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I am always cautious of wines with lots of oak, and more so of smoked cheeses. Smoked cheeses often taste fake, like liquid smoke, and all you can taste is the smoke. But there are always exceptions to the rules, like Idiazabal, a firm Spanish raw sheep’s milk cheese (like Manchego) from the Basque region. Read more: Cheese and wine pairing: Idiazabal and Palarea 2005 Tinto Rising star Chef Hugh Acheson talks about his new cookbook, his background and his love affair with wine and cheese. Read more: Interview with rising star Chef Hugh Atcheson from Empire State South I was in Lower Manhattan heading to a small party, just 3 other people and me, and I hadn’t made it back home to Brooklyn and my cheese stash. I am “Cheeseguy” and obviously expected to bring cheese. So I popped in to Whole Foods Tribeca and threw down my lofty request: I need four cheeses for a party and have a $20 dollar bill. Read more: Buying four great cheeses at Whole Foods for under $20 Gotta love a well balanced Rhône style red wine. California’s Central Coast makes some great ones. And I’m also a big fan of Cowgirl Creamery cheeses, produced up the coast about 100 miles or so at Point Reyes Station on Tomales Bay — easily one of the most beautiful places in California. Their cheese, Red Hawk, is a great match for this style of wine. Read more: Wine and cheese pairing: Carina Cellars Clairvoyant and Cowgirl Red Hawk This is the second in a two part series on what it takes to own and run a farmstead dairy and make high-quality cheese. I based my observations on Sweet Grass, a family-run dairy in Thomasville, Georgia. Read more: Making farmstead, artisan cheese at Sweet Grass Dairy “Farmstead.” So many cheese people think they understand this term, but do they? Yeah-yeah, it means cheese made from milk produced on a farm, but it involves so much more than that. This story is about what goes into making fine, artisan-crafted cheese at Sweet Grass Dairy in Thomasville, Georgia. Read more: Making farmstead cheese: Animals don’t care it’s your anniversary I’m a big fan of Shiraz! I love the fruit and wood that rounds out the wine and Crave Brothers Les Frères cheese is a fantastic compliment. This farmstead cheese is a washed-rind, cow’s milk cheese made just northeast of Madison, Wisconsin. It has a rich, full flavor and a slightly creamy texture — the flavor gets bigger as it ripens. This is one of those cheeses that you really want to eat at room temperature to fully enjoy it. Read more: Wine and cheese pairing: Juicy Australian Shiraz and Crave Brothers Les Frères Sweet Grass Dairy in Thomasville, Georgia is owned by Jessica and Jeremy Little, who have been making award winning cheese for 10 years. I’ve known them for years and have visited the dairy numerous times, especially when I lived in Atlanta. I spoke to them recently about their history and their success. Read more: Interview with award winning cheesemakers Jessica and Jeremy Little from Sweet Grass Dairy Most of my friends call me a cheese snob, I disagree of course, but, yes I am picky about where I buy cheese. Living in NYC, I have options… lots of options. Taylor challenged me to visit a grocery store and find five good to great cheeses. I was in Atlanta, went to a grocery store on Ponce de Leon, and was pleasantly surprised at the cheese selections. Cheeses that not only would I eat, but cheeses that I do eat. Here are my finds. Read more: NYC cheese consultant’s best cheese finds at the grocery store Under-appreciated wine and under-appreciated cheese, so let’s fix that. Le Chevrot is a goat milk cheese that’s easily found in most cheese shops, and its simple, plainness is often overlooked. But underneath this wrinkly rind hides pure, white goat cheese goodness. It’s pasteurized, small in size, and just shy of 8-ounces with a pleasant nose. When younger, its consistency is flaky and has flavors of mineral, herbs and a slight sweetness. Read more: Wine and cheese pairing: Le Chevrot and gruner veltliner |
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