Food411 March E-Mail – Say Cheese, it's the American Whey!

Please click here if you are unable to view this message in its entirety


Take a look at our past issues >		Want to receive future food411 food pick highlights? >

Cheese Glossary

(Source: Artisanal Premium Cheese Glossary)

affinage (AH-fee-nahj)
The craft of maturing and aging cheeses.

artisanal cheese
Cheese that has been hand-crafted in small batches according to time-honored techniques, recipes, and traditions.

bloomy rind
Type of cheese the rind of which has be coated with Penicillium candidum, allowing it to ripen from outside in. e.g. :Camembert & Brie

cave
Originally a real cave or cellar. Today, a cave can be a specially calibrated refrigerated cooler used to maintain the precise humidity and temperature levels ideal for aging cheese.

cendre
Denotes the sprinkling of cheeses with dark vegetable ash commonly seen on young goats' milk cheeses.

chevre or chèvre (SHEV-reh)
A cheese made from goat's milk.

curing
The stage in cheesemaking when the cheese is left to ripen & lose some of its moisture. Also known as affinage or aging.

farmstead
Describes cheese made solely from milk produced on the same farm.

maturation
Part of the process of cheese making, when the cheese is stored at a certain temp. & humidity for a period of time to allow its flavor & texture to develop.

pasteurization
The process of heating milk to destroy pathogenic (and beneficial) bacteria, rendering the milk "clean".

Penicillium candidum
A mold often added to soft-ripened cheeses that promotes the growth of a white, bloomy rind.

pressed cheeses
Cheeses that have been pressed to further expel whey. e.g.Gouda & Parmigiano-Reggiano

tomme (TUM)
The French word for a "wheel" of cheese. A tomme can denote any medium-sized wheel or form of cheese

triple crème (CREHM)
Cheese that contains more than 75% fat in dry matter (e.g. Pierre Robert and Brillat Savarin).

uncooked cheese
Cheese produced where the milk is only heated to 36 degrees Celsius & coagulated at a slightly lower temp. Milk used to produce 'cooked cheeses' is heated to a much higher temperature. e.g. Cantalet & Fromage de Savoie.

unpasteurized cheese (Raw Milk Cheese)
Cheese made from milk that has not been pasteurized. Cheese made from milk that has not been pasteurized must be aged at least 60 days before it can be sold.

washed-rind cheese
A type of cheese that is washed periodically in a brine solution to promote rind growth & flavor. The rind may be washed in water, brine, cider, beer, spirits, wine, etc. Each type of wash imparts its own unique flavor. e.g. Epoisses & Munster d'Alsace.

Say Cheese, it's the American Whey!

Cheese is big, really big. We have come a long way since our notion of cheese involved only the supermarket cellophane blister packs; today it is considered almost main stream to order or serve a cheese course. Today, we want to know what farm the cheese came from, if it is organic and much more. Our respect for American farmstead (artisanal) cheeses is quickly spreading across the US. Similar to California wines gaining much respect, today American cheeses our now garnering a similar respect. Educating ourselves about American-made goat, sheep, and cow cheeses is the hot thing coast to coast, from cheese classes to cheese internships! Of course, we still import many fine cheeses from Europe, but the majority of the cheese we eat in this country is made right here. Gone are the days when American cheese only means Wisconsin’s mega-dairies. Now we have access to artisanal cheeses from upstate New York, to the Napa Valley.

The variety of styles and flavors of cheese are the result of using milk from different animals, using particular types of bacteria & molds, & the length of aging and processing treatments. In addition, other factors such as animal diet and the addition of flavoring agents ie. herbs, spices, or wood smoke.

Categories of cheese:

Fresh Cheese
Fresh Cheeses are usually mild in flavor and unripened, moist, creamy. They are meant to be consumed relatively soon after they are produced. Examples, Mozzarella , Feta, Fresh goat cheese (Chevre).

Blue Cheese
Blue Cheese is easily identified by the characteristic blue-green veining of cheeses of this type. Made from either cow's, sheep's, or goat's milk, it tends to inspire strong feelings , people either love it or hate it! Examples, Gorgonzola, Roquefort, Stilton.

Soft Cheese
Soft Cheese lies between fresh and aged cheese. Unpressed, high moisture cheeses that are aged for relatively short periods. Soft cheese still retains a high percentage of water in the paste. Example: Brie, camembert.

Hard Cheese
Hard Cheese is often thought of as a "grating cheese". Hard cheeses are packed with flavor and deserve a place on any great cheese plate. Examples : Parmigiano-Reggiano, aged gouda.

Semi-Firm -
Cheddar, Gouda, Monterey jack and Fontina.

Some general advise when shopping to for cheese: Look for texture and flavor, instead of a specific cheese- keep an open mind. When making a cheese platter buy one type of cheese from 3 different animals – cow, sheep and goat. To complement the cheese add figs, fig cake, seasonal fruits, dried apricots, Marcona almonds, good quality honey (see our past issue on honey ”What’s all the buzz about”), quince paste, chutneys and spiced olives . Serve all cheeses at room temperature (remove from refrigerator at least 1 hr prior to serving).

To make it easy for you to locate the finest artisanal American cheeses you can visit the Food411 cheese section. We have hand selected wonderful resources. In addition to offering their exceptional cheeses many of these resources also provide interesting and informative information on cheese making. Many of the cheese farms welcome visits and a few of our resources offer classes, so when planning your next vacation – think about checking out Food411 Cheese section to incorporate a visit or a few classes or for the truly cheese obsessed an cheese internship!

A few terrific cheese “blogs” and resources that will educate you on “all things” cheese:

Ark Of Taste
Cheese by Hand
Curdnerds
The Cheese Snob
The Cheese Diaries
News From The Cheese Caves

Our Sponsor

What sets Artisanal Premium Cheese apart is the art of affinage, an ancient practice by which our passionate cheese professionals complete the cheesemaker's labor of love, nurturing every cheese we offer to optimal ripeness and peak flavor. Founded by Chef Terrance Brennan, whose restaurants revolutionized cheese appreciation in the US, Artisanal makes the world's finest cheeses available nationwide as never before.

Cheese Tidbits:

Individuals who are lactose-intolerant can eat aged cheeses, age cheeses contain little or no lactose!
Cheesemaking DVD, "The Cheese Nun," Sister Noella Marcellino takes viewers on a fascinating personal journey as she becomes a champion for artisanal cheesemakers.

Looking for a road trip or vacation destination?

Seattle Cheese Festival 5/18-20, 2007
As artisanal cheese production grows, taste more than 200 cheeses from local & international producers along the cobblestone street of Pike Place Market.