MARCH 2023 CHEESE CLUB

 
 

 WINE CLUB | CHEESE CLUB

ALL CLUB MEMBERS GET TO ENJOY THESE 3 CHEESES:

Pour Me a Slice Cheddar | Ogden, Utah, USA

Pasteurized cow’s milk
This little lush of a cheddar is infused with Basil Hayden whiskey, and hails from Utah (right!), which is super rare to find up in the PNW. It’s subtly boozy, approachable, and crumbly.
From this month’s wine club lineup, this cheese pairs well with: 2020 Carta da Fitapreta

Fromage Blanc | Duvall, Washington, USA

Pasteurized cow’s milk
Next up we have this acid-coagulated, fresh cheese from our friends over at Cherry Valley Dairy. This cheese is a total tabula rasa — it’s brightly acidic and it can be paired with pretty much anything. Incorporate it into a recipe, add herbs and alliums to make it savory, or dollop jam, drizzle honey, or mix some fruit into it for a sweeter treat.
Try it with: Drizzle some honey (or mix it in!) and drink with the 2020 Casa de Mouraz Dao Branco

Grassi Gouda | The Netherlands

Pasteurized cow’s milk
This easy eater is a younger Dutch gouda that’s aged for about a year to bring those buttery, roasty toasty flavors with sweet cream and a little bit of broth for good measure.
Try it with: 2018 Quinta de Saes

6-CHEESE MEMBERS ALSO GET TO ENJOY THESE 3:

Le Bémontois | Franches-Montagnes, Switzerland

Raw cow’s milk
This high-quality, small-batch Swiss mountain cheese has bags of complexity. Transhumant pastoralism has been a grazing practice since the neolithic period, and it’s still practiced in this region. Basically, it means these cows graze along the mouintainside, and all of those wild grasses, wild flowers, alliums, and herbs that they devour become flavors and aromas in the cheese.
Try it with: 2017 Niepoort LBV Port (375ml)

Chimatomme | Chimacum Valley, Washington, USA

Raw goat’s milk
This natural-rinded hard cheese has gobs of caprine character without being bucky or overtly animal-y. You’ll taste a slightly piquant note, along with a good chew, nuttiness, and earthy nuance.
Try it with: 2019 Tons de Duorum Tinto

Tomme de Savoie | Savoie, France

Raw cow’s milk
This natural-rinded mountain cheese hails from the French Alps. In spite of the rind’s grey, brooding appearance, this cheese is quite approachable — it’s the epitome of a table cheese.
Try it with: 2020 Quinta de Chocapalha Arinto

 
 

AND SOME TIPS TO KEEP YOUR CHEESE HAPPY AT HOME

  • Protect your cheese from drying out by keeping it in your fridge in a lidded container (like tupperware), a plastic baggie, or the crisper drawer.

  • After opening, always use fresh plastic wrap for any cheese you’re not planning to eat within a day, unless it’s being kept in a container (which we recommend).

  • In general, we suggest eating your cheese within a week or so of purchasing. Some cheeses will last longer, but, you know, why wait!

  • Keep bloomy rinds and blues separated when possible. The molds are quite zealous and will grow on any cheese they can latch onto, so just keep them in separate containers and you’ll be fine.

  • A word about mold: If it’s growing on your semi-firm or firm cheeses, just cut it off and eat it! This white and blue mold is just fine — these cheeses lack the water to host the nasty molds. But if mold is growing on your fresh mozzarella, feta, cream cheese, or fresh chèvre, throw it out.  The amount of water in these cheeses provides a great environment for the nasty stuff. If you start to see mold, you can be sure that the filaments are already running throughout the cheese :(

  • For the best flavors, take your cheese out of the fridge for an hour or so before serving. When cheeses are too cold, all their delicious flavors, aromas, and textures get shy. Serve at room temperature to enjoy to the fullest.

This month’s cheese was carefully curated by Seattle’s Resident Cheese Lady, Rachael Lucas, ACS CCP, CCSE. Rachael is a cheese buyer for the Ballinger Thriftway in Shoreline, a fromage writer for tastewashingtontravel.com, and she’s on the Board of Directors for WASCA (Washington State Cheesemaker’s Association).