This is a picture of what was recently in our fridge.
Starting with the soft cheeses:
- the larger piece is the Constant Bliss I wrote about earlier. Note, by the way, the clear ripening pattern, which for a soft cheese, starts on the outside and moves inward.
- the yellower, bruised piece is a domestic brie. It's texture is hinted at by the photo: it was a bit rubbery. I don't recall it's name.
- the last piece is Moses Sleeper. It was made by the same people who produced Constant Bliss. It was an excellent soft cheese, with just the right barn-yard fragrance.
(A curious side note. Evidently Constant Bliss was a revolutionary war scout, and his companion was named Moses Sleeper. Both were killed in Greensboro in 1781.)
The blues:
- the unappetizing, small glistening piece is a Roquefort, which is just about at the end of its life. But still delicious.
- the larger blue is a domestic, but I don't recall it's name either. It wasn't as sharp as the Roquefort, but was very nice nevertheless. There seem to be many domestic blues. I wonder if they are easiest to produce perhaps because the strong flavor obscures flaws, like an over-hopped beer. A good sign to watch for in a blue is natural veining. Does it occur in columns, reflecting the injection rather than growth of the bacterium, or randomly, like the voids in a good French bread?
The pressed:
- the flat rectangle is a swiss gruyere. Notice the 'gouge' on the surface. It was very hard, almost crumbly. But it was excellent. Nutty, complex. The name is Alpage.
- the smaller piece on top is an attempt to find an Ardi Gazna substitute, which is to say, it was a Pyrenean sheep's milk cheese. It was as good as could be expected. It was an Ossau-Iraty.
- the last, squarish piece may have been good, but I can't remember its name. I recall it was nice, but not distinguished.
I must be hungry; these cheeses are making my mouth water.
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