News From The Cheese Caves

When planning a party that includes cheese the host must ask these questions: How many ounces per person? How many different cheeses? How much cheese to buy?

If other food is served three ounces of cheese per person should be sufficient. I recommend serving no fewer than three cheeses. If cheese is the main food you might increase that to 6 ounces total, and a minimum of 5 cheeses. I admit that I believe more is better yet a pretty good rule of thumb is to allow one pound each of the cheeses for every sixteen persons, about one ounce each. For the harder cheeses this is more than enough, for the softer cheeses or for the cheeses with thicker rinds that is about perfect.

Why the difference?

The softer cheeses have higher water content so people tend to eat bigger portions of those than they do of the firmer varieties. If the cheese has a thick rind that is not itself tasty you should factor that in. This applies to many aged and blue cheeses. Cheeses with rinds, wax coatings, leaf-wraps, and/or higher water contents should be scaled up a bit.

If you want to be a little more precise you might cut back a little on the harder cheeses, perhaps one pound for every twenty persons, and keep the others at about one pound for every sixteen. I have heard many people say “I can eat a ton of cheese.” I doubt that. Maybe a couple of tons in one’s lifetime is more realistic. If you consider that our per capita consumption in the U.S. is steadily rising to around 35 pounds each year, a ton of cheese should be easy enough. I sense that New Yorkers are doing their part to help raise that consumption.

Not to be gluttonous but to recognize cheese as a near-perfect food that enjoys a stellar track record for food safety, I believe we should all eat a little more of it, but only what I will call “real” cheese. On the other hand it is good to know that a little bit of cheese goes a long way, especially the harder cheeses. A cheese that costs over $30.00 per pound may seem high but one pound of a firm cheese can last for several days. I recently purchased a half pound of one of our new cheeses – the Stella Royale – and I expect that I will continue to nibble on it for several more days. A pound of this cheese is only $15.00!

We have some very soft and luxurious Quesos de la Serena in our caves now. I purchased an entire wheel of one yesterday. This one costs $21.50 per pound but it is worth every little dollop. I could not resist it; believe I ate nearly a pound of it last night! This cheese might be more appropriate for a special occasion with at least six people attending but when you see one this nice it should not be missed. The special occasion was having one in such marvelous form (as they usually are this time of year).

We usually serve the equivalent of about 6 ounces cheeses total in our classes here, which may not sound like much. Many people finish their entire selection but others opt to take a little home with them. This is after the opening receptions where several other cheeses and delicious fondue is served. Between the reception cheeses and those that are on the class plates, one could easily eat nearly a pound of find “real” cheeses in two hours. It can be done! Having all these outstanding cheeses within easy reach is one reason the New York per capita consumption is so high. Imagine a per capita consumption of 365 pounds each year! I am doing my part.

Everywhere you turn now people seem to be talking about pairing foods and beverages, especially the cheese and beverage pairings. This could be partly because we started digging into this study almost twenty years ago and now it seems like everyone’s doing it. Our pairings began with the focus on cheese and wine. The beer lovers hopped on the pairing bandwagon, then spirits aficionados, sakes cognoscenti, tea drinkers, coffee lovers, etc.

Cheese has been enjoyed with beers and wines for many centuries, the other ones are more recent studies. Yet Americans seem to have a near-obsession with the pairings, whatever the food and beverage, as though if we get it wrong we have made an egregious error. The pairing principles are good tools to use to master pairings but the variables are limitless, and we have to admit that it is a little subjective.

Our preferences for certain cheeses or wines (or other beverages) likely has a big say in our pairing assessments. For example, if we are particularly fond of Pinot Noir we might find more successful pairings with that grape than with a wine we avoid. The same goes for the cheeses. In our Cheese & Wine 101 class we dissect the pairings of several cheese types with a range of wines.

This “laboratory” is probably not the way most people experience cheeses and wines–by mixing them in the mouth and noting what happens as the mixture crosses the palate. It is normally a less formal or academic exercise, one that is more leisurely. We have a sip of wine then we have a nibble of cheese a little later. Most people do not consciously force the two together simultaneously. Even though the “forced” pairing is not taking place in these casual situations the results can be very much the same. If the cheese and wine were not good mates to begin with, they probably eventually leave a disappointing finish.

