November is here and Thanksgiving is just around the corner, which has us thinking about making some cheese boards! At any large gathering, we like to put out a mix of surefire crowd pleasers and less-well-known selections, and that's exactly what this month's cheese club box is all about. Read on to learn about this month's selections, or sign up to have this month's club shipped straight to your door!
A firm, sweet goat’s milk gouda from one of our favorite New York State dairies. Lively Run Goat Dairy has been in operation since 1983, and in that time the cheesemaking has been passed down from Suzanne Messmer to her son Pete. Pete is an innovator, and has been adding to Lively Run’s lineup of delicious goat’s milk cheeses. Finger lakes Gold is akin to the great goat’s milk goudas of the world (Midnight Moon, Black Betty, etc) and packs a unique and distinctive punch! The younger wheels have a firm creamy paste that is bright and nutty, and milky.
Pairing Notes: Malty ales, IPA’s, Belgian-style beers, lagers, bourbon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay
Spring Brook Tarentaise is a sharp, firm cheese that is sure to please just about any crowd. It is crafted in the Alpine-style, meaning that it follows the tradition of famed cheeses of the Alps like Gruyere, Beaufort, and Comte. Made from rich, raw Jersey cows’ milk in a traditional copper vat, Tarentaise is rich, complex, and full-flavored. Aged for 7 months or more, the texture is smooth and dense, with deep, nutty, and spicy flavors abounding. Hints of freshly cut grass and sweet toasted hazelnuts accent the flavor profile.
Pairing Notes: Structured white wines like lightly oaked Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc; juicy acidic red wines like Zwiegelt; full bodied red wines like Bordeaux; dark, malty beers like brown ale and Dopplebock
Jasper Hill Farm - Greensboro, Vermont
A pungent, limited edition collaboration between Saxelby Cheesemongers, Jasper Hill Farm, and Brooklyn-based Transmitter Brewing! Willoughby is an odoriferous round of washed rind cows’ milk cheese that is normally washed with a salt brine. However, this special batch has been washed with Transmitter Brewing’s F4 3 x Brett Farmhouse ale. Three strains of brettanomyces are combined in primary fermentation to create a complex web of aromas with notes of ripe stone fruit, fresh cut hay, and earth. The wheels of Willoughby are washed twice weekly with beer for a period of six weeks to allow the cheese to ripen, and for the pungent flavors to express themselves. The finished product is briny, nutty, and bursting with funk.
Pairing Notes: Transmitter's F4 3 x Brett Farmhouse ale, of course!
View Past Cheese of the Month Club Selections:
