Every Cheese has A Story
I recently completed my Master Cheese Class at the Artisanal Cheese Center and although I completely reveled in the tasting experience, I also enjoyed the tales and legends of how so many cheeses have come to be. In fact, as I ate the cheese and learned its story, I found that I enjoyed the experience more!
Some of the stories are obvious legends while others are based in fact. Regardless, they all aid in giving a cheese and identity that goes beyond taste, aroma or look. A few of these stories are as follows:
Valencay (France): This was Napoleon favorite cheese. At that time, this cheese looked like a pyramid. However, when the Emperor was defeated by the Egyptians he returned to France, and not ever wanting to see another pyramid in his presence, chopped off the top of the cheese, subsequently changing the shape of this cheese.
Beaufort (France): This concave cheese earned its unique shape in order to facilitate transport from the mountainous Alps to the valleys. Ropes were tied around the cheese and hung over the saddlebags. In order for the ropes to be tied properly, the cheese was given a concave shape for better hold.
Saint Marcellin (France): Legend says that a 14 century prince found himself in the woods face-to-face with a bear and was saved by a local lumberjack. The lumberjack then took the young prince to his village where he was fed the local cheese - Saint Marcellin. The prince liked it so much that upon being crowned king, he declared Saint Marcellin to be the cheese of the court.
Pecorino Balze (Italy): A number of wheels of this cheese are aged in olive oil barrels where the flavor inside the barrel permeates throughout the cheese. Olive branches are then put in the barrels to intensify olive flavor. A month later, the barrels are opened, the branches are burned and the resulting ashes are used to rub over the cheese. As the cheese ages, the olive flavor of the pecorino intensifies.
Thistle-rennet cheeses: Originally made by Sephardic Jews in the Iberian Peninsula, these cheeses (like the Amarelo da Bera Baixa, Evora, or Torta del Casar) were considered a kosher cheese because it did not use animal rennet. During the inquisition, the Jews were expelled but the cheese recipe remained through its present day.
Sbrinz (Switzerland): This Swiss cheese is considered the great-grandfather of Parmiggiano. The Romans stole the recipe from their northern neighbors and brought it down to Italy where they created Parmiggiano. The difference between the two recipes lies mostly in the milk: Sprinz is made with whole cow’s mile while Parmiggiano uses skimmed cow’s milk.
Hoja Santa (USA): This American cheese was created by cheese maker Paula Lambert who, in homage to her mostly Mexican workers, uses the leaves of the Hoja Santa plant, which is native to Mexico, to wrap her goat’s milk cheeses.