More often than not, cheeses and wines (or beers) do work well together. Again, we all have our personal preferences and sometimes the confluence of flavors and aromas between the cheeses and beverages can bring out new flavors and aromas which some of us may enjoy while others do not. Those aromatics are what “seals-the-deal” in pairings not just with cheese but with all foods.

The balancing relationships between cheeses and wines have several parallels: the “fruit” in the wine (or beer or other beverage) balances the salty or savory characteristics in the cheese. The saltier cheeses pair better with the fruitier wines, generally even better with the so-called “dessert” wines. Those wines with higher levels of residual sugar should be called “cheese” wines. When you already have sweet in your dessert why would you want to top it off with a little more sugar in the wine? One of the classic matches between a cheese and wine is the one between a salty Roquefort and a sweet Sauternes.

Another balancing act between cheeses and beverages is how they relate to overall “size” of flavor. The bigger flavored cheeses can annihilate a milder wine. It is usually better to have the cheese and wine find a matching fullness of flavor otherwise the cheese can change the wine into water, so to speak. The gentle wine may wash the big cheese down nicely but the subtleties in the wine may be lost.

We have found that the more acid cheeses generally work better with the more acid wines. All wines are more acid than all cheeses. If the cheeses had those low pH levels they would be intolerable. This is more a relationship of harmony than an actual see-saw balance. This is perhaps one reason why beers and cheeses can mate so well, the pH levels in beers are rarely as acid as those in wines.

Speaking of beers, the texture of each partner plays a not insignificant role. The effervescence in beers helps to lift up the butter fats and acids in cheeses so that they swirl around in the mouth like Balanchine. Wines have their textures too; it is not just “advantageous” sparkling wines and still wines. The mouth feel of still wines can be notably different. One varietal such as a Chardonnay has a round texture compared to a Sauvignon Blanc. This overall mouth feel is drawn from a number of qualities: acid, astringent (as those presented in tannic wines), trace minerals, barrel influence, and any effervescence.

Cheeses obviously have their own textures. Some are liquid like water while others are nearly as hard as granite. This is a relationship between cheeses and beverages that may be a little less important than others yet we have found that the firmer the cheese the better the mating with the beverage. This could be partly because the flavors in the cheese become more focused as they harden and age; the salts become more pronounced – those salts which play off the liquid partner so well, especially a liquid partner on the sweeter side. The softer cheeses often work best with the more effervescent beverages. The flavors in a younger softer cheese can be a bit scattered and unfocused compared to the harder cheeses. The bubbles provide a little texture to the duet.

Again, in more cases than not, cheeses and wines or other beverages do work well together. There are the occasional bad marriages but they are much less frequent than the successes. It should be noted that the hungrier and thirstier you are the more likely they pairings will be pleasing.

August is goat cheese month for a couple of reasons. Most goat cheeses are at their peaks when they are on the young side. If it is a relatively aged goat cheese (say around four months of age) the milk would have been drawn when the animals had some of the fresh vegetation that April brings, or if it is a younger cheese there should be a good diversity of plants available in July or August. Many dairy goats have wild berries and fresh herbs in their summer diets. The more food choices the animals have, the more flavorful the milk will be, which translates to a better cheese.

August, being one of the hottest months of the year, is a time when our cheese choices are for the lighter varieties, such as those younger goat cheeses. When the temperature creeps up into the nineties or higher we might skip the blues, the big-flavored or the stinky cheeses and choose those lighter creamier goat cheeses such as the Laurier instead. Even though most goat cheeses are still available in fine form later in the year, they are especially favored in August.

Our choices of wines or beers veer toward the lighter styles in August too. The Sauvignon Blancs (a varietal whose favorite cheeses are produced with goat milk) or the young Chardonnays that are fermented in stainless steel instead of oak, the floral Viogners and dry Albariños or Chenin Blancs; all these white wines and many others pair exceptionally well with the goat milk cheeses. These cheeses also blend in beautifully with our cool pilsners, wheat beers, and our summer ales.

