteurized sheep’s milk

Location: Basilicata region (Southern,) Italy

Texture: firm, hard, shaveable

Flavor:very earthy and nutty, not crazy salty but has a great sharpness

Notes: The cheese is aged and molded in reeds which give it that cool, linear rind.

Age: 4 - 7 months

[fromageforyou]

Langres

(lan-kh)

A French washed rind, cow’s milk cheese that is traditionally served with a splash of champagne on top.

Milk:pasteurized cow

Location:Champagne, France

Texture:fudgey, cakey, dense, soft

Flavor:luscious, complex, salty, rich

Notes: The smell of this cheese is strong, but it is milder than Epoisses. The cheese is introduced to two different molds which give it that wrinkled, "brain" look.

[fromageforyou]

Fourme d’Ambert Terre De Volcans

A delightful, creamy, mild blue cheese.

Milk:pasteurized cow

Location:Auvergne, France

Texture:smooth and velvetty

Flavor: mild for a blue, minerally and salty, sweet dried fruits and nutty

Notes:  The cows graze on pastures on top of volcanic ash and rock.

pasteurized cows milk blue from France. #fromagefriday #cheese #artisanalcheese

[fromageforyou]

Brillat-Savarin

A fantastic triple creme cheese, an original, everyone must try.

Milk: pasteurized cow

Location: Ile-de-France, France

Texture: soft, can become easily spreadable and smooth like butter

Flavor: buttery, salty, mushroomy, super creamy, it gets more lactic the riper it gets.

Notes: Originally named after the Frenchman, Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin who coined the phrase, "Tell me what you eat, and I'll tell you what you are."

Age: 6 - 8 weeks

[fromageforyou]

Petit Basque (Istara)

A crowd pleasing sheep cheese that delivers!

Milk: raw sheep

Location: Pyrenees, France

Texture: semi-firm and supple, smooth on the palette

Flavor: mild, that sheep's milk gives it a great richness, salted nut flavor, may be a little fruity too

Notes: It is pressed in basket molds, brined, and given a thin waxy rind.

Age: 70 days

(photo credit: http://jacobsons.ca/project/petit-basque)

[fromageforyou]

Manchego (Various Producers)

A cheese with many faces, Manchego can be enjoyed when it's young and also when it's more aged.

Milk: raw or pasteurized sheep's milk

Location: La Mancha, Spain

Texture: Young - supple, creamy on the palate, semi-firm. Aged - crumbly, firm

Flavor: Young - fruity, grassy, nutty. Aged - sharper, roasted nuts, butterscotch and caramel flavor

Notes: Manchego uses Manchega sheep for the milk. A younger Manchego is going to milder in flavor and will melt easier while an aged Manchego will be great for grating over pasta or crumbling.

Age: 3 months to 1+ year

Accompaniments: chocolate covered figs and dried apricots for either age

(Photo courtesy: http://elgourmethk.wordpress.com/2012/06/27/manchego-cheese)

[fromageforyou]

Aged Manchego, Petit Basque, Midnight Moon, Brillat-Savarin, Brie. Not pictured: Monterey County Pinot Noir and a Napa Cabernet Sauvignon #cheese #cheeseboard #fromage

[fromageforyou]

Midnight Moon (Cypress Grove Chevre)

An awesome goat Gouda style cheese! Enjoyed it with my parents over breakfast with fig jam. They absolutely loved it!

Milk: pasteurized goat

Location: Arcata, California

Texture: firm, you can see that it's slightly crumbly

Flavor: nutty, sweet, fruity, caramel finish, it has those tyrosine crystals as well.

Notes: A super delicious cheese. A huge crowd pleaser, even for those that don't enjoy goat cheese. A must try for everyone.

[fromageforyou]

Bayley Hazen Blue (Jasper Hill Farm)

Milk: raw cow

Location: Greensboro, Vermont

Texture: firm, crumbly, creamy on the palate

Flavor: bold, salty, hints of chocolate, roasted hazelnuts, maybe black licorice

Notes: It's named after an old military road in northeast Vermont. This cheese is fantastic and robust.

Accompaniments:rich, white honey with orange marmalade... milk chocolate with chipotle would be an awesome match too

[fromageforyou]

Inspiration (Mt. Mansfield Creamery)

Not a super stinky cheese but definitely has it going on! I loved this cheese!

Milk: raw cow

Location: Morrisville, Vermont

Texture: semi-soft, smooth and springy, rich and fudgy

Flavor: meaty, somewhat sharp, nice saltiness and earthiness from the rind, nutty and sweet

Notes: This is a washed rind cheese that has been washed with beer during its aging process. It adds tremendously to the flavor.

Age: 75 - 90 days

Accompaniments:cube this and put in a beer mac and cheese?? oh yah!

(photo credited to Matt Spiegler)

[fromageforyou]

Ossau Iraty

(oh-so ee-rah-tee)

Milk: pasteurized sheep

Location: Pyrenees, France

Age:8 - 9 months

Texture: firm

Flavor: mild, a rich truffle quality (not that it tastes like truffles, just the richness,) slightly salty and a little sharp, nutty and sweet grass flavors, fruity grapes and roasted figs even

Notes: A delicious cheese! It goes great by itself but pair it with most anything wine wise, Rose to whites to reds to desserts, stone fruits like pears and peaches, figs would go great. Even melt it over potatoes or for a grilled chees

[fromageforyou]

Rogue River Blue (Rogue Creamery)

Milk: raw cow

Location: Central Point, Oregon

Age: 9 - 12 months

Texture: semi-firm and creamy with small bits of crystallized tyrosine proteins (milk proteins)

Flavor: mildly tangy and earthy. rich and lots of savoriness in this cheese. you get notes of spice and fruit.

Notes: It's wrapped in a Syrah grape leave that has been macerated in pear brandy. No doubt this wrapping gives it that amazing complex flavor