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Cheeses
Cheeses are delicious when served with wine,
fruit, nuts and bread, can be served with
every course in a meal, or can make a meal
itself. All cheeses are made from salt and
rennet that is mixed with cow, sheep, or
goat milk. The mixture is then aged and sometimes
flavored with wine or herbs. It is the art
of the cheese maker that determines the wide
variety of textures and flavors that result
from this process. Artisanal cheeses are
those that are handmade in small quantities.
They are increasingly available on line or
through catalogs.
The following should be considered
when buying
cheese:
- Remove cheese from the refrigerator at least
an hour before serving to allow the flavor
to develop.
- For a cheese plate at the end of a meal,
buy three to five cheeses with different
flavors and textures. An ounce of each cheese
per person is a good quantity.
- Serve cheese with neutral flavored bread
or crackers that will not interfere
with
the flavor of the cheese. Blue
cheeses should
be served with fruited whole
wheat breads
that contrast with the saltiness
of the blues.
- Milder cheeses should be eaten before stronger
tasting varieties.
- Coarse textured breads can be used to cleanse
the palate for the next cheese
course.
Experiment with wines when serving cheeses
to find combinations you like. Generally,
the stronger the cheese flavor, the more
full bodied the wine should be. Dessert wines
are wonderful with an after dinner cheese
course. |
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