When you follow the logic of the CheeseClockâ„¢ pairing tool this is precisely what is indicated, the lighter cheeses such as the younger milder goat cheeses pair best with the lighter wines and beers.

Max McCalman

Here we are at a time of the year when our appetites wane; it’s just too hot. Maybe some watermelon, berries, or some other fruit, but other meatier foods? The heavier foods just don’t seem so appealing in the summer months. I personally enjoy the warm weather, far more than the colder. A big part of what I enjoy about this part of year is that more and more cheeses are coming into their prime, cheeses that were not quite at peak in the spring.

The younger cheeses, the ones that are aged less than three months, are ones that were produced when the vegetation available to the animals was fresh and diverse. Some animals that may have had to settle for hay in the earlier parts of the year were allowed to roam about outdoors and choose from new sprouts, young shoots, green leaves and grasses. All this fresh vegetation spells full flavors in the milk, as well as in the cheeses that are crafted from that milk.

The young goat milk cheeses, or cheeses that have some goat milk in them, are showing so pretty now: the Coupole, the Cremont, the Nettle Meadow Kunik, the Petite Mothais, and the Roves des Garrigues. We always look forward to seeing these come into their primes. And with a side of fresh berries, these cheeses are all you may want to eat for lunch, or breakfast, or later in the day! The Abbaye de Tamié is spectacular right now, to think of it: drawn from happy cows grazing on all types of flora in the valleys of the French Alps. Similarly, the Dorset suggests that the springtime in western Vermont was a good one. These two cheeses are available year-round but these two are primo now. Le Moulis is back, and like the previous two cheeses, this is a cheese that is delicious when it is at this age, and from cows grazing in the lush springtime of the Pyrénées.

Apparently Utah had good springtime weather too, the Terraluna is magnificent. I have come to appreciate this cheese more and more. I look forward to seeing how its flavors evolve throughout the year. One thing I have always counted on this time of year is having the assurance that the Alpine cow cheeses are sufficiently aged. The Appenzeller has some of those sparkling tyrosine crystals developing and there are some in the Hoch Ybrig too. Having a little snack of these cheeses does the body good. And for that matter, I see no reason to ever refuse a little Carles Roquefort when it is around.

Summertime is a great time for cheese, cut back on the other sources of protein.

Max McCalman

A post on Vegetarian Blues has me in fits. An old article from the Orlando Sentinel is quoted:

Of all the potentially addicting foods, cheese may be the most complex. In research studies using vegan and vegetarian diets to control cholesterol or reduce body weight, most participants soon forget the lure of ice cream, sour cream, and even burgers and chicken. But for many people, the taste for cheese lingers on and on. Yes, 70 percent of its calories may come from waist-augmenting fat, and, ounce for ounce, it may harbor more cholesterol than a steak. But that cheese habit is tough to break.

Give me a break! Yes, cheese has addictive properties but I am fully certain that the consumption of cheese is a good addiction to have, and for many reasons. It is interesting to note that the first two foods cited as easy to “forget the lure of…” are also dairy products: ice cream and sour cream. The lure of dairy is always present, the primordial food that milk is in its many forms.

One of the biggest reasons why it is so difficult to give up on cheese is that our bodies know a good food when it eats it. Those addictive opioid peptides found in cheese actually help control our food intake. They also play a role in motivation, emotion, and the response to stress and pain. If a food delivers a lot of nutrition while helping to control our appetite then a little additional motivation and alleviation of pain should be permitted.

The article goes on to say that the cheese industry is looking for those Americans who will eat it straight out of the package, whatever the cost to their waistlines or cholesterol levels. It fails to mention a number of cheese components that can help you to slim down. Along with those appetite-controlling opioid peptides there is the satiety factor to be considered. Cheese (being a near-complete food) tends to satisfy us so that we do not crave excess amounts of food, cheese included. A little bit of cheese goes a long way.

