Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
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OLD WORLD INFLUENCES Europeans have long used many of the techniques that American cheesemakers turn to for a creative signature, like smoking, season- ing with spices, washing with alcohol, or wrapping in leaves. Some of these treatments—such as wood smoke and leaf wraps—served to preserve and protect cheeses in the days before refrigeration and sanitary packaging. Over the centuries, the practices that enhanced the cheese endured, while others, like coagulating milk with thistle extract, were largely jettisoned. Is there anything new to try? "There isn't anything original in the world of cheese in my opinion," says Jeffrey Roberts, author of The Atlas of American Artisan Cheeses. "We've been at this for how many thousands of years?" "What you can do with milk has been done," says Max McCalman, the educator and author of Mastering Cheese. There are only so many ways to culture, cut, drain, shape, and mature cheese to produce safe and tasty results. Nevertheless, McCalman sees some fresh ideas in American cheesemaking—notably, the emer- gence of more mixed-milk wheels and an eagerness to experiment with cultures. NEW WORLD APPROACHES McCalman points to Connecticut's Cato Corner Farm as a creamery with off-the-beaten-track notions. Cheesemaker Mark Gillman "can't stop tinkering with cultures," says McCalman, who admires Gillman's Womanchego, a cow's milk homage to the Spanish sheep's milk classic; and Despearado, a 14-pound wheel washed in fermented pear mash and pear eau de vie from a nearby distillery. Compared to their European counterparts, a lot of American cheesemakers "feel the need to tinker," notes McCalman. "Doing the same thing day in and day out, especially for pasteurized cheese, can be a bit mind-numbing after a while." Cheese writer Laura Werlin credits consumers with spurring some of the innovation. Customers have graduated from Gruyere and Camembert and are willing to venture beyond what they know. "Because consumers are emboldened these days, cheesemakers are emboldened," says Werlin, author of The New American Cheese and other books. "It's a huge switch from 10 to 15 years ago, when every- thing was derivative. In some ways, almost every cheese is original these days." cheese focus SIGNATURE AMERICAN CHEESES TO TRY Some cheeses deserve a shout-out for their individuality. Based on interviews with Jeffrey Roberts, Max McCalman, and Laura Werlin, and my own incessant tastings, here are 18 American cheeses that exhibit characters all their own.—J.F. COW'S MILK CHEESES Beehive Cheese Barely Buzzed (UT): "Yes, it's Cheddar," says Werlin, "but who ever heard of putting espresso and lavender on the outside?" Jacobs & Brichford Ameribella (IN): This farmstead, raw-milk Taleggio-inspired square has unique flavor due to a mix of nine different cultures. Roelli Red Rock (WI): A natural-rinded Cheddar with blue veining. Rogue Creamery Rogue River Blue (OR): A seasonal raw-milk wheel wrapped in grape leaves steeped in local pear brandy. "They borrowed ideas from different places, but what emerged is unique," says Roberts. Sartori Bellavitano (WI): Proprietary cultures produce an aged cheese with a fruity aroma and pronounced sweetness, like a cross between Gouda and Parmigiano Reggiano. "Bellavitano has hit people so positively because it brings to mind what's so popular now: salted caramel, salted desserts. It's sweet and salty all in one bite," says Werlin. Vella Cheese Mezzo Secco (CA): A "half dry" jack from thermized milk and matured for about four months, it is mild, milky, and balanced. GOAT'S MILK CHEESES Andante's Tomme Dolce (CA): A six-month-old wheel washed with brandy and plum conserve, with aromas of caramel, garlic, and aged meat. Avalanche Cabra Blanca (CO): Drained in a colander, like English Ticklemore, its open and lacy texture possesses nutty aromas and a delicate tartness to balance its sweetness. Briar Rose Lorelei (OR): A small square washed with local porter and matured for three to six weeks, it has aromas of mushroom and yeast. Capriole Julianna (IN): A one-pound, bloomy-rind disk with an herb coat, it is dense, moist, creamy, and herbaceous. Carr Valley Bandaged Billy (WI): A bandage-wrapped aged goat's milk Cheddar. (continued on p. 56) 54 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE specialtyfood.com