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Angela and I went to dinner at Lia‘s, and had a cheese plate with the dinner. The cheeses arrived quite chilled, so we saved it for dessert.

Robiola
milk: sheep and cow
type: creamy

A very nice brie-like cheese.

Boschetto al Tartufo
milk: cow

The infusion of truffles may have degraded from an otherwise fairly decent firm cheese.

We picked up the cheese from Ibo’s Cornucopia Deli in Bethesda, a great place to get cheese and Italian food items.

L’Edel de Celeron
milk: cow
region: France
type: soft

A very nice brie-style cheese that we all liked very much.

Asiago (DOP)
milk: cow
type: hard
region: Italy

Asiago, pronounced ah-SYAH-goh, cheese is a nutty flavored cheese that hails from Europe. It is named for a region in Italy where it was first produced. This region is known as the Asiago High Plateau, which lies within the Italian Alps. As far back as the year 1000 AD, Asiago cheese was produced by farmers in this region for use locally. Now, it is manufactured commercially in northeast Italy, specifically in the provinces of Vincenza e Trento, Padua, and in Treviso.

Cougar Gold
Washington State, Washington State University
milk: cow
type: cheddar

Tonight’s cheese was Cougar Gold, (this particular wheel/can was made by William in January, 2006), from the Washington State University Creamery. Julie brought it to us on the wedding trip. Everyone thought it was a very nice cheddar.

Melissa cooked, presented, and served a pumpkin stew, which was very good.

Cheese, pumpkin martinis, and the new udder cheese knife (from Cheesetique).  Cheeses from Silver Spring Whole Foods.

Saint Albray
France
milk: cow
type: soft, washed in brine

Saint Albray is a cheese which comes from the Aquitaine region of France.

Invented in 1976, the cheese is similar to Camembert cheese, it has the same attributes, but is not quite as strong. Made with pasteurized cow’s milk, this popular cheese is ripened for 2 weeks and formed into a shape not unlike the head of a flower with each “petal” forming a half pound of cheese. The “petals” are formed around a disk, when removed, it creates a hollow center giving the impression of the center of the flower. Saint Albray slices beautifully and when the whole wheel is displayed, this cheese makes an attractive centerpiece to a table. Saint Albray is mild and moist, but still retains its body despite its creamy nature.

at, wt: smelly, but very good

Piave
Italy
milk: cow
type: hard

Piave is a cow’s milk cheese made only in the the Piave River Valley region of Belluno, Italy. Shaped as a wheel, it is made from pasteurized milk collected in two milkings, one of which is skimmed, and is produced in the valley of the Piave River, between Belluno and Feltre. [1] It is made by a dairy cooperative called the Cooperativa Latte Busche.

Piave has a dense texture without holes that is straw-yellow in hue. It features a slightly sweet and delicate tasting flavor. Once fully aged, it becomes hard (making it well suited for grating), developing an intense, full-bodied flavor. Piave is sold in the United States as a hard cheese (called Piave vecchio or stravecchio, meaning “old” or “extra-old”) at which point its taste resembles that of a young Parmigiano Reggiano.

It goes well with a full bodied red wine, such as Barolo or Amarone.

at, wt: good, much like Parmigiano-Reggiano

These cheeses were from Calvert-Woodley, and all on sale!

Fromage d’Affinois
milk: pasteurized cow
country: France
type: bloomy

Anyone who has spent any amount of time behind Murray’s cheese counter has doubtless encountered customers mistaking Fromage d’Affinois, for Brie. Just because it’s made in France, from cow milk, soft-ripened, and covered with a soft, bloomy rind, does this mean it’s Brie? No, Fromage d’Affinois is its own cheese, produced from milk that has been specially filtered to yield a silkier texture than Brie. Its sweet, mild flavor precludes the mushroomy earthiness normally found in its identical-looking cousin. Accentuate the lusciousness with a glass of fresh-berry Beaujolais.
score: at, ms, na, wt: this one is very good

Saint Nectaire (AOC)
milk: cow
type: uncooked, pressed, semi-hard
score: wt liked it, but others thought it was too grassy, some even compared it to velveeta (but she liked the cheddar with sage in it!)

Wisconsin Cheddar
Unknown anything about this; if we weren’t all cheese snobs this would have scored pretty good.

NA is about to receive the couch she had recovered with the fabric she had commissioned in Turkey! We’ll send pictures when it actually happens. Anyway, I was down in Alexandria today delivering her pictures to her Art League entry in the Torpedo Factory, and I had to stop by Cheesetique and got these:

Cabra La Mancha
Firefly Farms
milk: goat
Located in Maryland’s Allegheny Plateau, Firefly Farms is a collaboration among a small group of neighbors who decided to enter the world of artisan cheesemaking. With a 130 acre farm purchased in 1997, the four “Fireflies” initially managed their own herd of goats. In 2006 they decided to focus all their efforts on cheesemaking. They now purchase milk through a coop that is supplied by a local group of Amish farmers.