A misconception I often hear is that it is the fat itself which makes us put on weight. More accurately it is instead the excess calories we consume but do not expend. Of course you can derive calories from fat, but you can also derive calories from protein and carbohydrates. The fat that is found in cheese not only makes the cheese taste good, it also helps to satisfy our cravings. That fat also breaks down into some mighty important fatty acids such as conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA. Multiple studies of the type of CLA found in dairy products have shown that it helps to reduce our weight; some studies indicate that a diet that contains this fatty acid can reduce abdominal fat! Another benefit of CLA is that it decreases whole-body glucose uptake. This is what we want.

There are several other good qualities of this addictive food. Cheese is an excellent source of the amino acid which suppresses our appetites and helps to reduce body fat – tyrosine. Other amino acids, vitamins and minerals that are derived from cheese help to lower our cholesterol levels and control our appetites, and to metabolize the fats and proteins that we do consume.

The cheese industry does not claim that cheese is perfect but given a choice of foods there is no other that matches the complete nutrition that cheese provides, and there is no other food with a better track record for food safety. Cheese is derived from our first food – milk – our first and only food for the first several weeks or months our lives. Unfortunately, what in many cases passes for cheese is so far removed from our first food that it is no wonder that cheese has been repeatedly and viciously maligned. Yet even those processed cheeses are still better foods for us than most any other, and a safer food too.

By the way, my cholesterol levels are amazing and I am quite slim. My HDL is 163 and my LDL is 64, not bad for someone my age. Good genes don’t hurt but the 100 pounds of cheese that I eat each year does not seem to be hurting either.

Max McCalman

Using blends of milks and creams to make cheeses may sound like a new idea yet this practice has been around almost as long as cheese itself. When a cheese maker has an excess of one milk type and a deficit of another he might just add them together into the cheese making vat. Or if it might be a family farm that had one milking ewe and one lactating cow whatever milk they did not drink they might mix together. The enhanced flavors in these blended milk cheeses gave an incentive to continue to mix milks for cheese making. Like having the best of both worlds, or having the best of all three.

Different species and breeds of dairy animals that graze on the same soil and that consume the same vegetation will produce different milks. Not that all the different animals will naturally choose the same foods, yet if and when they do, the nutrients that they individually extract from those plants will yield different flavors and aromas in their milks. The cheeses that are produced from these subtly different milks often become more distinctive than the milks themselves. This is certainly the case among the species – that different species yield cheeses with different profiles.

Blending these profiles together adds organoleptic qualities to cheeses. It is similar to wines produced from blends of grapes. The sum is greater than the parts. These blends can take a little edge out of dominant flavor notes in cheeses, the same way that blending grapes can smooth out forceful varietals. For example, some people just cannot do the goat cheeses (unbelievable as this may sound). Blending in just a little cow or sheep milk can reduce those “objectionable” goat notes significantly.

Another advantage of mixed milk cheeses is that you derive different nutritive values from different milks, or at least different relative amounts of those nutrients. For example, goat milk has more vitamins A and D than sheep or cow milk, cow milk has more Folic acid and Zinc than the other two, while sheep milk has more CLA and vitamins B2 and B12. In theory then, mixed milk cheeses should deliver a more complete and balanced grouping of all those nutrients.

Back to the aesthetics of mixed milk cheeses, the blends should offer a bigger “rainbow” of aromas, flavors and textures. The broader flavors should then lend themselves to greater synergies with wines and other beverages. This has been our experience that overall, the mixed milk cheeses blend in more successfully than the other single-milk cheeses. This bigger rainbow might seem to be a problem for successful pairings yet the blending actually diminishes some of those “rough edges” in the single milks, making these cheeses more forgiving.

Some of the standout mixed milk cheeses in our caves now include: Nettle Meadow Kunik, Cremont, La Peral, Robiola Bosina, Robiola due Latti, and Robiola Rocchetta. It is great to see that an old tradition of mixing milks is still practiced.

