News From The Cheese Caves

Well it’s hard to believe it is here and gone but just last Saturday was St. Patrick’s day and on the 16th a full class of Irish Cheese lovers showed up at the Cheese Center braving a late season snowstorm to attend our first, and hopefully not last, Irish Cheese Class. With Sarah Bates on hand as our guest lecturer we took a journey through Ireland both visually and with our taste buds. The first stop was Tipperary starting with Cooleney Cheese we then moved on to Cork for some Durrus and Ardrahan, then up the road to Limerick for some Cahill’s Porter Cheese and back to Tipperary finishing with some Tipperary Cheddar and Cashel Blue. All of this without leaving the Cheese Center at 37th & 10th avenue in NYC. A good time was had by all and many participants commented that it was a great way to get into the St. Patrick’s Day spirit. We did have a rush on our supply of Irish Cheeses but we do have some Cashel Blue That is just coming of age and is reaching it’s peak of perfection.

Last night, LeNell Smothers (from LeNell’s Wine & Spirits) and I sat down to work out some of the pairings for our American Whiskey & Artisanal Cheese class on May 29th. We settled on six whiskeys:

- Old Gristmill Authentic American Corn Whiskey
- Isaiah Morgan Rye Whiskey
- Bernheim Straight Wheat Whiskey
- Saint George Single Malt
- Rittenhouse Straight Rye
- Kentucky Bourbon Distillers’ 21yo Vintage Bourbon

Exciting stuff! We’re covering a pretty wide selection of the American whiskey market – unaged to super-aged, 100% rye to 100% corn, all sorts of variation in between. And the cheese selection is pretty spectacular, too. We’ve got some really incredible pairings. Can’t wait!

The 2007 James Beard Foundation awards nominees are out and our own Chef Terrance Brennan has been nominated in the category, "Best Chef NYC" and Chef Brennan’s flagship restaurant, Picholine, has been nominated for "Outstanding Restaurant"!

For more information on the 2007 James Beard Nominees please head on over to http://www.jamesbeard.org/awards/index.php

Congratulations Chef!

In Europe there is a network of schools for cheese makers and affineurs. In France especially, it is a standard practice to have these cheese colleges turn out the new batch of cheese makers with all the most up to date and advanced techniques in cheese. not only cheese making and affinage, but also herdsman training and biology, and chemistry.

In the United States, it is few and far between that we find such fine schools dedicated to the art and science of cheesemaking. The Dairy School at the University of Wisconsin is one such school but the newest and with the highest ambitions is a branch of the University of Vermont known as the Vermont Institute of Artisan Cheese.

For those interested in the most advanced school for making cheese in the U.S. see the class schedule posted at http://www.uvm.edu/~viac/. The next class of exceptional interest is April 3rd-April 5th. The class is to be instructed by Francisco Pérez Elortondo, Ph.D; Alfonso Zamora Master Cheesemaker; Montse Almena, Ph.D; and Marc Druart, Master Cheesemaker.

These courses are for those interested in fine tuning their skills and not necessarily for the beginner or the casual enthusiast.

This is an intensive three day short course focused on artisan practices used in Spain to produce a variety of traditional and innovative cheeses. There will be interactive lectures and strong hands on experience. You will learn how to make three varieties of cheeses: a blue cheese, a soft variety with a natural rind, and a semi hard cheese. Participants will have the opportunity to taste Spanish cheeses and present their own samples to gather feedback from the experts about technical issues with their cheese.

Sounds great!

Chef Martial Noguier has invited Chef Terrance Brennan to prepare an entire meal focused on pairing cheese, food and wine.

There could not be a better match than these two great chefs who are both well known for their restaurant cheese menus and events.

Terrance Brennan used his three-star New York restaurant, Picholine, in 1993 as a launching pad for the introduction of the traditional European cheese course and pioneered this as standard fare for fine dining in America. He then followed with the opening of Artisanal Fromagerie & Bistro and Artisanal Premium Cheese.

Martial Noguier, of One SixtyBlue, has advanced the notion of including cheese in fine menus with such innovations as cheese served warm from the wood oven, ’suscheese’ (cheese in the style of sushi), and trendsetting cheese sandwiches and salads.

Artisanal Fromagerie and Picholine have been nominated in the reader’s choice categories of “Best Cheese Shop” and “Best Reopening” for Time Out New York’s 2007 EatOut Awards. Winners will be published in the April 11 issue of the magazine.

Other nominees in the category of “Best Cheese Shop” include Formaggio Essex, Murray’s, Saxelby Cheese, and Stinky Brooklyn. Other restaurants for “Best Reopening” include Le Cirque, Russian Tea Room, Tasting Room, and The Waverly Inn.

YOU can still vote for your favorites in these and all other categories today and tomorrow.

Go have your say today!

Sarah Bates of Sheridan Cheese Mongers Ltd., in Galway City, Ireland has just confirmed that she will be a guest speaker at the Artisanal Premium Cheese Center on Friday March 16th for the St. Patrick’s Day Cheese class, Erin Go Braugh: Irish Cheese for St. Patrick’s!. Sarah recently represented Ireland at the Caseus Awards in Lyon France. She works full time managing the Sheridan’s Retail Store in Galway City. Working in both cheese making and retail for over 15 years, Sarah has a great deal of first hand experience and knowledge of Irish cheese

Sarah’s presence in this class should present a special opportunity to review and discuss the current state of Irish artisanal cheese making. St.Patrick’s Day is nearly here. If the St. Patrick’s Day spirit moves you, try this class, March 16 and tell us what you think!

With Regards,
John Grogan

Chef Terrance Brennan established the record for the World’s Largest Fondue on the Today show in Rockefeller Plaza this morning! In the presence of a representative from the Guinness Book of World Records, Chef Brennan and colleague Chef John Folse stirred up 2100lbs of fondue in a two-ton cast-iron sugar kettle brought from Louisiana by Chef Folse.

For Chef Brennan, this is an exciting and climactic achievement - something he has envisioned doing for a long time. Fondue from the event is being donated to City Harvest, the world’s first and New York City’s only food rescue program. Plus, for the entire month of March, 20% of all proceeds of fondue and fondue-related products at both the Artisanal Fromagerie & Bistro and Artisanal Premium Cheese will be donated to Share our Strength.

The video is currently available at the Today Show Web site. Congratulations, Chef!

Dear Friends,

I am pleased to announce the launch of the Artisanal Cheese Blog!

Given our ongoing mission to help spread the gospel of cheese throughout the land, we’ll use these pages to bring you news, insight, and an insider’s point of view on the fascinating world of artisanal cheese.

We’ll also keep you informed about what’s happening at the Artisanal Cheese Center, and at Picholine and Artisanal Fromagerie & Bistro. Hardly a week goes by at Artisanal without something worthwhile to report - and we will do our best to keep you in the loop. The Artisanal Cheese Center’s knowledgeable, passionate staff will regularly contribute their ideas and expertise, so check back often. And, of course, we look forward to your comments and feedback as we go and grow.

With Regards,
Terrance Brennan
Chef/Proprietor
The Artisanal Group