Archaeology of Cheese

WHAT IS PORT SALUT? The literal phrase port du salut roughly translates as a port of greeting or “hello.” This semi-soft cow’s milk cheese was invented by an abbey of monks.  They trademarked the name and later sold the rights to an industrial producer. The original port salut, now sold as entrammes, has little in […]

WHAT IS MONTASIO? This raw, cow’s milk cheese from the Venice region of Italy has become more popular in export markets over the last decade.  This formaggio is named after the Montasio mountain range in Friuli.  As far back as the 1200’s, Benedictine monks in their mountain abbeys made Montasio.   While production methods have changed, […]

WHAT IS QUARTIROLO LOMBARDO? This beautiful autumn cheese is now made year-round in Italy. “Quartirolo” is from “quattro” or “4” in Italian.  Farmer’s believed that grass fed to cow’s after the 4th Fall hay cutting was more flavorful.  Of course, better milk in turn yielded better cheese.  This formaggio is similar to Taleggio in both […]

WHAT IS SCAMORZA? In Italian “scamorza” means idiot.  Similarly the etymology of the name is a reference to this pear shaped cheese having a “head”.  Originally this formaggi was made from buffalo milk.  But today almost all production uses pasteurized cow’s milk.  After rennet is added to the milk and clumps of curds form, the […]

WHAT IS TETILLA? Spain has several official languages and in one of them, Galician, tetilla means “small breast” (a description of the cheese’s shape and nipple top).  This young cow’s milk cheese is aged less then 30 days, and has a young, creamy feel to it.  Pasteurized, the paste is pretty dense and there are […]

WHAT IS VALDEON? A milder blue then Cabrales, Valdeon is one of Spains big three blue cheeses (the third being Picon).  Like the other two, Valdeon is made from a mix of milks (cow and goat).  It is traditionally wrapped in chestnut, oak or sycamore leaves during affinage.  This is still not a blue for […]

WHAT IS TILSITER? This Swiss käse is a smear ripened (a.k.a. pungent) cow’s milk cheese.  Aged for about 2 months, it has irregular holes scattered throughout its’ paste.  During aging the rind is repeatedly washed.  There are three versions.  Green label is pasteurized, red uses raw milk and yellow label is pasteurized but with cream […]

WHAT IS COTSWOLD? This cow’s milk, additive cheese from England is a bit confusing.  The proper English name for it is Double Gloucester with Onion and Chive.  However a clever company (Long Clawson) trademarked the name “Cotswold” and introduced it to the USA as such.  Much like tissues vs. Kleenex, a confusing new name was […]

WHAT IS WENSLEYDALE? This cheese was brought to England in the 1100s by French monks from  Normandy.  While they were used to working with sheep’s milk, England then (and even now) didn’t have many sheep.  So they switched to cow’s milk in the 14th century.  Similar to Caerphilly, Wensleydale is a flaky, crumbly cheese.  It […]

WHAT IS SHROPSHIRE BLUE? This pasteurized cow’s milk blue cheese is semi-soft.  Created several decades ago, it is often described as a Stilton with annatto or carotene coloring.  Also, it uses the same blue mold as Roquefort cheese.  Like it’s albino sister cheese, Shropshire is a sharp, tangy cheese.  The addition of annatto supposedly results […]

WHAT IS ASIAGO? These 20 pound wheels of cheese hail from the Asiago plateau in northern Venice (Veneto). They come in two types, d’Allevo and pressato.  Both have been awarded D.O.P. status. Long ago these cheeses were made from sheep’s milk but that stopped sometime around the Renaissance. Today d’Allevo is the more artisanal of […]

WHAT IS TETE DE MOINE? French for “Monk’s Head” this cheese was invented in an abbey in the Swiss canton of Bearn almost a millennium ago. At one point in the 12th century monks even paid debts in cheese rather then money.  Today when serving Tete de Moine, the rinded top is cut off similar […]

WHAT IS CHESHIRE? In the 1964 publication The Cheese Book, the author’s note that the French refused to call Cheshire by its proper name.  Instead they called it “Chester”. But the writers Marquis and Haskell go on to mention that the British didn’t take any offense to this.  They found it extraordinary that the French […]

WHAT IS LANGRES? Langres philosophy on competition from other cheeses might best be described as “Holy calamity scream insanity all you ever gonna be’s another great fan of me!” (from the 1999 Handsome Boy Modeling School album). I’m not saying that Langres is vain or anything, but it would light itself on fire to get […]

WHAT IS MORBIER? A semi-soft cow’s milk cheese, Morbier like many other cheeses is named after the village of its birth. Some experts like to see that the cheese is “springy” or “supple.” Let’s be honest, it’s rubbery.  It has a strong, creamy flavor and is great as a fondue melting cheese (much like Appenzeller). […]

WHAT IS SAINT MARCELLIN? St. Marcellin has been around France for a long time. In 1447 King Louis XVI, as a child, went on a hunt and got separated from his group. Frightened, the Dolphin Prince (so nicknamed since his coat of arms was decorated with them) was discovered by two woodcutters. They took him […]

WHAT IS CHAOURCE? This soft ripened cow’s milk cheese is creamy and a little bit crumbly when young.  It is similar to brie but much younger and saltier.  This fromage’s flavor has a hint of mushroom.  Unlike many other bloomy rind cheeses, Chaource’s heart doesn’t tend to mature due to its acidity.  Despite being aged […]

WHAT IS COULOMMIERS? It is a soft ripened, cow’s milk cheese that takes a little over a month to ripen. An ancient ancestor of brie’s, it has a fat content of 40% (much lower than a double crème 60% brie).  While Coulommiers might sound like a low-fat version of brie, it raw milk form still tastes […]