This cheese was inspired by the Spanish Manchego. Its semi-firm texture is smooth and pleasing with a pleasant sharpness. The paste is earthy with grassy notes and a nice, tangy finish. Aged for two to four months, this cheese ripens beautifully for up to a year.

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Grinzing: Austrian Tilsit
milk: pasteurized cow
Grinzing is an Austrian cheese modeled after Danish Tilsit. A young cheese with a soft texture, Grinzing is very mild and buttery, with a light, sweet flavor. For connoisseurs who find that German Tilsit is a bit too spicy and robust, try Grinzing for a similar, but sweeter treat. It’s perfect for serving with fresh fruit as a light dessert, and pairs wonderfully with a crisp Riesling.

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Dante
Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative
milk: sheep
Made with 100% pure sheep milk and aged a minimum of six months, DANTE has a rich, nutty flavor with a firm and somewhat dry texture. Dante complements pasta, dried fruit and balsamic vinegar as well as medium red wines and semi-sweet white wines.

After the George Washington portrait lecture at the Portrait Gallery we went to the nearby farmer’s market where Chapel’s Country Creamery had a stand. We got these:

Chapelle Cave Aged Cheese – This young moist cave aged cheese has a bloomy white rind which has rich mushroomy flavor that compliments the creamy interior. Chapelle drains naturely overnight. Then is placed in a cave for two months. Great with a wine and cheese platter or display at a party.

Cave Aged Cheddar – Chapel’s Country Creamery cave aged cheddar cheese has been aged a minimum of 8 months or longer to ensure optimum flavor. This superior cheddar cheese has just the right sharpness for any use.

Mary & Angela also bought some bastard cheeses (cheeses mixed with things) at the Eastern Market: one had sage, and the other had cheddar and stilton in layers. Bowers Fancy Dairy Products “Cheese from All Parts of the World!” let us try others, too — one was pink (red wine) and another with chives (would have been good on burgers).

Both from Cheesetique, a cheese store in Alexandria/Arlington. They are so nice there — plenty of samples and more USA cheeses than anywhere we’ve been. They are moving to a new, bigger places just a few doors down before the end of the year.

Appalachian
Meadow Creek Dairy
Galax, Va
milk: cow

A dairy in Virginia, closest point in Virginia to David’s house. Appalachian has a supple straw color paste and a white mould rind with glimpses of pink showing through. The flavor is mild and buttery with a spicy finish and a hint of mushroom.

Great Hill Blue
Great Hill Dairy
Marion, MA
milk: cow

Great Hill Blue is an internally ripened variety made with raw, unhomogenized milk resulting in a true gourmet quality cheese. The cheese has a slightly more Yvettedense and yellow curd as no bleach or food colorings are added.

Mt. Tam Triple Cream
Cowgirl Creamery
Point Reyes Station, CA

A smooth, creamy, elegant, 10-oz, triple-cream – made with tasty organic milk from the Straus Family Dairy. MT TAM is firm, yet buttery with a mellow, earthy flavor reminiscent of white mushrooms. MT TAM won 1st Prize in the soft-ripened category at this year’s American Cheese Society competition.

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California Crottin
Redwood Hill Farm
Sebastopol, CA

milk: goat

Our traditional French-style California Crottin has a wrinkly, geotrichum candidum rind, a fluffy texture and robust, earthy flavor. Twice it was voted “Best Farmstead Goat Cheese” at the prestigious American Cheese Society judging and chosen as the best Crottin, better than the French originals, in a recent Wall St. Journal tasting.

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Midnight Moon
Cypress Grove Creamery
Arcata, CA

milk: goat

Aged one year or more, this pale, ivory cheese is firm, dense and smooth with
the slight graininess of a long-aged cheese. The flavor is nutty and
brown-buttery, with prominent caramel notes. The wheel is finished in a
beautiful black wax.

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Vermont Ayr
Crawford Family Farm
Whiting, VT
milk: Ayrshire cow
Our farmstead cheese is made by hand using traditional techniques, and each wheel receives individual attention. Cheese making begins in our kettle-shaped vat within an hour of milking. By adding only a small amount of culture, we succeed in revealing the complex flavors of our “terroir”—the land that the animals graze.

We are currently making one style of cheese, Vermont Ayr, an alpine style farmstead cheese made from raw milk, in 1 and 4 lbs wheels.

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Cave Aged Cheddar
Chapel’s County Creamery
Easton, MD
milk: cow

Chapel’s Country Creamery cave aged cheddar cheese has been aged a minimum of8 months or longer to ensure optimum flavor. This superior cheddar cheese hasjust the right sharpness for any use.

Washington Post had an article on them.