Old Man Highlander is a Gouda-style cheese produced in 8 lb wheels and naturally ripened for 6-9 months from Calkins Creamery, Honesdale, PA. I picked it up with a friend, KK, who had never been in Cowgirl Creamery DC. Nathan, our cheesemonger, could not have been nicer. KK loved the place, and I got my CounterCulture coffee, too, along with this cheese of the week (though still $24.55 a pound — KK didn’t know there was cheese that cost that much). But it was hard to say what I liked better — the cheese or the fresh figss WWT brought from North Carolina. They might be a bit better with a soft cheese like blue or brie, but, mmm… still very tasty — soft figs with a bit of hard cheese.
Grilled Cheese Recipe Contest
Cristal Ortiz is the winner of the 2009 Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipe Contest called GRILLED SUDS N’ CHEESE Serves 4. From WSU blog per Julie.
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1/2 stick unsalted butter softened
- 8 1/2 inch slices of Grand Como
- 1 pint of good German beer
- 1 large Walla Walla sweet onion
- 4 ounces German Chiantino shredded
- 4 ounces Irish Invernia shredded
Baked Eggs in Lost City WV
Brunch in Lost City, West Virginia. Baked eggs with Sheep Gouda from Valley Shepherd Creamery in NJ with MT, TT, WT, AT. Eggs fresh from the chickens in the backyard hen house.
Cheese at Dino’s
Buffalo mozzarello
Bartagnoli Pecorino Taula
milk: Italian sheep
Bartagnoli Pecorino Taula
milk: Italian sheep
Fontina Val D’Aosta Appennina
milk: Italian cow
Guffanti Asiago Vecchio
milk: Italian cow
Guffanti Gorgonzola Staglionato
milk: Italian cow
Guffanti Eborianato di Pecora con Milele
milk: Italian sheep
This is tonight’s selection of cheese from Dino, a local Italian restaurant. They extended Restaurant Week until Sept. 13th. Additionally, they had a “No Corkage Fee” tonight, plus they gave us limoncello at the end of dinner. The service was great, being attentive though not annoying.
DC 2009 Beer and Cheese Week
It’s Beer week in DC, and we thought about attending a cheese/beer tasting at Cafe StEx. They were featuring Brooklyn Beer (a favorite of TT and I) and Cowgirl Creamery cheese. We’ve mentioned free tastings before and we were up to checking out the bar. Last night we discovered it would cost $20 each, and so between the time and money, we could create our own DC beer week…and so we did.
I walked over to Cowgirl after work with ideas of what to buy in hand. I tried many and ended up with 4 (at least 2 more than planned). The “cow” cheese ended up being the Bellwether Farms’ Carmoday from Sonoma but made from Jersey milk. It’s “a firm cow milk cheese with buttery intensity.” I moved to the “sheep” cheese next, and picked another from Bellwether Farms. Pepato is a cheese with peppercorns in it, and is salty like a Manchego with the spice of the pepper. Finally, I was convinced to round out my cheese plate with a “goat” cheese. Midnight Moon is essentially a Gouda from Holland. The Goat is not overwhelming so W and I agree it’s good.
Not so finally, I was there, and the infamous Pt. Reyes blue was there, so I was “forced” to buy the standard quarter pound. This year has a slightly different flavor, as it’s a bit more harsh. We’ve learned though, different seasons produce different cheese. Maybe we should just buy 3 pounds of it every winter. The Buttermilk Blue from Wisconsin is in the running for “Top Blue” cheese these days but I’m told the Pt. Reyes has a Reserve (we are yet to find or taste).
Tonight’s cheeses were great all around and are suggested if looking for a variety of cheeses that have good flavor and are not overwhelming. Oh…and Pumpkin beer is already out in select stores, so buy it while you can!
Giving it to You with Cheese
The author of I’m Not Hanging Noodles on your Ears says the Spanish way of saying “He’s pulling your leg” (deceiving you) is “He’s giving it to you with cheese.” Many of the world’s idioms revolve around food.
new cheesemonger in Alexandria
The new cheese store in Alexandria opened recently. It is La Fromagerie, about half way between US1 and the metro stop.
Zamorano
milk: Spanish sheep
Very much like Manchego, but aged longer and thus a bit harder.
Buttermilk Blue
milk: Wisconsin Jersey and Holstien cows
maker:Roth Kase
A very good blue cheese. MS said it was second to Pt. Reyes Blue. It was winner of the American Cheese Society “Best of Show” award in 1999.
How Cougar Gold made the world a better place
Story from jat –about Washington State University (WSU) grad Kurt Dammeier ’82 — the cheese evangelist and making cheese who owns Beecher’s Handmade Cheese at Seattle’s Pike Place Market. Written in winter 2004-2005.
Aged Cougar Gold
Due to the recent family reunion, we asked JT to courier Cougar Gold from WSU. She brought one can of regular, and one of specially aged Cougar Gold. TT really liked the aged version. When it got back here, we tried it, but weren’t able to do a side-by-side comparison of the regular vs. the aged. Anyway, it was very good.
Cougar Gold Takes Time in Security
J&J brought us specially aged (3-year) Cougar Gold cheese, but security slowed them down when they carried on at the Spokane airport. They made it through, but it did take extra time.