- Max McCalman

For more information, contact:
Stephanie Flynn
Black Twig Communications
314-255-2340 x 103

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Cheese Connoisseur Announces Book Signing Tour in St. Louis
Author Max McCalman will be making appearances at five Schnucks locations

NEW YORK (July 20, 2011) – Artisanal Brands, Inc. (OTCQB:AHFP) today announced that Max McCalman, Dean of Curriculum and Maître Fromager at Artisanal Premium Cheese Center, will hold a book signing in St. Louis, Missouri on July 29 and 30 to promote his third book, Mastering Cheese: Lessons for Connoisseurship from a Maître Fromager. McCalman will appear at the following St. Louis locations:

Friday, July 29, 2011:

11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Schnucks Arsenal, 5505 Arsenal Road
1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Schnucks Richmond Center, 6600 Clayton Road
4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Schnucks Ladue, 8867 Ladue Road

Saturday, July 30, 2011:

11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Schnucks Lindbergh, 10275 Clayton Road
1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Schnucks Des Peres, 12332 Manchester Road

“Max is one of the cheese world’s most respected authorities on artisan cheeses and he has been a highly visible advocate for artisan cheesemakers around the world,” said Daniel W. Dowe, president and CEO of Artisanal. “Mastering Cheese is the first of Max’s books to include extensive information on the artisan cheese revolution in the United States. We are all very appreciative of the work Max has done for our company and the entire industry.”

McCalman is America’s first restaurant-based Maître Fromager, and Garde et Jure as designated by France’s Guilde des Fromagers. He joined New York City-based restaurant Picholine in 1994 where he created the restaurant’s fabled cheese program with Chef-Proprietor Terrance Brennan. McCalman later established the critically acclaimed cheese programs at Artisanal Brasserie & Fromagerie restaurant, followed by the Artisanal Cheese Center, both in New York City.

In Mastering Cheese, McCalman condenses his vast knowledge into a single, one-of-a-kind volume that is the ultimate master’s class on cheese. The book presents in-depth information on everything from production methods and the laws that govern cheese naming, to choosing what cheese to buy at the grocery store and what wines or beers to pair with it. Organized into twenty-two distinct lessons, each lesson focuses on eight to 15 cheeses and ends with how-to information on creating a tasting plate from the knowledge garnered, bringing the experience to delectable life.

Mastering Cheese won “Best in the World Book on Cheese” for 2011 from the esteemed Gourmand International World Cook Book Awards, and was a finalist in the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) Food & Beverage Reference/Technical category for 2011.

Artisanal Premium Cheese recently launched its products in St. Louis area Schnuck Markets along with its four-color cheese selection and wine and beer pairing system called the CheeseClock by Artisanal™. The CheeseClock by Artisanal™ gives consumers the guidance they need to confidently purchase cheeses and pair them with wines and beers in the very same fashion as a professional chef would present them in fine dining from mild to strong. Cheeses available include: (mild) Laurier, Rocky Sage, Brillat Savarin, Geit-in-Stad; (medium) Camembert, Pecorino Sardo, Tarraluna, Stella Royale; (bold) Uplands Pleasant Ridge, Artisanal 2-year Cheddar, Tomme Fermiere D’Alsace; (strong) Gouda Aged 4-years, North Country Blue, La Peral, Artisanal Roquefort.

About Artisanal Premium Cheese
Artisanal Brands, Inc. markets and distributes a line of specialty, artisanal and farmstead cheese products, as well as other related specialty food products under its own brand to food wholesalers and retailers, as well as directly to consumers through its catalogue and Web site, artisanalcheese.com. The company is based in New York, New York. For more information about Artisanal, visit www.artisanalcheese.com.

# # #

Originally Posted at BrewingSomeFun.com

We may consider Pilsners to be on the light side of the beer spectrum but this does not mean they should be taken lightly. When it comes to pairing them with cheeses the Pilsners can hold their own with some of the big guns, stinky cheeses included.

The water used to produce the best Pilsners is softened; this helps give them clarity and it allows the hop aromas and flavors to come forth. These distinct aromas and flavors is what give Pilsners their heft, while the alcohol contents of most of them remain moderate. This hop-forwardness of Pilsners can present pairing challenges to some of the milder goat cheeses, whereas other less flavorful lagers can meld pretty well with that family of cheese types.

