635903 Sun Jul 12 05:19:27 -0700 2009 26 11 South 0 4850605 Ok, Bham Cheesehounds: What are you favorite cheeses that are available locally? Where do you buy them? What wine, beer, fruit, nuts, preserves/jams, or whatever, do you pair them with? Sun Jul 12 05:19:27 -0700 2009 285641 curej 1 4850669 I should learn more about local cheese makers. My latest addiction is Shropshire blue from Whole Foods, spread on (hopefully warm) French bread with a nice Argentine Malbec. Sun Jul 12 06:15:26 -0700 2009 4850605 201509 SkippyLeBeef 1 4850789 My only experience with local cheese is what I pick up at Pepper Place market. They have had local goat cheese since I started going about 4 years ago. It is tangy and good. I like a bit on some toasted crusty bread with some honey for desert. I have also used it as part of a stuffing (squash blossoms). This year a new cheese has arrived as well. It is from Wright Dairy in Alexandria (Anniston Al area)...I have some in the fridge. They have had quite a few different types of cheese so far, maybe 5 or 6 selections. All raw cow's milk cheese :-) They have a web site too. http://www.wrightdairy.com/ I consider myself a bit of a cheesehound, and I will greatly miss the cheese counter at Tria. I usually go to VRichards for cheese now, and feel satisfied by the quality, service, and selection. (I have an aversion to Whole Foods, and I have not been there enough to say anything about there cheese, but I am sure it would be fine) This is clearly just going to be a collection of my thoughts on the cheese scene in the Ham...sorry for the ramble ;-) Sun Jul 12 07:23:29 -0700 2009 4850605 35115 birminghamvisitor 2 4853312 Best bet, since the demise of Tria's, is V richard's. Great selection and they mostly cut from the wheel. Problem with Whole Foods and Fresh Market: Too much precut cheese. They have the bulk, but precut it for convenience. But they have good selections, although Whole Foods is pricey. Continental Bakery in English Village has a few cheeses that go well with their breads (best in town). Once upon a time, Classic Wine Co. in downtown Homewood, carried a few select cheeses. I must admit I haven't been there for years because I never really liked the atmosphere. Mon Jul 13 07:40:33 -0700 2009 4850789 117892 Big Daddy 3 4875874 V Richards is just too far out of the way for me...Whole Foods has a great selection, and in my experience will fresh-cut and permit you to sample any cheese you ask them to. Another benefit (no one has mentioned this in reference to V Richards, but I can't personally comment) is very interested and informative folks behind the counter. Fresh Market started out pretty strong (FM is actually located closer to me than WF or VR), but their cheese selection seemed to rapidly flag during their first year....When some local wine shop decides to embrace cheese, we may have something! Regular wine and cheese tastings would be awesome, no? Mon Jul 20 19:05:36 -0700 2009 4853312 285641 curej 1 4855051 I'd agree with the other posts here. V. Richard's is the best bet since Tria's gone. We do buy cheese at Whole Foods; the selection is larger, but it's generally pre-cut. You can ask for samples, and if you really want them to cut it fresh they will do it. Mon Jul 13 15:34:12 -0700 2009 4850605 106441 bhamdining 1 4856693 My Mom had been telling me about Belle Chevre being at the Costco in Birmingham. It's made in Elkmont, AL. They recently did a demo at the location where we shop in ATL. I really like it. Thinking about making a goat cheese insalata caprese with the loads of Sungold cherry tomatoes coming in from our garden. Tue Jul 14 06:59:42 -0700 2009 4850605 12626 ted 2 4860463 Belle Chevre is an excellent goat cheese, but there is another (surprisingly much less expensive) French-produced chevre sitting next to it at Costco that, for my money, is quite good. I like to support local industry, and do buy Belle Chevre, but the price differential doesn't make it an easy choice. By the way, a disc of goat cheese on a black pepper or garlic Carr's with several slivers of ripe avocado on top and a grate or two of black pepper is hard to beat. A few of my faves: 1. Lagrein (firm and garlicky) with a good red of your choice. Kapow. 2. Campo de Montalban (mixed source cheese) very similar to Manchego, maybe a little mellower 3. Humboldt fog (you all know that one) 4. Valdeon (not too expensive blue that I keep coming back to). Love that Shropshire blue, too, and most any Neal's Yard Stilton offering 5. Sottocenere (with truffle slivers-awesome stuff) 6. St. Andre... very "accessible", rich, buttery, (even my non-cheese-loving wife likes it) 7. Morbier (easy to find), a great melter. Not too different from Raclette. Feedback and suggestions welcome! Wed Jul 15 07:50:28 -0700 2009 4856693 285641 curej 3 4860971 So what is the less-expensive French chevre you prefer? While I am a huge fan of Belle Chevre, and try to keep my goat cheese money local, I'm always open to options. And on the local discussion, I've been impressed with the Wright Dairy cheeses I have purchased this summer at PP. Really like Wanda. Also, I have posted on this before, but if you find yourself in the Elberta area of Baldwin County or near the Alabama Gulf Coast, Sweet Home Farm is producing some excellent cheeses. It's actually worth a field trip. The store is only open on Saturdays, and currently they aren't making enough to sell outside of the farm. Go early in the morning, and try to get the place