if you think Brie is boring, that’s probably because you’ve only had the pasteurized, stabilized versions most commonly found in American supermarkets. Unfortunately, even the best cheese shops can’t get the real thing, because it’s made with raw milk and aged less than 60 days (although there are some very good pasteurized versions available, it should be noted, such as the Brie Fermier from Ferme de la Tremblaye).
The New York Times paid a visit to Brie country in France and brought back some tantalizing photos:
A Brie Binge East of Paris
Isabelle Hédin, whose grandfather founded the fromagerie in 1895, told us that there are six varieties of Brie, and that the final taste of the cheese depends on the size of the mold used to contain the coagulated raw cows’ milk curd and the length of time it ages.
“Brie-style cheeses are produced all over the world,” Ms. Hédin said. “But real Brie only comes from the Seine-et-Marne.” She said that only two types of Brie have an A.O.C., or Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée, a government label indicating that they have been produced according to a strict set of rules: Brie de Meaux and Brie de Melun, both of which are named after towns in the Seine-et-Marne.
“Brie de Meaux has a velvety white rind, and tastes of butter and hazelnuts after six to eight weeks of aging,” Ms. Hédin said. Brie de Melun “is best between 10 and 12 weeks, and it has a stronger, saltier, more robust flavor that’s a little yogurt-y.”
And what of Coulommiers, the cheese that inspired this trip? It is part of the Brie family, she explained, “and is distinguished from Brie by being smaller and thicker, with a rounder, sweeter taste.”
Brie has been produced in the Seine-et-Marne since the seventh century and is said to have been a favorite of both the emperor Charlemagne and King Henry IV. At the closing banquet of the Congress of Vienna on June 9, 1815, where some 60 different European cheeses were served, Brie de Meaux was voted “the King of Cheeses” by the assembled diplomats and nobles.
This notoriety notwithstanding, Ms. Hédin said cheese production in the region had declined, as farmers convert from livestock to more profitable crops. “Today they’re fewer than a dozen farms making cheese with raw milk they produce themselves,” she said. “Most French Brie is produced with pasteurized milk, so it never achieves any depth of flavor, because the natural bacteria that ripen it are no longer present. Brie de Meaux and Brie de Melun can only be made with milk that’s produced in the Seine-et-Marne, however.”
(Photos ©2015 NYTimes.com)
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