Wisconsin is known as America's Dairyland for a reason. It has an excellent environment in which to raise dairy livestock, especially sheep! We love Wisconsin cheese, and we have some new sheep cheeses from two Wisconsin producers that are just outstanding.
Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative
By September of 1997, the Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative was fully formed and registered as a cooperative in the state of Wisconsin. Sheep milk producers from Wisconsin, Minnesota, and even Iowa all send their milk to the WSDC to be made into cheese. One of the cheeses made there is Dante, an all-sheep's milk cheese aged at least 6 months. It is made from pasteurized milk and still won second place in the open category of aged sheep's milk cheeses at the 2008 American Cheese Society awards. Slightly sharp and nutty, the firm, dry Dante also exhibits some rich brown butter notes. It goes very well with young fruity reds, some sherries, and even semi-sweet white wines.
Hidden Springs Creamery
Hidden Springs Creamery, located in Westby in west central Wisconsin, is still a newcomer on the artisanal cheese scene. But what an entrance! Run by Brenda and Dean Jensen, Hidden Springs has already garnered ACS awards for two of their cheeses: Driftless, a fresh sheep's milk cheese, and Ocooch Mountain, an aged sheep's milk cheese. They milk solely Lacaune and East Friesian sheep, and do all the heavy work around the farm with Percheron draft horses instead of using tractors.
Ocooch Mountain is a 3 to 4 month aged, raw milk cheese whose rind is washed occasionally during aging to help deepen the flavor of the cheese. It has a nutty, earthy and slightly tangy flavor with a rich texture. Ocooch Mountain will go well with a variety of wines. One to try would be a nice clean-flavored Albarino.
Bad Axe, named for a river near the creamery which was the site of the 1832 Battle of Bad Axe, is a 1 to 2 month aged pasteurized milk cheese. It is creamy and tart in flavor and semi-soft in texture. The cheese is dipped in black wax to help it retain moisture. A crisp white or even a sparkling wine would be a great match for Bad Axe!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
New Pecorinos!
You already know and love our pecorinos - the Pecorino Toscano, Pepato Tipico, and Pecorino Fresca Verde. Well, we love pecorinos too, and have brought in three new ones! Pecorino comes from Italian "pecora", meaning sheep. All three of these new cheeses are made from raw sheep's milk, and are outstanding examples of what might be our favorite kind of cheese.
Fiore Sardo
Have you been missing the Pecorino Romano since we stopped carrying it? Well, Fiore Sardo is similar but even better. The name means "Sardinian Flower", and it does have some floral, grassy flavors to it, with a nice, creamy finish. It is slightly woody in flavor and does have some of the saltiness of Pecorino Romano but lacks the same excess of it, and is also not as gamy. Feel free to use in cooking or just enjoy with a glass of a somewhat tannic, full bodied red like a Sangiovese.
Pecorino Ginepro
From the Lazio region of central Italy, where Rome is located, Pecorino Ginepro is made in 6lb wheels and bathed in balsamic vinegar and juniper berries. This gives the semihard cheese an astringent, somewhat gin-like flavor with a touch of underlying sweetness from the sheep's milk. This cheese is just amazing and would be wonderful with Nebbiolos and other balanced red wines.
Foglie di Noci
Hailing from Marche, just north of Lazio, this wonderful cheese is bathed and turned daily for three weeks after it is made, and is then is layered with walnut leaves in barrels for several months. This gives the cheese a definite vegetal flavor and a light pepperiness. High in butterfat, it is a firm and slightly flaky cheese that would go very well with soft red wines such as Valpolicellas or some pinot noirs.
Fiore Sardo
Have you been missing the Pecorino Romano since we stopped carrying it? Well, Fiore Sardo is similar but even better. The name means "Sardinian Flower", and it does have some floral, grassy flavors to it, with a nice, creamy finish. It is slightly woody in flavor and does have some of the saltiness of Pecorino Romano but lacks the same excess of it, and is also not as gamy. Feel free to use in cooking or just enjoy with a glass of a somewhat tannic, full bodied red like a Sangiovese.
Pecorino Ginepro
From the Lazio region of central Italy, where Rome is located, Pecorino Ginepro is made in 6lb wheels and bathed in balsamic vinegar and juniper berries. This gives the semihard cheese an astringent, somewhat gin-like flavor with a touch of underlying sweetness from the sheep's milk. This cheese is just amazing and would be wonderful with Nebbiolos and other balanced red wines.
Foglie di Noci
Hailing from Marche, just north of Lazio, this wonderful cheese is bathed and turned daily for three weeks after it is made, and is then is layered with walnut leaves in barrels for several months. This gives the cheese a definite vegetal flavor and a light pepperiness. High in butterfat, it is a firm and slightly flaky cheese that would go very well with soft red wines such as Valpolicellas or some pinot noirs.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Spring 2009 Classes!
As the sun finally starts to peek through here in Spokane, so we have scheduled our classes for the next few months. These wine and cheese pairing classes, featuring the expertise of our own Kim Morin and John Allen from Vino! A Wine Shop, will be a fun way to spend a couple of hours tasting and learning.
April 16 - Tax Relief
Done filing your income taxes? Filed an extension and just need a break? This class will feature luxurious cheeses and wines to comfort and soothe your stresses. Join us and let yourself be spoiled for a change!
May 21 - Spokane Wineries and Northwest Cheeses
In the last year alone, three new wineries have popped up in Spokane, making our area something of a hot spot for oenophiles. Join us as we pair some of the great wines Spokane's wineries produce with cheeses from all over the Pacific Northwest!
June 16 - Wine and Cheese 101
Want to learn more about wine and cheese pairing but not sure where to start? Come to our 101 class where we will teach the basics of pairing wines with cheeses, featuring useful and interesting information about both, complete with tastings!
All classes are from 6pm - 8pm at Saunders Cheese Market, and are $45 per person. Call us or come by the shop to sign up!
April 16 - Tax Relief
Done filing your income taxes? Filed an extension and just need a break? This class will feature luxurious cheeses and wines to comfort and soothe your stresses. Join us and let yourself be spoiled for a change!
May 21 - Spokane Wineries and Northwest Cheeses
In the last year alone, three new wineries have popped up in Spokane, making our area something of a hot spot for oenophiles. Join us as we pair some of the great wines Spokane's wineries produce with cheeses from all over the Pacific Northwest!
June 16 - Wine and Cheese 101
Want to learn more about wine and cheese pairing but not sure where to start? Come to our 101 class where we will teach the basics of pairing wines with cheeses, featuring useful and interesting information about both, complete with tastings!
All classes are from 6pm - 8pm at Saunders Cheese Market, and are $45 per person. Call us or come by the shop to sign up!
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