The Great Cheese Quest

Medium-high end?? Just looking at this photo makes...

2009-03-13T07:28:00.000-07:00

Medium-high end?? Just looking at this photo makes me doubt that. Maybe "US Standards" is the key phrase (I mean, some people here consider Kool-aid an edible item), but really this looks non-waxed cabot equivalent. If this was on a cheese platter, cubed ham would sit next to it.

Coon isn't generally pre-sliced. (although it's av...

2009-03-09T20:05:00.000-07:00

Coon isn't generally pre-sliced. (although it's available in small packages in this form). It's usually in big, yellow blocks. By US standards it would be considered medium-high end in quality.

American Cheese in some states had to be labeled &...

2009-02-26T20:16:00.000-08:00

American Cheese in some states had to be labeled "American Cheese Food" as it isn't cultured milk so much as it is hydrogenated vegetable oil. It is not edible and is an embarrassment.

In regards to real cheese that comes from America it IS Europe's fault that it sucks. I grew up in Wisconsin. Once, every other town had a creamery. Many of them had nice aged European style cheeses. I know of old root cellars and caves where my grandfather's generation would age cheese and wash rinds. But when the USA geared up for world war 2 we had be be EFFICIENT so we made one large factory for every 20 ma&pa creameries and that factory made quick crappy cheese but it freed up a lot of people to go fight or build tanks. America is great at efficiency. And we destroyed our cheese culture to save France's butt from the Nazis.

A reduction in world cheese availability is an out...

2008-10-28T12:17:00.000-07:00

A reduction in world cheese availability is an outrage.

It seems so totally unfair! When you say, "French...

2008-08-26T10:56:00.000-07:00

It seems so totally unfair! When you say, "French cheese," there's not just one cheese that comes to mind. Why are we, as Americans, so pigeon-holed in the cheese department?

There is "Swiss" cheese, but there are varieties (Gruyere, Emmentaler) and they don't have the "bad" stigma that "American" cheese does!

I agree, the typical American Cheese is packed in ...

2008-08-19T12:54:00.000-07:00

I agree, the typical American Cheese is packed in too much plastic and taste and behaves like plastic.
There are nicer cheeses to have. But it is rare to find them in the usual supermarket in the USA.

I have tried cheeses from Vermont and California. There are some excellent cheeses in your country and you should be proud of them. Please give them a label out of your own country instead of 'Gouda', 'Edam' or 'Roquefort' and the like. They will never be like that. I don't think that is the point to make identical cheeses. The point is to make nice cheeses.

Use raw milk, good rennet and produce only a little bit a day.

Variety, so you never will succeed in having tasted all the cheeses in the world!

Paul

rach does'nt smoke id know where you got that!!

2008-08-18T11:55:00.000-07:00

rach does'nt smoke id know where you got that!!

Your reasons for writing about cheese are almost e...

2008-08-18T11:43:00.000-07:00

Your reasons for writing about cheese are almost exactly why I started making cheese! The options seem limitless and the cheese world, though quite small, begins to feel bigger and bigger. The best of luck on your quest; love the new blog layout! :)

a tip on the clothbound cheddar, from your friendl...

2008-08-11T22:06:00.000-07:00

a tip on the clothbound cheddar, from your friendly neighborhood cheesemonger - you probably won't find it at the supermarket. Look at your local cheese shop, but even then its hard to find. Its actually a collaborative effort by Cabot & Jasper Hill Farm. But it IS sooo gooood...

That looks and sounds really good! I need to expa...

2008-08-06T10:47:00.000-07:00

That looks and sounds really good! I need to expand my palate beyond american and cheddar!

BTW, you are soooooo awesome for endorsing me to win the puppies! I knew Plurk would pay off!!! hehe

Thanks again!

It may sound weird, but the best cheese-related br...

2008-08-05T14:23:00.000-07:00

It may sound weird, but the best cheese-related breakfast food I've ever had is pancakes with jarlsberg cheese sprinkled into the batter. They have that salty, sweet thing going (as long as you add a healthy amount of maple syrup!). SO delicious! Maybe if you drop another hint to your husband...

(I wish I could get my husband to cook me breakfast!)

Sottocenere is a lovely cheese. I fell in love wi...

2008-08-01T12:06:00.000-07:00

Sottocenere is a lovely cheese. I fell in love with it first time I tried it. I am hooked on Gouda these days.

I just love that Whole Foods has a decent selectio...

2008-07-21T07:15:00.000-07:00

I just love that Whole Foods has a decent selection of cheeses. It may not have the ambiance of some of the smaller cheese shops (which are an experience in and of themselves), but it stocks some solid cheese choices nonetheless. And I've always found them quite knowledgeable on this, my favorite of edible subjects!

But... but... did you eat the new cheese so greatl...

2008-07-18T10:53:00.000-07:00

But... but... did you eat the new cheese so greatly recommended? Can we know of the experience?

Whoops!! I should have checked my links. arizona rock food

The arizona rock food is really neat looking. FYI...

2008-07-13T10:38:00.000-07:00

The arizona rock food is really neat looking. FYI: to make your link work you need to remove the slash at the end: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/15169 instead of http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/15169/.

;-)

Hmm a cheese carving of bread... I'm not sure if t...

2008-07-10T10:59:00.000-07:00

Hmm a cheese carving of bread... I'm not sure if that reminds me more of The Chocolate Touch or arizona rock food...

That is AWESOME! Now if someone would just carve ...

2008-07-09T13:11:00.000-07:00

That is AWESOME! Now if someone would just carve up a nice statue of crusty bread to go with it!

I'm so bummed...again. (This cheese has led me on ...

2008-07-09T07:15:00.000-07:00

I'm so bummed...again. (This cheese has led me on a roller coaster of emotional highs and lows *sniff*) Sadly, the cheese sculpture was only in town for the fourth of July and -worse- only displayed in The Bourse for a few hours. Ridiculous. That place is just a food court for tourists! You can barely move through it on a good day. Grr.

That is bizarre isn't it? If I was that sculptor I...

2008-07-09T07:11:00.000-07:00

That is bizarre isn't it? If I was that sculptor I'd be seriously annoyed. I mean, those guys are in there for hours and hours and hours... often only a few inches from the cheese! I'd be slapping that guitarist silly.

LOL! Tell me when you're going...I totally want t...

2008-07-08T08:07:00.000-07:00

LOL! Tell me when you're going...I totally want to go see this!

My only major question... why the band?

2008-07-07T17:00:00.000-07:00

My only major question... why the band?

Bread cheese, that's one I haven't heard of. So, ...

2008-07-03T11:28:00.000-07:00

Bread cheese, that's one I haven't heard of. So, molasses aside, it's quite clever- it's the cheese and bread all in one, a completely self-contained snack. Interesting.

Wow, good for you! I may talk big, but I sure hav...

2008-06-30T05:37:00.000-07:00

Wow, good for you! I may talk big, but I sure haven't made mousse recently. The problem is that there's so much tasty already-prepared cheese out there that I don't need to cook. It's hard to get myself into the kitchen even for such a cheesy delight. But I'm happy you enjoyed it and I'll live vicariously!

Okay thanks, that makes sense. I'll have to try t...

2008-06-25T06:59:00.000-07:00

Okay thanks, that makes sense. I'll have to try that at my next gathering. Perhaps I'll do a mousse theme and make blue cheese AND chocolate mousse. I'll take any excuse to make chocolate mousse. ;-)