Past Newsletters - Nov 2008

We Count You Among Our Many Blessings

Thanksgiving is so much more than overindulging in foods galore. It's a day to appreciate and celebrate the bounty that the year has brought us. We at C&H Monthly Clubs are thankful for you. Whether you've been a member for some time or you're new to the club, we want to say how grateful we are and reiterate our pledge to always serve you well. We are blessed via the opportunity to share our hand-selected, sought-after, personal-favorite products with you, your family and friends. Your satisfaction is our passion. We wish you and those who are dear to you a Happy Thanksgiving and, again, thank you.

As far as we're concerned—and as our long time members will certainly attest—there's no better example of a culinary cornucopia than our Cheese of the Month Club. If you're a new member and have received this month's shipment as a gift, show your appreciation to the giver by sending them a membership in one or more of our six monthly clubs. From gourmet chocolates to boutique wines, to microbrewed domestic and international beers, to premium hand-rolled cigars or fresh-cut flowers, our clubs are a wonderful way to say you care. Thanksgiving is the beginning of the busy holiday season. CALL US and our customer service representatives will help you design the perfect gift to suit any taste—and pocketbook.

Grafton Vermont Cheddar: A Raw-Milk Cheese from Sacred Cows

Where does a cheese of this caliber originate? England? France? Well, this beautiful cheddar was born in the USA, at the Grafton Village Cheese Company in the rolling hills of southern Vermont. This artisan cheese house is renowned for its cheddar products and revered both domestically and internationally. They are part of a new wave of American farmhouse cheesemakers who have been energizing our taste buds with distinctive farmhouse cheeses for well over a decade.

This fantastic cheddar has been aging for two years, but what you are about to taste is the culmination of more than just the two years of patient and proper aging. You're about to experience artisan cheesemaking at its best. We chose this cheddar because it's extraordinarily flavorful and lacks the 'bitter bite' characteristic of many aged cheddars. Need we say it's an undesirable characteristic—a sign of second-rate cheesemaking and/or poor quality milk? A well-made cheddar acquires depth of flavor without any unsavory bitterness, and Grafton Vermont cheddar is without a doubt one of the most well-made artisan cheeses we have ever had the pleasure of tasting! We know you will be impressed by this cheese's complexity and intensity, its remarkably long and delicious finish, and a sweetness that is incredible for cheddar of this age.

Artisan Cheesemaking -- Passionate and Precise

We painstakingly select cheeses for you each month that are high quality and intensely flavorful. These characteristics are hallmarks of this company's creations. Cheesemakers at the Grafton Creamery use approximately ten pounds of milk to make one pound of savory cheddar. (Kind of explains why high quality cheeses are so expensive, doesn't it?) The raw milk comes from select herds of Jersey cows known for their extraordinarily creamy, high butterfat content milk which both adds to the cheddar's flavor and supports the aging process. There aren't too many Jersey herds left in the U.S. Because their yield is so much lower than that of the now much more common black and white Holstein, their popularity in the mass-production market has waned. But when it comes to making masterful cheeses, Jerseys are sacred cows. The Grafton Village Cheese Company does things the old-fashioned, natural way—by hand—so it's not surprising that they use milk from this increasingly rare and prized breed to make their wonderful cheeses.

Scott Fletcher, Grafton's alchemist and skilled affineur, has been, as he puts it, "teaching milk how to be cheese for over thirty years." Scott employs five other cheesemakers who cherish the ancient process used at Grafton and, like Scott, apply it with passion and precision.

Aging is a very important part in making a classic cheese. Managing this process perfectly is the true test of an expert cheesemaker. The passage of time under controlled conditions enables a cheese to take on specific characteristics that set it apart from others. Time makes cheddar more crumbly in texture and gives it a greater concentration of salts and acids, which is what provides its characteristic tanginess or sharpness, often called the "bite." Truly great cheddars, like Grafton Cheeses, are aged naturally so that they also retain a creamy smoothness. Before they go to market, each lot is tested and tasted by the cheesemakers. "At Grafton, quality control is a paramount virtue," says Scott. Getting to feast on the fruits of their labor on a regular basis as part of the job is a task for which many would gladly volunteer.

Tasting Notes: If the only mature cheddars you've tried have had a strong, bitter bite, then the creamy, smooth, gentle yet complex intensity of this one should be a revelation. After tasting a few dozen different cheeses, our skillful, fromageophile friends at Zingerman's selected one for us that was made back in 2006. When you taste it, you'll note a very nutty flavor that hints of fresh fruit and is exceptionally creamy on the palate with a long-lasting, delicate finish. This aged cheddar is amazingly versatile. Try it on salads, in cheese sauces, on sandwiches, and as a snack. Any way you slice it, its great flavor and excellent finish will make you yearn for more.

Pecorino Pepata: Pepper Never Tasted So Good

Back in August we featured Pecorino Toscano, a true favorite of ours here at the club. As you may recall, Pecorino is the name given to all Italian cheeses made from sheep's milk. Most Pecorinos are oily cheeses because sheep's milk contains very high amounts of butterfat, one of the reasons this cheese is so delicious. The high butterfat content explains the beads of oil you usually see when Pecorino is at room temperature. Called 'butterfat tears," they weep naturally from the cheese. Use them as a gauge to indicate that cheese you have left out of the refrigerator for a while is the perfect temperature for eating.