to yourself. There are so many to taste. Here is some info from the Southern Cheesemakers' Guild. http://www.southerncheese.com/Pages/sweethome.html Wed Jul 15 10:16:10 -0700 2009 4860463 112651 eatyourveggies1 4 4862713 Sweet Home Farm's blue was in the Saveur 100 in the first or second year (about 10 years ago). It's been about that long since I had a buddy pick some up on the way to meet us at the beach. Great stuff. Wed Jul 15 19:54:43 -0700 2009 4860971 12626 ted 4 4875894 Hope I'm not mistaken...I'm not home right now, but I think it's called Couturier.....I'll get back to you after I check!! Mon Jul 20 19:13:40 -0700 2009 4860971 285641 curej 1 4860442 Just a clarification...I'm not restricting my question to cheeses that are produced locally, just cheeses that can be purchased locally....I occasionally read about a "fantastic cheese", but can't find it in Birmingham. I'm mainly interested in your favorite cheeses (that are available locally) so I can learn some new cheeses to try. Hopefully I haven't posted this on the wrong board.... THANKS! Wed Jul 15 07:46:09 -0700 2009 4850605 285641 curej 2 4861576 Abondance: a hard, French alpine cheese with an inedible rind and a sharp flavor with hints of olive. This is the favorites in our house. I hope to find some delice de bourgogne somewhere around here. We used to get it pretty regularly at Tria's -- a decadent triple-creme cheese with a soft rind. Another favorite: aged gouda, especially if you can get the five-year. V Richard's has the boerekaas variety, an aged farmhouse gouda. Wed Jul 15 13:14:41 -0700 2009 4860442 117892 Big Daddy 3 4875655 Pretty sure I've seen delice de bourgogne at Whole Foods. I agree with your fondness of Beerkase, if that's the same as boerekaas....The guy in "Cheese Primer" was not fond of Beerkase, but he and I often disagree! Mon Jul 20 17:39:49 -0700 2009 4861576 285641 curej 4 4876716 Yes, Steven Jenkins is quite the opinionated fellow. Tue Jul 21 06:32:59 -0700 2009 4875655 117892 Big Daddy 5 4876917 The wife and I had a super yummy, deep caramel-y, 3-year-old Gouda from Whole Foods Saturday night before dinner. Tue Jul 21 07:44:44 -0700 2009 4876716 201509 SkippyLeBeef 5 4879147 Wish he'd update his book.... Tue Jul 21 19:14:36 -0700 2009 4876716 285641 curej 6 4880422 I've noticed more and more top-notch cheeses the last year or two that are not mentioned in Cheese Primer. That's especially true for domestically produced artisan cheeses. Wed Jul 22 08:02:06 -0700 2009 4879147 117892 Big Daddy 7 4895476 Well, The Cheese Primer is 13 years old now...I'm sure there are lots of new cheeses since its publication, including domestically artisanal ones. I like and use Laura Werlin's book (Cheese Essentials, 2007) frequently. How do you find out about new cheeses, BD? Mon Jul 27 17:31:24 -0700 2009 4880422 285641 curej 8 4896724 The old-fashioned way: If it looks good, taste it. That's one of the things I miss about Tria's. They were generous with the samples and the woman who worked the counter knew her cheeses. She never steered me wrong. I also take advantage of the samples at Whole Foods, but they tend to pimp the same cheeses all the time. This talk of newer artisan cheeses reminded me: Anyone tried the Sweetgrass Dairy cheeses out of Georgia? The tomme is especially good. Their goat-milk cheese also are good. I've also become quite fond of the Wright's Dairy raw-milk cheddar. Tue Jul 28 08:04:57 -0700 2009 4895476 117892 Big Daddy 9 4944571 Ever tried Lagrein? Garlicky wonderfulness. Thu Aug 13 15:18:41 -0700 2009 4896724 285641 curej 10 4948808 Where is it made and where do you buy it? What kind of milk? I've had the raw milk garlic cheddar frm Wright's and loved it. Might be interested in trying the Lagrein. Sat Aug 15 10:03:08 -0700 2009 4944571 117892 Big Daddy 11 4949127 I recently picked up a soft goat's milk cheese from V Richards. I cant remember the name...Li Capprini or something like that, but I am SURE I butchered that....it was on the Left side in the front, and comes portioned from the cheese maker in about 8oz portions. It has a 1/2 slice of black truffle in the middle. Creamy, smooth, garlicky, earthy, and delicious! On a sad note, I have moved away from the Ham, and now live in So MS, and my cheese selection has been reduced to Kraft American and Cheddar. Tear ;-( Sat Aug 15 13:10:21 -0700 2009 4948808 35115 birminghamvisitor 11 4954587 Lagrein is an Italian cow's milk cheese. It's discussed here (sorry for the cut and paste in lieu of a little work on my part): http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/10/09/WIKK1397CE.DTL I get it at Whole Foods. Love it. Mon Aug 17 19:06:36 -0700 2009 4948808 285641 curej 9 4958564 I am a fan of the Greenhill soft-ripened cow's milk cheese from Sweetgrass Dairy in Thomasville. If you enjoy Brie, you will love this one! Wed Aug 19 06:40:30 -0700 2009 4896724 277290 The Food Bee 10 4958968 The Green Hill is really tasty. I have been enjoying this week with the Thomasville Tomme (also Sweetgrass). Wed Aug 19 08:45:36 -0700 2009 4958564 112651 eatyourveggies1 11 4972620 Saturday I purchased some Nevat goat cheese (Spain) at Whole Foods. Soft luxurious texture, almost citrus notes. Really amazing. I bought all they had (sorry!). Hopefully they will be getting more in. Here is a link I found from SF Gate on the cheese. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/06/24/WIGGN7AF341.DTL&type=wine Mon Aug 24 09:28:15 -0700 2009 4958968 112651 eatyourveggies1