Handout #1 - Description of Cheeses
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Cheese Tasting
12.12.08
Brought to you by The Grilled Cheese Club
(we recommend that you taste in the order printed below)
Fromage D’Affinois
This is a cow’s milk cheese that is made in France. It resembles Brie in appearance, with a soft, bloomy white rind. However, Fromage D’Affinois is a double crème cheese, meaning that it was enriched with cream and therefore has a higher butterfat content. In the case of a double cream, the cheese must contain between 60-75% butterfat which results in a silky, rich, and creamy cheese. Fromage D’Affinois is made with pasteurized cheese that is specially filtered to soften the texture. It has a sweet and mild flavor, compared to a mushroomy earthiness that is typical of Brie.
Accentuate the lusciousness with a glass of fresh-berry Beaujolais, a Riesling or peach lambic beer.
Comte, A.O.C.
Comte, pronounced Cone-tay, is a semi hard cow’s milk cheese that is produced in France, in the Franche-Comte region of the Jura Mountains (on the border with Switzerland). Comte is the French cousin to Swiss Gruyere. Both are made with the same process for hundreds of year, in fact, it was originally called Gruyere. The French later decided that their version was superior and therefore moved away from the traditional Gruyere name and began using Comte. Though still, it is often referred to Gruyere de Comte. This is a French controlled cheese, see AOC (Appellation d’Origine Controlee), which means that there are strict regulations on its productions and sale. This is another differentiating factor from its cousin from the East. Montebeliard are the cattle that roam the pastures of the Jura mountains and are responsible for the milk that produce this fine cheese. Expect nuttiness and a taste of toffee resulting from the more than 6 months of aging.
This cheese goes very well with most Belgian Ales, including Hennepin and Delerium tremens. For wine lovers, try it with a light white wine like Sauvignon Blanc, though a Chardonnay or Cabernet Sauvignon would work nicely.
Blue D’Auvergne, A.O.C.
This is a pasteurized cows cheese from France not to be confused with its unpasteurized sibling Bleu des Causses. The cheese is names controlled and therefore must submit to many regulations to be produced. The cheese comes from Southern Auvergne, the south central of France. This area is desolate, nearly treeless, except for a few fertile valleys that support the famous cattle that provide the milk for this centuries old cheese. Cuasses cattle are superior milkers and therefore yield much more milk. The cheese will be a typical, sharp, salty, yeasty blue cheese, with a beige interior.
Try this cheese with champagne or other sparkling dry wines. Also, a Mexican Cerveza may pair well.
Cheeses are served with French baguette, Chilean flame raisins and walnuts.
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