Not to over-analyze it but we want to mindful of the potential for mismatches, particularly when they occur with goat cheeses. The goat cheeses can clash with some beverage partners, while on the other hand, the good goat cheese matches can be sublime. When the clashes do occur we just want to make sure that we don’t blame the goat! Goat cheeses have been much-maligned long enough. As I have noted over the years, the first no-no I get from people contemplating a selection of cheeses is the avoidance of goat.

The second no-no we hear when people select their cheeses is to skip the blues; almost as many people shy away from the blue cheeses as those that skip the goats. On the blue (strong) end of the cheese spectrum is where the Pilsners may also falter. For most cheese categories in between these two bookend cheese types, the milder goats and the big bad blues, Pilsners perform admirably. To savor the finer qualities in a Pilsner you may want to skip over the blues.

If we skip the mild young goat cheeses and the blues (but do not entirely write either of them off) we can find a broad grouping of cheeses that are Pilsner friendly: most cows, some sheep cheeses (which tend to be versatile with more beverages anyway) and some mixed milk cheeses. The pressed sheep milk cheeses such as the Bianco Sardo, Ossau Iraty, or Stella Royale have their own full aromas that can balance the aromas in the Pilsners.

The wash-rind cow cheeses pair especially well with the Pilsners, younger to older. The meaty aromas in the cheeses provide the balance to the beers. This should be no surprise since these cheese types have long been produced in the regions where the Pilsners first flourished:Czechoslovakia and Germany. When you are enjoying some of these stalwart cheese types, you may look for something refreshing in your beverage as a counterpoint, like a Pilsner. Of the more aged ones, try the Andeerer Schmuggler, the Appenzeller, the Hittisau, the Prattigauer, and the Uplands Pleasant Ridge. For the younger, stinkier cow cheeses, try the Abbaye de Tamié or the Edwin’s Munster.

There are a couple of other cow cheese categories that fit the bill: the cheddar types and the cooked curd or Gouda types. The success with the Pilsners can be attributed to the “sharpness” in those cheeses: the acid, the salt, as well as the texture. When you have all these pronounced qualities in cheeses a chilled Pilsner can be just the ticket. The Gouda, 4 y.o.; the Roomano; the Terraluna or the Quicke’s Cheddar; any of these leave a happy ending in the mouth and tummy.

Originally posted at Brewingsomefun.com

I trust that you know that cheese is a near-complete food, a delicious food that offers a full range of nutrients, pretty much everything except for vitamin C and fiber. This is one reason why cheese pairs so well with fruits. It is more than the aesthetics, it is a valuable nutritional consideration as well. Cheese has a way of satisfying us before we have consumed enough calories. This is one of several ways that cheese can help you lose weight – that you can reach satiety before you have sufficient calories. You can pick up a few extra calories from the fruit, but for those of us who prefer to have our fruit in the morning, what is our other calorie choice for the rest of the day?

This is where the beer comes in. It is the aesthetic partner, and one that provides some of those make-up calories. Beers have their fruity flavors, some have more than others. These flavors can be hidden when a beer is high in the IBU’s (international bittering units) but the “fruit” is still present, or it should be. These flavors help give cheese and beer that potential for matching aesthetically.

We tasted a pilsner with a range of cheeses recently. No two pilsners are the same, of course. This one was a little heavier than most; it was more of a German style of Pilsner. The hops were more dominant so you might consider this a medium-flavored beer. The first cheese in the mix that stood out with this beer was a perfectly ripened Coulommiers. The buttery paste wrapped around the pilsner, hops included, and dissolved into a lip-smacking delicious finish. Sometimes these bloomy rind cheeses (bries, camemberts, double-crèmes and triple-crèmes) can leave a little metallic edge so I was not sure how this would play out, though I do recall finding some nice matches between IPA’s and other bloomy rind cheeses. The bitter is a distinguishing feature in beers; it provides a sort of “backbone” for beers. Yet that bitter can also dominate lighter flavored foods, lighter cheeses included.

