# Cheese



## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

I can't get enough cheese.
I love to cook with it,pair it with wine.
Cheese to me is comfort.
Morbiar from France,Manchego from Spain,stilton "yum"give me a 77 Fonseca with the Stilton
What are some of your favorite cheeses?

How do you like to apply them to cooking?
cc:chef: :lips: :chef:


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## jim berman (Oct 28, 1999)

Great topic!!

I love a well-aged stilton teamed with some Seckel pears and a drizzle of walnut oil. 

Extra-ripe Brie smothered with mashed cherries. 

Arina on a piece of toasted brioche.

Local goat cheese stuffed into ravioli.

Super sharp cheddar melted into some ale and scooped out with chunks of pumpernickel.

Shrimp sauteed with basil and mascarpone.

Buffalo mozz absolutely soaked in really good balsamic (okay, okay everybody does it but its good!!)

Overly-processed, thin sliced white American grilled on Texas toast :lips:


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## foodnfoto (Jan 1, 2001)

I really LOVE St. Andre--so do my hips. At 70% butterfat, who can blame them? I only allow myself to eat it once a year-New Year's Eve.

Oka, from Canada, is especially good. Buttery, nutty, just a little stinky-YUM!

If you like Stilton, you should also try Shropshire-yellow, with blue veining.
Funny how the English only seem to produce cheddars, but OH, the cheddars they produce! No shame in doing one thing really, really well!


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## anneke (Jan 5, 2001)

There aren't too many cheeses that I don't like, except maybe, no offense, American Emmenthal. My favourite has to be Roche Baron. I could eat it every day, 8 times a day, no problem.
I also love crunching into a peice of really good Parmesan, maybe with a drop of well aged balsamic vinegar and a slice of pear. Also love this sheep cheese from Corsicca (I buy it at least monthly but I keep forgetting the name). It's a faily large wheel, covered with rosemary and small hot peppers.

I don't like cooking with really good cheeses because I find it dilutes the perfect taste of a good cheese. That is not to say that I wouldn't eat a dish prepared with cheese... I guess I'm a purist...

That said, nothing beats a good ol' Mac&Cheese with gorgonzola!


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## mezzaluna (Aug 29, 2000)

A four or five year old Wisconsin Cheddar is one of my favorites. I'm not a lover of "stinky" cheeses, so well-aged camembert or brie are not to my liking (even when washed down with a glass of a good St. Emilion). Younger ones are delicious, though! I enjoy nibbling on parmesan or a nutty Swiss, too. I'm sure there are many cheeses out there I'd love, given the chance to taste them. Except the maggoty cheese, of course!


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## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

Stropshire,
yes..Very good and "pretty"cheese.
I also love St Andre and almost all semi soft "fat laden"  cheeses.
In the meadows in the of the Savoie cheese is king.
Think about the young children enjoying "lait bourru"the warm milk fresh out of the cow.
Foodnfoto..you must try if you have not yet Reblochon.
the cows where feed on the second growth of hay in the season witch was more pure.
still today in the incredible savoie they select a montagnards who works with the fruitier who makes the cheese.the head shepherb (Gros berger)was in charge of making sure the cows ate a "proper" diet..one day eating grass and the next on plants bearing beans. Geez..theres so much tradition to cheese making.
the more i write the more I relieze that these are my favorite cheeses.
vacherin,rebblochen,tome,beaufort (similar to Gruyere)Yum!!!
I think tommorow i will go pick up some little chevrotines
cc


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## anneke (Jan 5, 2001)

Doh!! Mezz, the nightmares were just starting to go away..!


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## momoreg (Mar 4, 2000)

Oh, Mezz., you had to mention that, didn't you?
Some of my faves have already been mentioned, but I love sage Derby, and Gjetost (not together). .:lips: 

One thing I can't get past my tongue is Morbier. 

CC, you mentioned a couple that I haven't tried yet: Tome and Beaufort. hmmm..

I love cheese too.


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## lynne (Oct 6, 2001)

Rambeau, a smoked semi soft, just slightly warmed

Sage Derby 

A good Havarti 

St. Andre, my mouth waters...

My friend's mom's goat cheese


I can get lost in the cheese section of the market.

One of my favourite things in DC was to go to Eastern Market and browse the cheese stand -- the opportunity to try so many wonderful new and exciting flavours!


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## athenaeus (Jul 24, 2001)

Oh my God!!

I read this thread and I switched off my pc to have my lunch first!!!!

I can live with eating nothing but cheese!!

Feta cheese of course,mytzithra and gruyere are my favorite.

Do you make cheese at home? 

