Sas's Deli For Lovers of Fine FoodsSubiaco, Western Australia
If all the food in the world was to disappear except for cheese I would still be a happy girl. I love cheese. I love it cold on toast, melted on toast, eaten on a biscuit or just grabbed from the fridge as I walk past, although we all know that cheese at room temperature tastes so much better.
I'm always looking in cheese cabinets and always interested in trying something different. Here are some I recently tasted, thanks to Wikipedia for the history lesson.
Camembert Aux Truffles ($75.99/kg)
Camembert is made from unpasteurised cow's milk and is ripened by the moulds Penicillium candida and Penicillium camemberti for at least three weeks. It is produced in small rounds, about 250g in weight, which are then typically wrapped in paper and packaged in thin wooden boxes. When fresh camembert quite crumbly and relatively hard, but characteristically ripens and becomes more fluid and strongly flavoured as it ages.
Camembert was reputedly invented in 1791 by Marie Harel, a farmer from Normandy, thanks to advice from a priest who came from Brie However, the origin of the cheese known today as Camembert is more likely to rest with the beginnings of the industrialization of the cheese-making process at the end of the 19th century
Queso De Manchego ($80/kg)The rich, semi-firm product is aged in natural caves for generally 3 - 6 months, which imparts a zest and exuberant flavor. It is barrel-shaped and weighs about 2 kg (4 lb). It comes in a 25 cm (ten-inch) diameter wheel, 12 cm (five in) thick, with a herringbone design on the inedible rind caused by the surface of the press used in the manufacturing process. (This traditional embossed pattern comes from the time when the cheese was wrapped in sheets of woven esparto grass.) The taste depends on the maturity: mild, subtle, and fresh; or strong and full-bodied with a tangy farmhouse flavor.
Queso Iberico ($75/kg)Iberico is a Manchego-style cheese made from a blend of cow, goat and sheep's milk. It is made in the same type of mold as Manchego, and therefore has the same hatched pattern imprinted into its rind. One of the most popular cheeses in Spain, this firm, oily cheese is mild, yet tasty and aromatic. The blend of milks allows it to obtain the grassy, herbaceous flavors of the goat and sheep's milk while maintaining the smoothness of cow's milk. It is typically served as a table cheese, but is also good for cooking
Le Veritable Port Salut ($49.99/kg)Port Salut is a semi-soft pasteurized cow's milk cheese from Brittany with a distinctive orange crust and a mild flavor. The cheese is produced in disks approximately 23 cm in diameter, weighing approximately 2 kg.
Though Port Salut has a mild flavour, it sometimes has a strong smell because it is a mature cheese. The cheese was originally invented by Trappist monks during the 19th century at the abbey of Notre Dame du Port du Salut in Entrammes. The monks, many of whom had left France to escape persecution during the French revolution of 1789, learned cheese-making skills as a means of survival and brought those skills back with them upon their return in 1815. The name of their society, "Société Anonyme des Fermiers Réunis" (S.A.F.R.) later became their registered trademark, and is still printed on wheels of Port Salut cheese distributed today.
In 1873, the head of the abbey came to an agreement with a Parisian cheese-seller granting exclusive rights of distribution, and the cheese soon became popular. The abbey sought trade protection, and eventually (in 1959), sold the rights to a major creamery. The cheese is now produced in a factory; the characteristic smooth crust the result of a plastic-coated wrapper.
Handmade Port Salut cheese or "Entrammes" cheese is still produced by various monasteries throughout the French countryside, and differs subtly from its commercial cousin.
Though Port Salut has a mild flavour, it sometimes has a strong smell because it is a mature cheese. The cheese was originally invented by Trappist monks during the 19th century at the abbey of Notre Dame du Port du Salut in Entrammes. The monks, many of whom had left France to escape persecution during the French revolution of 1789, learned cheese-making skills as a means of survival and brought those skills back with them upon their return in 1815. The name of their society, "Société Anonyme des Fermiers Réunis" (S.A.F.R.) later became their registered trademark, and is still printed on wheels of Port Salut cheese distributed today.
In 1873, the head of the abbey came to an agreement with a Parisian cheese-seller granting exclusive rights of distribution, and the cheese soon became popular. The abbey sought trade protection, and eventually (in 1959), sold the rights to a major creamery. The cheese is now produced in a factory; the characteristic smooth crust the result of a plastic-coated wrapper.
Handmade Port Salut cheese or "Entrammes" cheese is still produced by various monasteries throughout the French countryside, and differs subtly from its commercial cousin.
I hope the long winded stories didn't put you off, but I think it is iteresting to know the history of the food you eat.
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