If you were really paying close attention a little while ago, you might remember me mentioning that we started a record of various cheeses. See, a lot of people go on and on about various social causes and things that are worth spending their time on. Building hospitals, tutoring struggling ninth graders. At my house, we eat cheese and keep fastidious notes. It's true. As it turns out, the number of weeks we have lived in Redmond and the number of cheeses we have sampled from the Whole Foods Petites Fromages program are the same. (That's why I haven't posted in a while; I got carried away on the culinary adventures and had to get the balance right.) We're at 15 of each now, which I feel is a pretty respectable number. The Official Great Cheese Caper Descriptions, Ratings, and Comments Chart (Sheet #1) is now full. And my life is such that this is news.
The funny thing is, "crottin" is a slang term for a horse/mule dropping. In this case, though, it's a reference to the shape of the cheese. It's a hard, crumbly goat cheese that's the best characteristically "goat-y" cheese I've ever had. A couple of inches across, white, and moldy on the outside if handled and made correctly. Looks like this:
Highest overall rating from Kirsten:
Roomkaas Double Cream GoudaRidiculously creamy, almost buttery, and 146% fat or something. It tastes every bit as good as something so unhealthy should taste.
The Acerbic Wit Award:
This goes to Kirsten for her description of a sample of Le Fournal Chaumes. To wit: "If 'earthy' means manure, then yes."
Creepiest Looking Cheese:
This'll have to go to Cahill Porter, which is made by mixing a dark beer into the vat when the cheese still liquid. Looks like this:
I could go on handing out awards for every little thing, but I remember being offered the role of a tree in a play when I was seven or eight... Some things you gotta learn from.*
I might just have actual news or something at some point. Until then, take care of yourselves. And start your own food list so you can send me notes.
* - Even at my young age, I knew to hold out for better parts. This tree fiasco was before my breakout role as the drowning kid in a Red Cross safety video. True story.