I do some times!!

What a tread. Pass a good recipe to the poor amatrice please!!!


:bounce:


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

5 year old Gouda.
Montgomery cheddar
I love the crunch from the crystals in both
Shropsire....Neals Yard does good cheese

French feta

Camembert from the NE
Parmesan....
Morbier melted on a crouton with a drizzle of Truffle honey...
Love Tree Farms cheeses
Armenian String cheese
Sweet gorgonzolla
.........I have probably 2dz cheeses in my fridge at any given time.
There was a special one I picked up last year at the Winter Pantry in Chicago at CHIC....Morels in a semi soft cheese. Who'd a thought.
Great thread CC.


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## monpetitchoux (Apr 24, 2001)

Castello Danish Blue is the cheese that I am into right now. Just can't seem to get enough of that stuff. Even though I eat some at work, I like it so much that I buy it for home consumption. I also like freshly pulled buffalo mozzarella. The chef where I work used to put a ribbon of truffle paste in it. But it's good just au naturel, too. I also snack on Parmegianno Reggiano. It is great with figs. But for some reason, I can neither enjoy the wine nor the cheese to their fullest when they are together, even when paired by a chef and sommelier with compatible tastes. Not a bad journey for a gal who started off on those packaged cheese and crackers snacks. You know. Those where you spread the processed cheese one one side with the plastic red stick on the rectangle crackers that had way too much salt on them. What were they called?


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## thebighat (Feb 21, 2001)

I like cheese too, but you guys are really serious here. I once had to make caramelized orange sauce with port to be served with St. Andre. Not bad. We have an English waiter doing an externship this year and we were razzing him about how much he doesn't know about his own country and I asked him if he knew what it was Ben Gunn dreamed of..."Cheese, toasted mostly."


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## nancya (Apr 30, 2001)

"Handy Snacks" Monpetitchoux --- _shudder_

I love cheese - I suppose I have fairly simple taste. I love a good Cheddar, especially White Cheddar. I love Baby Swiss. Oh, and I really love a smooooooth Havarti.

I'm with Mezzaluna, I don't really like "stinky cheese" but I would be interested in trying more different types of cheese. I used to frequent a cheese shop in Kansas City called the Better Cheddar that had many interesting cheeses...alas, 'round here Kraft Cracker Barrel is about the best I can do. I'm considering mail-ordering cheese, but I really like to taste it before I buy a lot of it.

Haven't been able to eat Brie since I got sick while eating it...it was probably not the poor Brie's fault, but my associative memory is far too good.


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## anneke (Jan 5, 2001)

For those of you who aren't fans of smelly cheeses, you should try to keep in mind that some of the stinkiest are also the mellowest in flavour. If you are lucky enough to live in a big city that has specialised cheese shops, go and ask for samples; most shop keepers will be happy to oblige and to advise.

I forget: are unpasturized cheeses allowed in the US?


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## anneke (Jan 5, 2001)

One more thing: if you like a non-smelly but flavourful harder cheese, you must try Mimolette, the really old one. It's one of the oldest cheeses ever produced in France. It's a big orange ball (looks like a toddler's basketball), and it's so hard it has to be broken, not cut. The flavour is pure heaven!:lips:


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## mezzaluna (Aug 29, 2000)

Love that Mimolette, Anneke! Funny but true story about Mimolette: while visiting friends in France in 1985, I brought chili seasonings and offered to make a pot for them. Catch: I couldn't find any cheddar in that smallish, northern city. When I saw the Mimolette, I bought a chunk and grated it over the chili! Not the same flavor or texture, I can tell you, but makes for an amusing memory.


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## kimmie (Mar 13, 2001)

I think I love them all. The ones I'm savouring in my head as I post are:

Parmegiano-Reggiano
Romano
Fontina
Taleggio
Gorgonzola
St-André
Reblochon
Brie
Camembert
Morbier
Swiss Ementhal
Swiss Gruyère
Stilton
French Triple Crème
Jack
Feta

and of course of Quebec cheeses
Le Migneron
Le Ciel de Charlevoix
Victor et Berthol

let's not forget raw milk cheeses:
Le Saint-Basile de Portneuf
Lechevalier Mailloux
Le Sarah Brizou
L'Ange cornu

and there's more that I can't think of

I have to end with Cheez-Whiz and Velveeta, these two are my comfort cheeses!

Like Anneke, I don't like cooking with really good cheeses either, for the same reason.

Thanks for asking CC!

:lips:


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

L'explorateur, Roblochon. I miss those cheeses


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## anneke (Jan 5, 2001)

Isa, what do you mean you miss them. Are they not available in Mtl?


