Cheeses

 

Good afternoon.  This coming weekend we have a cheddar horseradish dip and oatmeal candy cookies ready for ordering.  For the first weekend of July, I will be taking a few days off so there is nothing on the menu.  But more items will be available on the weekend after that.

I was recently given an assortment of cheeses (for Father's Day).  In the photo above, you can see English Cotswold cheese with chives, a strong Parmigiano-Reggiano, a very flavorful Swiss gruyere with a floral hint, a California habanero dry Monterey jack, and one of my favorites, a 10-year aged white cheddar.

It is a wonderful thing to try so many excellent cheeses all at once.  Comparing, contrasting, analyzing .... OK, what I really mean is it's great to eat them all.  LOL

Cheeses are amazing.  And there are so many different kinds.  The subtleties of each when compared to another are fascinating.  

Of the five above, my favorite for just plain eating is the 10-year aged cheddar, but the English Cotwold with chives is excellent as well.  The others I like best shredded and grated and put on top of something or into something.

The Parmigiano-Reggiano is a type of Parmesan that comes from a specific region and only that region and has to be aged at least 1 year and up to 3 years.  Often other parmesans are aged as little as 10 months.

There are all sorts of interesting facts one can uncover about each of these.  Cheeses are so unique, a lot of like wines in that way, I think.  But I won't go into all those now.  Suffice it to say that some people are experts at this and know a lot more than I do.

What I do know, though, is that I love eating them.  So I'm off to get another slice of the 10-year aged cheddar and maybe make a salad with sprinkling of a blend of the others.  

Bon appetit, everyone!