If you like Taleggio, you'll love Meadow Creek Grayson cheese. We always want to let you know when a perfectly ripe cheese, in great condition, is available locally. This weekend, we found a beautiful bite at Whole Foods near Symphony Hall.
If only we had taken a photo of this little stinker on display in the case! It had that lovely, soft bulge that the best, runny, washed rind cheeses get at the moment when they are perfectly ripe but not over-ripe. And, yes, it is one of those stinky cheeses, but in the best possible way.
Even tasting the chilled sample offered by the cheesemonger assured us that when warm-and-runny this was going to be our "one perfect cheese" for the evening.
We ordered a small, *one-finger-width piece and scurried home with our treasure. It warmed while we made a big pot of beef stew for dinner. Would it stand up to the umami of the beef and mushrooms? Would it work with the red wine in both the stew and our glasses?
Yes! This is a potent cheese that will stand its ground with other strong flavors. It has its own umami with undertones of mushroom and what others have describes as a beefy flavor.
The texture has been called fudgy, and we agree. Our sample was in such perfect conditon that we ate every spec of the rind. While we thought it went well with our Rhone blend wine, cheesemakers Helen and Rick Feete suggest you try it with a great brown ale.
Here's more: about this great farmstead cheese and the people who make it.
Places you can find this cheese
Video/slide show about the farm
Cutting the Curd: Podcast with Meadow Creek Cheesemaker, Helen Feete
Cheese Tips:
- *We've discovered that describing the amount of cheese you would like cut for you in finger widths works well.
- Anne Saxelby's Cutting the Curd show is a great way to learn about cheese. You can subscribe via iTunes or listen directly at the Heritage Radio Network.
- Always let a great cheese warm to room temperature for fuller flavor
- Buy smaller pieces of cheese more often and always buy fresh cut when you can.
- Never wrap cheese in plastic. At home, waxed paper or cheese paper
is the way to go. It's a living thing and needs to breathe.
- Here's a guide to storing cheese from Serious Eats!
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What's on your gourmet foods shopping list? If you can't find it in your local area, remember to click over to Amazon
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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino
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. When it's ready, I bring it to the table in that beautiful hunk of granite!