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

The Reblochon is easy to find, it's a bit expensive so I get it on special occasion only. L'explorateur is sometime hard to find but so wonderful. If you like St-André you'll love that cheese


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## monpetitchoux (Apr 24, 2001)

What do you know? Saying cheese does bring a smile to our faces.


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## anneke (Jan 5, 2001)

I don't know about you but personnally, it gives me an uncontrollable craving. Gotta go!


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## youla (Jun 4, 1999)

I really love all cheese but mainly those with a bit of bite like a good reggianno or a good smelly one like a reublochon,...by the way my favourite is a cheese called esrom...similar in texture to a havarti but with a strong smell and a similar flavour to the reublochon.....I also love pure goats cheese unpasteurized...australian laws wont allow certain cheese into the country if they are made of unpasteurized milk and I have only been lucky enough to try these when overseas..so thats all I eat when I travel to europe is all these cheeses! but try the esrom its hard to find here in australia and when I do I BUY THE LOT! AND STINK THE FRIDGE OUT!!


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## olive branch (Oct 2, 2001)

Cape Chef mentioned Manchego, and there is another Spanish cheese that I love, Tetillo, "Little Breast". Not only is it yummy, it's beautiful. too!

Love ~ Debbie


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## shimmer (Jan 26, 2001)

Once at a winery in Oregon, my friend and I ordered a cheese and fruit plate. There was this hard Spanish cheese (Manchego, I learned much later) that I had never had or heard of, and asked if I could buy some separately. It was served with pears, apples, roasted nuts, and grapes.

The waitresses said I would have to come back and buy some when the owner was there, because they were not strong enough to cut through it!

So I left, and went several places after that trying to find this particular cheese, only desribing it as "Hard Spanish Cheese."

My husband took me to lunch at this catering place in Indianapolis, and they also have a huge food shop including cheeses and meats and imported stuff. I knew as soon as I saw all the cheese that there was no way they could NOT have it. And they did! I was in heaven!

I'm thinking of buying some Manchego and other cheeses with some fresh fruit for our Thanksgiving dinner appetizer. Yum.

So now that I've gone on and on about it, I'll say what other cheeses I like.

I like the combo of Gruyere and Swiss in fondue. Nothing like melted cheese. We have it every year on New Year's Eve.

And I love, love, love myzithra cheese, simply prepared (on pasta with browned butter). 

Tillamook cheddar is also excellent, but I think I really like it because when I was little we went to Tillamook and watched the process (before they required the vats to be covered) of cheese-making, and how can you not love the taste of something you watch being made! 

Okay, thanks everyone, I am STARVING now.

~~Shimmer~~


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## risa (May 11, 2001)

I'm probably going to be shot for this, but I don't know much about cheese or wine. I eat and drink both but I rarely bother with names, vintage, etc. I usually just try everything and if I like it, I have more. In any case, there are very few cheeses that I don't like. I don't much care for velveeta and kraft singles but those don't count do they?

Tillamook Cheddar is a favorite of mine and for basically the same reason as Shimmer's. One of the best family holidays I ever had included a visit to the Tillamook factory. I can only get the mild here in Springfield and only occassionally at that but I prefer the extra sharp.

I miss MacLaren's cold-pack cheddar every now and then, but again, that's just association with good memories with my mom.

I love myzithra with buttered pasta, fresh bocconcini with warm from the oven foccaccia and some nice olives, camembert and brie with all sorts of fruit, asiago baked into an ensaymada (brioche-type buns), boursin with a crusty loaf, etc. Actually almost any kind of cheese on a homemade slice of bread is heaven to me. I wish there was a better cheese store/department where I live just so I can go cheese exploring. I have to go to like 4 different places to get different cheese and even then there's no guarantee I'll find what I want. I guess there's always mail order and the internet. All the posts have given me a sizeable list of cheeses to hunt for. Thank you all!


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Manchengo is served in Spain with guava paste (or was it quince paste) anyway it's a really super combo....I served it at the Spainish lamb roast last Summer....
I had the Wine Merchant speak on the differences of farmstead cheeses and artisinal .....farmstead you raise the animals you milk and make the cheese yourself. 
When Nicko came to visit St. Louis we made a special hike to check out the cheeses....he took several back to Chicagoland.
***When in Chicago go to the Ritz-Carlton and have their cheese service!!!!I have few words that can discribe the variety, presentation, I adore cheese and they had several I was not familiar with....this was a great treat....The knowledge the cheese waiter (is there an actual name for that position?)had on each selection...A destination.