Speaking of buttery, the Bianco Sardo is so buttery; some would say that it is more “greasy” than buttery. This may not sound like a flattering description, that is until you take into account that the “greasy” includes some delicious butterfats, butterfats that also happen to be very good for you, inside and out. This toothsome oily cheese melded in full well with the beer. With just the right amount of salt, it dissolved into the pilsner gracefully and left a little meaty note.

Next up was Edwin’s Munster – a cheese type (wash rind stinker) that is often paired with lagers and pilsners. Even with the extra hops, this pairing was delightful. It is a wonderful cheese on its own, so it would be surprising if it did not meld well with any beer. Made with unpasteurized delicious milk, with just a little salt, and a good amount of umami; this is a most satisfying cheese: tangy, creamy, warm and savory. The pilsner broke up the paste of this cheese into a stringy texture which reminded me of a perfect fondue.

The Cheddar, aged two-years, was a no-brainer; always is. Any style of beer seems to favor good cheddar. The acid and the semi-hard texture of cheddar give this pairing a nod – the “ploughman’s lunch.”

The Andeerer Schmuggler; it even sounds like a beer cheese. A German fan of this cheese would drive into Switzerland and “schmuggle” several wheels back with him, quite probably to enjoy alongside his bier. Even though our pilsner was hoppier than many German styles of beers, the pairing made me happier. It is a pretty good rule of thumb: cheeses with the b. linens surface bacteria work well with beers.

Then we come to the magnificent Beeler Gruyère (that also has some if those b. linens on the surface). The crystalline texture, the depth of flavor; this is a rather profound cheese. One might think that it would overwhelm a pilsner. This bold cheese can turn meek wines into water, so to speak. Yet when you think about the smorgasbord of flavors this cheese offers: nutty, meaty, chocolate, fruity, with a dash of salt; it sounds like a good partner for a pilsner. And indeed it was.

That was the range of pairing successes I found for this pilsner in this setting. It fell flat with the blue. From a previous tasting, I found this same pilsner to be an excellent match for Robiola Rocchetta.

Except for the blues, you can get a fairly broad range of cheeses to pair with your German style of a pilsner.

This may not sound like much of a concern: how does one taste cheese? However there are some methods that we should mention that can help you better taste cheese. The look of a cheese helps to form our assessment, whether we admit or not. The nose gives an even stronger impression, while the tongue can pick up altogether different sensations, and the texture of a cheese figures as well. As we point out in our Cheese & Wine 101 sessions, what seals the deal in tasting is what you have to wait for – the “finish.” This is when the aromatic esters in the cheese move up the retronasal canal, leaving the final impression and taste of the cheese.

One of the first things to consider is that you not wear strong cologne or other scents. Because cheeses can be very aromatic, to have other aromas competing with those in the cheese can present conflicting assessments. It is also helpful to have a more neutral palate. Avoiding strong foods and beverages before you taste the cheeses is recommended. Cheese judges are advised to avoid drinking coffee before tasting the competition cheeses.

Drinking plenty of water helps to keep your palate more “neutral.” Water is a great universal cleanser. Allowing a little time between tasting cheeses gives your palate a little rest so that it come back to a more neutral state. A little bit of a plain baguette or unflavored cracker can pick up the acids and fats left behind by a cheese.

Another tip we offer that may not be so apparent is to taste the cheese a second time, or just a little later. Remarkable differences can be recognized in the flavor of a cheese if you first “temper” your palate with the first bite, then go back for seconds. This is something that Kevin Zraly suggests you do when tasting wine: you have the first sip then have a second. Whatever residual may have resided in your mouth beforehand is smoothed over by the introductory taste followed by the actual assessing taste.

Wine or beer can serve as a “platform” for tasting cheese. Nuances in the cheese may be highlighted with one of these beverages underneath. This may not be considered fair, since the flavors and aromas may be altered by the commingling characteristics in the beverage. Yet they can also help bring out those subtleties that might otherwise be missed. Any alcoholic beverage should be consumed in moderation, otherwise your assessing skills may suffer.

Max McCalman