Week 24 – Memorial Day weekend at the White house!

Here I was thinking that I had several weeks to catch up, but as I sit here and type this we are currently on the 24th week of the year, which means that I’m am right on target. Huzzah! Suck on that everyone.

Remember a while back when I mentioned that I was participating in an 8 week weight loss competition at work? Well as it turns out I am indeed the biggest loser, losing 13 pounds and taking the big W. *pats self on back* Needless to say by that 8th week I was ready to shove a disgusting amount of food into my face. Luckily, the Whites, Barry and Heather, allotted the opportunity, hosting a Memorial Day BBQ at their home.

Normally when I pick out cheeses, I get a dialogue going with the folks behind the counter, talking about the occasion and what kind of flavor profiles I’m looking for, and together we build a plate. On this occasion, Fred Meyer’s ‘5$ and under bin’ was overflowing with several different kinds of cheese, so I just grabbed four different ones and hoped for the best.

I put a beautiful cheese plate together, the four cheeses separated by crackers with the fruit bowl center, aesthetically very pleasing. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of it when I was done (I know, I’m just the worst). You can see the skeletal remains in the corner of that last photo, at least they were well enjoyed!

The cheeses: Les Trois Comtois Comté Fontina Fontal Springbrook Farm’s Reading Springbrook Farm’s Tarentaise

Les Trois Comtois Comté (pronounced lay trwa, com-twa, kohm-tay): Comté is a raw cow’s milk cheese produced in the Jura plateau region of France. It’s semi-firm, cave aged anywhere from 8 to 36 months at the Fort des Rousses, built by Napoleon in the nineteenth century. In 1958 Comté was one of the first cheeses to be granted the AOC (appellation d'origine controlee) status (AOC is the French version on the Italian DOC or denominazione di origine controllata that I briefly touched on in a previous week. It’s basically strict rules for quality and production). To be considered a ‘true’ Comté cheese it has to have the following (these are just a few, there are more. Also, these are taken directly from Wikipedia so no one slap me with some copy write infringement):

-Only milk from Montbéliarde or French Simmental cows (or cross breeds of the two) is permitted.

-There must be no more than 1.3 cows per hectare of pasture.

-Fertilization of pasture is limited, and cows may only be fed fresh, natural feed, with no silage.

-The milk must be transported to the site of production immediately after milking.

-The milk must be used raw. Only one heating of the milk may occur, and that must be during renneting. It may be heated to no more than 40 °C (104 °F).

-Salt may only be applied directly to the surface of the cheese.

-No grated cheese may be sold under the Comté name.

Comté is also referred to as Gruyere de Comté, however it’s often shortened to avoid confusion between the Swiss Gruyere. While having similar flavor profiles, they are two separate cheeses. Comté has a more melty consistency than a Swiss Gruyere, and is great melted on a baguette. Its salty buttery flavor makes it pair great with fruit, such as strawberries, or sweet/fruity wines. Of the four cheeses, the Comté and Fontina stood out as peoples favorites.

Fontina Fontal: A true Fontina is a Fontina Val d'Aosta, an Italian unpasteurized cow’s milk cheese from the Valdaostan Red Spotted breed from the Aosta Valley region. It’s a semi-soft cheese, aged for at least 90 days, with a 45% fat content. The original Fontina, produced since the 12th century, is quite pungent, with an earthy, meaty, mushroomy flavor. So then what is a Fontina Fontal? It’s France’s version of the same cheese, going by the same name, until 1951 when they were forced (Fontina Val d'Aosta is protected under Europe’s PDO law) to change the name. It’s been going by the name Fontal since 1955. Fontal’s flavor is different from what I imagine its Italian originators, having a creamy, nutty, caramel flavor. Out of the four cheeses on the plate, this was my favorite, having the most distinctive flavor. It’s also an excellent melting cheese, and is lovely in a fondue. Say Fontina Fontal fondue 5 times fast.

Tarentaise & Reading: I didn’t know when I bought these two cheeses that they are produced on the same farm. Located in Reading, Vermont, Springbrook Farm “Farms for City Kids” is a free of charge foundation where ‘urban youths’ (their words not mine) participate in an outdoor classroom type setting, and while the children don’t actually make the cheese (there are viewing rooms to observe the process) they tend to vegetable gardens and greenhouses, through hands on farm-to-table teaching. With a strong emphasis on teamwork, these children tend to the animals, clean barns, build fires, camp, and strengthen wilderness skills. The two cheeses that the farm produces are their Tarentaise and Reading.

Both made with raw cow’s milk, the Tarentaise, is a hard cheese, aged for six months, with a natural washed rind, and is named after the French Valley. Reading (pronounced Redding), is a semi-soft cheese, aged between 3-5 months, named after the town it’s made in. Both are made with the milk of Jersey cows, who I picture as having great tans and accents (the cows literally are brown, or fawn, so I’m not even that far off). Fun fact! Jersey cows are not from New Jersey (not going to lie, that’s what I thought at first) but from the Channel of Jersey in the United Kingdom.

So I really hate to say this, especially after finding out what a cool program the Farms for City Kids is, but neither of these cheeses impressed me very much. They just…lacked a lot of flavor for me. Both very much on the mild (which I’m choosing to use as a euphemism for bland) side. Like I said, I did not know they were produced on the same farm, I just noted when I was tasting the four that there were two really good (Comté and Fontina) and two that I didn’t much care for. Sorry Springbrook Farm! Keep on doing good things though!