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## elakin (Jan 12, 2001)

i haven't been there, but i've been reading a lot about terrance brennan's new restaurant, artisinal. they specialize in cheese, have 3 separate climate-controlled aging "caves," 14 types of fondue, and over 200 cheeses available at any given time. they have two full-time "fromagiers," so i guess that's what you'd call the cheese guy, shroom.

manchego and guava paste is a truly amazing combo and one of my favorite things from when i lived in spain. another great spanish cheese is idiazabel from basque country.

has anyone ever heard of bergader? this is a blue cheese that i used to get in italy. i prefer the "sharp" blues over the sweeter gorgonzolas, and this one was my favorite. i think it might be german. strangely enough, we used it in the restaurant i worked at to make the gnocchi alla gorgonzola.


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Sounds like my kinda place, now if only my gall bladder will believe that!!!! I've got a goats milk cheese coming to the Winter Pantry....moving the farmer's market indoors for the winter.....The farm is goatsbeard from Columbia, Mo and they sell to Dean and Deluca as well as their farmer's market. Pretty cool!!
I'm STILL getting people asking what is available from farms in November.....this is another thread I think.


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

How about chocolate cheese? Apparently Brie and Camembert are perfect stuffing for a dark bittersweet chocolate. :lips:


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Russians coat cheese or cheese with raisins in chocolate.
The texture of Camembert or Brie with chocolate and the flavor combos wouldn't get it for me.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Ah, the power of Cheese

I am surprised that no one has mentioned Livarot yet, it's STINKY, but it is oh so GOOD. Also, what about Explorateur, a great triple-creme. A few of my other favorites include all blues (including Cabrales, a Spanish blue made from a mix of cow's, sheep's, and goat's milk), Petit Basque (a sheep's milk cheese, mild and slightly nutty, with a texture similar to cheddar), cheddars (my favorite being Sharp Cheddar from Cabot in Vermont), Dry Jack, and Saint-Nectaire. Though there are few cheeses I can pass up. Luckily here in Chicago we have a purveyor with a great cheese selection, Tekla. Sophia, who oversees the cheeses does a great job. She seeks out beautiful cheeses from smaller producers. Her cheeses tend to be pretty expensive, I have seen prices upwards of $20 a pound and that is wholesale price. It is amazing the difference in quality from cheeses made in large scale production houses and those that come from small producers. If you have never tried a Saint-Nectaire or Explorateur from a small producer, be prepared for a revelation. Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to a great cheese. That said, I still love my hot, spicy Velvetta-Chile dip!!!!


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## isa (Apr 4, 2000)

Not sure I would eat a whole lot of chocolate cheese but I'd be curious to taste it once.


I do wonder if the guy who makes them has managed to survive....


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

The russian cheese is sorta like cheesecake, sweet ricotta like...

Pete~ what can I say? Your my kinda guy, eat whatever you like and not be intimadating or a food snob. <though I stand by velvetta is not really food>


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## suzanne (May 26, 2001)

Just found a website for a Monty Python sketch on cheese which I hope others will find amusing.


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## momoreg (Mar 4, 2000)

Don'tcha just love those guys?? They're so odd.


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## peachcreek (Sep 21, 2001)

I got my cheese order today and have two new ones, at least for me. One is called Pierre Robert, a triple cream (75% fat in dry matter). It is a soft ripener- similar to Brillat-Savarin. The other is called Epoisses. Its a washed rind cheese (50% bf) from Burgundy. The box says "Fromage au lait cru entier affine au marc de Bourgogne". I don't speak French but I do know that it is a raw milk cheese, and isn't marc a Burgundian brandy? I liked the Epoisses a lot- very runny, complex flavor, silky consistancy and stinks to high Heaven.
I also got a few small wheels of L' Edel De Cleron, one of my other runny favs, along with Vacherin. I prepare the L' Edel by trimming off the top rind with a paring knife, leaving the bark-wrapped sides intact. After the cheese comes to room temp, it is as runny as fondue. A warm baguette and I'm set up....


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## kimmie (Mar 13, 2001)

A French term (known as pomace in English) for the residue (skins, pips, seeds, etc.) remaining after the juice has been pressed from the grapes.

_Marc de Bourgogne_ is a wine from Domaine de la Romanée. Try a 1949, if you're ever so lucky!


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## peachcreek (Sep 21, 2001)

I will look for Marc the next time I go to the Big City. The "Best Cellar in Town", where I live is the drug store! 
I found this written at the top of the wine list at a restaurant in Montana a few years ago-
Mike sez "Try a beer and a shot, our specialty"!


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