 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
|||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
Wine & Spirits - October 2002
Contrary to what most people envision when they think of American cheese, cheese making in this country did not start with individually wrapped Kraft singles. Nor, on the opposite end of the spectrum, did it begin in the 70s, with Laura Chenel's fresh goat cheese logs, which dominated every California-style salad for an entire decade. Cheese making in America has a richer history that dates back to the very first colonists—the Pilgrims. It was recorded that in 1620, the Mayflower hauled goats across the Atlantic to Plymouth, and that the first Thanksgiving meal most likely included fresh goat cheese along with the turkey. The first cows reportedly arrived a few years later, in 1624.
The various styles of early American cheeses developed among settlers of different nationalities. Emigrating from such excellent cheese producing countries as the British Isles, Holland, France, Germany, and Scandinavia, it was only natural that these hungry souls would bring their cheese making practices with them. New Englanders of British stock were aging farmhouse cheeses like cheddar, while New Yorkers with Dutch roots made gouda. In Wisconsin, German immigrants created cheeses like Limburger, and those of Swiss descent molded semi-firm mountain cheeses that all eventually fell under the generic name of "Swiss." As Max McCalman puts it, setting the record straight, "there is no Swiss cheese, only Swiss cheeses," except in America.
Unfortunately, high-quality, small production cheese making began to fall to the wayside in the early part of the 20th century, when mechanization and mass production became the standard way to churn out many a comestible. This remained the case, with a few notable exceptions, until the 1970s, when, yes, Laura Chenel teamed up with Alice Waters to bring hand-made fresh goat cheese into the public consciousness. It took a decade or so, but eventually others followed. Now, there are over 200 artisan cheese makers in the United States, up from a handful only 20 years ago. And here we are today.
Tasting Notes:
For our Port and cheese tasting, Max McCalman steered us to seven cheeses, matched with Ports in three different styles: Churchill’s White Port; Ramos Pintos 10 year Tawny Port; Sandeman’s 20 year Tawny Port; Noval 20 year Tawny Port; Taylor 1985 Vintage Port; Dow 1980 Vintage Port. Every cheese found a happy mate in one of the wines. Here are the results:
Capriole Wabash Cannonball: This pasteurized goat milk cheese is ashed, with a white mold rind. The balls of cheese ripen toward the center, with a milky, semi-soft paste and a gently tart, fresh, and slightly salty flavor. This rather delicate cheese worked nicely with the white Port, bringing out the wine's sherried, oxidized character and heightening its acidity. The richer tawny Ports and firmer vintage ones killed it.
Sally Jackson’s Guernsey Cheese: Sally Jackson is well known for her goat and sheep milk cheeses, and is now making this suave, nearly runny raw Guernsey cow’s milk cheese as well. It is wrapped in chestnut leaves and aged for 4 to 8 weeks. Beautiful with both vintage Ports, it was particularly brilliant with the Taylor, which had an abundance of ripe black raspberry flavors that made a perfect union with the sharp, tarragon-herbal qualities of the cheese. Plus, the creaminess of the cheese took some the edge off the tannins of this still-maturing wine.
Timson: Made by Vermont Shepherd Cheese, this buttercup yellow, washed rind raw cow's milk cheese is aged for 5 to 6 months. It has a complicated, rich, woodsy, almost smoky flavor. Pairing this nuanced cheese was difficult but for most tasters the tawny Ports—particularly the caramel-sweet Ramos Pintos—worked well, although some people detected a slight ammoniated flavor on the finish. The tanginess of the cheese also brought out the golden raisin and dried apricot flavors of the white Port.
Putney Tomme: Another cheese by Vermont Shepherd Cheese, this smooth, raw cow's milk cheese is aged for 4 months. It is made in the Tomme de Savoie style, with a gray rind, darkly tan paste, and earthy, tangy flavor with a pleasant underlying grassy tone. It was most successful with the tawny Ports. However, since it is a fairly mild, less salty cheese, it was not successful with the full-on sweetness of the Ramos Pintos, whereas it brought out the caramel, dried citrus rind, and nutty character of the Sandeman's.
Winchester Gouda: This farmhouse style, raw Holstein cow’s milk cheese is cooked and pressed like a traditional Dutch Gouda, and aged for 9 months. It is hard and crumbly with a sandy yellow color and sweet, salty, butterscotch and nut flavors. This rich, complex cheese went well with the tawny Ports, bringing out the caramel and coffee notes of both the Ramos Pintos and the Noval.
Grafton 4 Star Cheddar: Aged for 4 years, this raw milk cheddar has developed a dry, firm texture and an intense, characteristic Cheddar flavor that allows it to pair well with all the Ports we tasted. This cheese made the Churchill’s white Port seem intriguingly peppery, and brought out the deep, bittersweet chocolate taste in the Noval. But possibly the best pairings were with the vintage Ports, and particularly the Taylor ’85, which seemed to grow even more jammy and fleshy next to the aged, nutty cheese.
Old Chatham Sheepherding Ewe's Blue: This moist, crumbly sheep's milk blue is made in the style of Roquefort. It has a distinct milky flavor with buttery overtones and a touch of sweetness, framed by a smoky and profound blue cheese taste without any bitterness. This cheese asks for a vintage port, and while the Taylor ’85 somehow rendered the cheese bacony and too intense, the cheese brought out the fat initial fruit of the Dow ’80, then its delightful secondary bottle age character of nuts and dried figs. This pairing was possibly the best among all the cheeses and ports.
Great Hill Blue: This crisp, zesty blue has a dense yellow paste, a pungent, saline flavor and a creamy texture. The Noval tawny was a very good match for this blue, although the cheese really shines with vintage Ports. It worked wonderfully with the older, more restrained Dow, highlighting its blackberry-briar patch fruit, than it did with the exuberant Taylor ’85, which lost some of its freshness in the pairing.