Cheese #4: Swedish Vasterbotten & Cheese #5: Rocinante Goat Cheese with Red Wine

Hello Cheese Ponderers from around the world! Just after last week's post I was gifted two new interesting cheeses for this week. The first was a thin block of Swedish Vasterbotten and the second was a wedge of a fine Rocinante Goat Cheese with Red Wine. When our dear friends gave us these cheeses they said they were looking for something that looked interesting and fun and I would have to say they were successful. As I was thinking about these cheeses as "gifted cheeses" I could not help but think of "gifted children". These cheeses, much like gifted children in the school setting were a little odd, with interesting qualities but very lovable. As I unwrapped these cheeses for our weekly cheese photo shoot I smelled both of them and had some initial concerns these gifted cheeses may be too similar based on their smells but just like gifted children the cheeses were very unique.

 Starting with Rocinante Goat Cheese with Red Wine, I must say I was impressed like I often am with goat cheeses. While many Americans consume tremendous amounts of cheese from cow's milk each year they must be unaware of the quality and richness of many goat cheeses. Rocinante Goat Cheese with Red Wine was very rich in flavor with a smooth texture. This was not the type of cheese that crumbles upon touch or dulls the blade of a knife with one cut but instead (listen closely) cut perfectly the way a chilled Colby Jack might. Before tasting, I judged this cheese the way we are all told not to judge books. The cheese looks like it could be seasonal with its deep red/purple rind and printer paper white body. Like many cheeses that have been cut from a full wheel of cheese there was a partial section of label still left on this wedge. From first glance the label could have been confused for a circus advertisement or a colorful candy wrapper meant to attract the interest of candy lovers. This goat cheese screamed fancy pants, with "Red Wine" in its title but oh-my, it was fantastic. The hints of red wine were subtle and brought out the cheese's smooth, rich flavor. This cheese gets two big thumbs up from this amateur cheese expert.

I said before that I was concerned the two cheeses would be too similar because of their initial smell, it was clear after eating the two cheeses that my nose was overpowered by the odor of one of them, Swedish Vasterbotten. This Northern European cheese had a light waxy coating which regular readers know I appreciate in a cheese. It had a strong "smelly cheese" odor and was very hard. When you look at it up close you may think it is a miniature Swiss Cheese with its tiny holes that are placed randomly throughout the block. The tough nature of Swedish Vasterbotten makes it hard to cut but after it is cut or broken into smaller pieces, it crumbles into even smaller pieces as if it is sad to have left its original form. On first taste, I was struck by its likeness in taste to a Parmesan that might be shredded over your soup or salad at an Italian chain restaurant that serves endless quantities of food. I would give Swedish Vasterbotten a grade of B+ because it was nice but seems to have few practical, daily uses.

Thank you to everyone who has been reading and enjoying Pondering Cheese and as always please feel free to leave your comments or concerns about the things you have read.

Peace, Love, and Cheese

Cheese #3: Celtic Vintage Irish Cheddar with Malt Whisky

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all. I picked this week's cheese in honor of this day. From what I know, I have Irish heritage but would not say St. Patrick's Day is something I look forward to each year. My most fond memories of St. Patrick's Day come from my childhood when each year our family's Rat Terrier (his love for cheese is mentioned in my personal history with cheese) would "get loose" and come back after being attacked by a leprechaun, all of his white fur died green. My brother and I later figured out this was our father's attempt at getting us excited about St. Patrick's Day. Usually the dog would remain green until mid-May when the dye finally all rubbed off.

Enough is enough, let's talk about the cheese of the week. To celebrate St. Patrick's Day I picked up a wedge of Celtic Vintage Irish Cheddar with Malt Whisky from our local DeKalb Farmers Market. I prefer going into my reviews with an open mind free of others opinions but this week as I was bragging to friends about my holiday themed choice and friend said to me, "I have had that cheese from the market before and it is not very good". I am happy to say that in my own kind opinion she was incorrect. I knew I was going to love this cheese from the second I picked it up. What was there for me not to love? I am supposedly Irish, I love malt whisky, anything vintage is cool and it is all mixed together in a beautiful white cheddar.

The cheese itself gets a solid four and a half stars in my book. It is once again not as versatile as the undisputed most pot of gold worthy cheese in the world, Colby Jack, but it is still pretty darn good. It came wrapped in wax for freshness unlike many other more snobby cheeses with their own protective rind. The cheese was perfectly sharp and crumbled wonderfully when it was cut or broken the way a dry cheese should. My friend with the incorrect opinion about this cheese said she ate most of hers with apples which improved the taste. While I thought the cheese was wonderful on its own, she was correct, apples were an awesome addition, making this cheese a well rounded snack. I have only two complaints with this cheese. The first is that I had high expectations for a stronger whisky taste in the cheese and my second is that this Irish cheese has to share part of its name with the oldest most washed up team in professional basketball. As I see it if those are truly the only two issues this must be a cheese you would be lucky to find at the other side of a rainbow.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Peace, Love, and Cheese

Cheese #2: Charnwood

Loyal cheese lovers and readers this week I will be reviewing a cheese I picked up at the wonderful Dekalb Farmers Market, not far from my home. Before I delve into my post I wanted to thank everyone for the overwhelming response to last week's inaugural post. I found myself flooded with comments/suggestions about other cheeses to ponder from readers around the globe.

Charnwood

After my wife informed me early this week that I was not to eat any of the shredded cheese in our fridge as a snack, (I always thought this was a normal thing to do until I got married) I decided I would start my pondering early. I picked up a small wedge of Charnwood (Smoked De Applewood) a cheddar cheese that is not actually smoked but instead seasoned to have a smoky taste. If your first thought is "wow sounds like a fancy cheese" you are on the same page I was when I picked it up. If you have never had the pleasure of tasting Charnwood, imagine how it tastes to eat a piece of string cheese that has shared a package with a smoked meat stick (usually found near the counter at a classy gas station). You know the deliciousness of the cheese is still somewhere in that poor and helpless piece of cheese but it has been masked by the overwhelmingly cheap smoky taste. Before you start to think this post will focus only on bashing Charnwood let me tell you, Charnwood does have some positive qualities. It is a very soft and snackable cheese. It would be wonderful for any party's cheese platter except for the fact that the smoky taste may seep into the other cheeses on the plate. In comparison to the world's favorite cheese (Colby Jack), Charnwood is equally soft and would be an excellent sandwich cheese as far as texture and versatility goes in the cheese world but I am afraid that the strong smoke flavor takes away from Charnwood's ability to be a well respected cheese with many uses. I would give Charnwood a C+ for an overall grade. While it was not one of the best cheeses I have ever pondered it was tolerable and enjoying Charnwood was much easier than enjoying a night without cheese.

Charnwood

I will end this post with another quick review. On Friday night my wife and I enjoyed dinner at 246, a restaurant in Decatur, Georgia. 246 was recommended by our friends because of the many unique cheeses on their menu which can be enjoyed as an appetizer. Our dinners were delicious but I will say my favorite part of the experience was publicly pondering Taleggio, a buffalo milk cheese from their menu that was served with homemade sweet pickles and strips of toasted bread. There will be no pictures of this fancy pants cheese as I was informed taking pictures in an establishment such as 246 was probably not appropriate. Taleggio was very soft and almost spreadable like butter. The Taleggio was an off white color with a yellow rind. This cheese from the milk of a horned beast was much less intimidating than the animal that produces it. Taleggio was very creamy with an slight but not overwhelming blue after taste. I imagine that Taleggio would taste fantastic crumbled over a salad but unlike the cheese previously mentioned in this post Taleggio's taste would easily be lost in a sea of other tastes and textures. To truly enjoy Taleggio it should be the center of attention.

Please keep sending any comments or suggestions of future cheeses I should try and check back next week for another installment of pondering cheese.

Peace, Love, and Cheese

Cheese #1: Cambozola

Hello new followers. Welcome to Pondering Cheese, a new hopefully weekly blog that reviews and compares cheeses. I want to start this blog in a strong way to show each of you how serious I take my cheese. In order to do this I will start by reviewing Cambozola, a cheese I was introduced to by my wife's family. Before I dive into my review of this cheese I must make a confession. I do not study cheese, as I started writing this post I had no idea what the process of making Cambozola was but after a simple Google search of Cambozola which led me to Wikipedia and a few other cheese blogs (What there are other cheese blogs!?!? Ryan is not the first with this idea! I know, I was surprised myself.) I found that Cambozola is a cows milk cheese made from French soft ripened triple cream cheese and Italian Gorgonzola. Thank you Wikipedia. In the US, Cambozola is marked as a blue brie....Blah, Blah, Blah. Cambozola is pretty good as long as you like a strong blue cheesy taste. In my personal amateur expert opinion it is best served at room temperature and enjoyed on a light cracker or toasted bread. Apparently there are several recipes which call for Cambozola but I am not sure I would try these because this cheese is strong enough that it would probably take over as the dominate taste and is perfectly delicious enjoyed alone.

As compared to the most superior cheese in the world, Colby Jack, I would give this cheese a 7.5 out of 10. Cambozola is soft and wonderfully creamy but takes a little to much work to enjoy. First off, you have to be in a blue cheese mood and lets be real for a second there is no one who is always ready to enjoy this type of taste. Colby Jack can be enjoyed at anytime by anyone. It is a cheese that makes the lactose intolerant community around the world realize getting sick is worth its deliciousness. While Cambozola is wonderful it is not versatile. It would not hold up at the bottom of a picnic basket and when you are eating it you have to avoid its tough, not-so-wonderfully tasting rind. The best cheeses of the world can be entirely enjoyed and there is no need to examine them to make sure you are eating the correct part. The best cheeses in the world are also not spreadable. The best cheeses in the world are easy to melt, need to be cut with a sharp knife, and can be made into snackable sticks for enjoyment. While Cambozola is rich and fantastic it does not fit the criteria for maximum enjoyment.

I hope you have enjoyed the inaugural post of Pondering Cheese. Please read my personal history with cheese and check back weekly for additional posts.

Peace, Love, and Cheese.