Tasting Notes: While you wouldn't think to add pepper to a glass of milk, it does add a special piquancy to other dairy products. In India, lassi, a cold yogurt drink, is often made with black pepper. In France and Italy, peppercorns are added to superb cheeses. Embedded with whole black peppercorns, Pecorino Pepata has a peppery taste that bursts across the palate.

Pecorino's flavor is dense, and the peppercorn sensation will bring new dynamics to your next meal. Pecorino is usually eaten as a table cheese, but consider shaving it on top of fresh beans (perfect for summer salads) or lightly sautéed greens. Use it instead of Parmigiano, grating it over a plate of hot pasta dressed with olive oil and garlic. If you're a big pepper lover, add a bit of coarsely ground pepper to the elegantly simple supper as well.

A Benefit of Sheep's Milk Cheeses & Other Cheese Miscellany

Sheep's milk cheeses break down into smaller molecules than other cheeses in the body, making it much easier to digest. Many lactose-intolerant people find that they can enjoy sheep's milk cheeses without negative repercussions to their health.

To help prevent mold growth, imported cheese is often sealed in plastic when it travels to the U.S., but mold should be expected when dealing with natural cheeses. This mold occurs naturally and is usually beneficial or innocuous, so don't be intimidated by it. Just cut the mold off and indulge in what's likely a delicious product.
If you purchase a cheese wrapped in plastic, unwrap it immediately and let it breathe for several hours. A packaged cheese, especially a vacuum-sealed one, needs to breathe in order to return to its natural state with its enhanced flavors.

Tetilla: Creamy, Delicious and Made In Spain

The word tetilla means nipple in Spanish and derives from a unique feature of Tetilla. Note the small nipple on the top of this flattened pear-shaped cone of cheese produced in Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The region— a predominantly farming culture—can claim the highest production of cow's milk in the country. In all corners of the region, you can find cheesemakers producing Galician Tetilla cheese. In addition to its unique shape and characteristic nipple, Tetilla is characterized by its smooth, straw-colored rind. The cheese has few air pockets; and the texture of this thick, smooth product is soft and pasty. Expect it to be very creamy, almost buttery, on the palate with a flavor that's clean and mellow. It's not salty and melts easily in the mouth.

Some theorize this cheese came from an 11th century convent, though evidence for this is inconclusive. Traditionally, the milk used in the production of this cheese is from the rubia gallega cow ( the "Blonde Galician"). This breed produces small amounts of milk compared to other breeds and is known for its superior quality. Whole milk is used to make Tetilla, and each batch usually combines milk from several consecutive milkings.The cheese is aged, and the texture ranges from soft to firmer (semi-cured), depending on how long it's aged.

Tasting Notes: This cheese can be eaten any time of the day. Tetilla is also suitable for cooking, especially when used as a stuffing or in recipes that call for a melted cheese coating. It's wonderful to melt over plain or raisin bread. Try it tucked inside a baked potato or a frankfurter. Additionally, it can be served in thin slices, with cured serrano ham or chorizo and a glass of wine or dry sherry. Another suggestion is to serve it on slices of bread with roasted vegetables or artichoke hearts in oil.

Viva Spanish Cheeses!

Wherever you go in Spain, from the vast, barren plains of Extremadura to the majestic beauty of the Sierra Nevada, you will find wonderful cheeses. At last count, there were more than 600 clearly defined types, many owing their individual nature to the newest varieties of indigenous sheep, cows, and goats that have developed over centuries.

In 1988, aware that this marvelous heritage could easily be lost as a new generation of Spaniards turned its back on the tradition and moved to the cities, the government initiated an ambitious survey. Their aim was to catalogue every cheese made in Spain. Much of the survey was carried out on horseback and on foot in order to reach artisan cheesemakers in the isolated, mountain regions whose cheeses had been made for centuries but were unknown in the wider world. Recipes were compared, and a grand total of 81 distinct varieties of cheese were identified. A national quality control system, Denominacion de Origen (DO) was introduced. This organization regulates where a specific cheese must be made, which breed of animal must supply the milk, exactly how the cheese must be made, and what size and even shape it must be. It also details any distinguishing characteristics. Similar to the systems that exist in France and Italy, the DO protects producers and consumers from inferior or foreign copies. Only those cheeses that meet the criteria may carry the official stamp on the rind so consumers can be sure they're getting the quality they seek.

Culture Corner
Cheese	Pronunciation	Recommended Wine/Beer
Grafton Vermont Cheddar	CHEH-der	Light, fruity red wines or dark beers or ales are good pairings for cheddar.
Pecorino Pepata	peh-koh-REE-noh peh-PAH-tah	A full-bodied red wine such as a Chianti Classico, Cabernet, or Merlot complements the strong peppercorn flavors.
Tetilla	teh-TEE-yah	A Spanish pale cream sherry or a slightly sweet white wine pairs nicely with Tetilla.