Yin and Yang - Ash Cheeses - Humbolt Fog

Goat – Humbolt Fog



Humbolt Fog - What a lovely package of goodness!

 

  

 

Producer: Cypress Grove Chevre, Arcata, California
Web site: http://www.cypressgrovechevre.com  Phone: 707-825-1100
Designer: The originator of Cypress Grove Chevre, Mary Keehn, launched her business in 1983. She had vacationed in France and was introduced to Morbier cheese. On the plane coming back from France, she envisioned a place, a wooded area by the coast with a tree line and fog spilling over the tree line. She mystically received the name of the company and the specifics of how to produce the cheese.  The ash ripple in the middle of the cheese represents the coastal fog of Humbolt County. In 2010, she sold the company to Emmi, a Swiss company made up of a cooperative of small dairy farmers and dairy operators. Mary is still involved in the company and her touch gets my full approval.
Owners: Emmi Corporate, USA
Designer:  Mary KeehnTerroir: California coast line, redwood  and cypress groves. Lots of rain and salty fog-saturated air
Milk:  Goat, pasteurized milk. Toggenburg, Saanen, Alpine, and Lamancha
Milk Fat: 25 %
Moisture: 53%
pH: 4.9
Type:  Pasteurized goats milk
Rind: Natural, dry stark-white bloomy rind over vegetable ash
Paste: Creamy-white ooziness under rind with an egg-shell white dry crumbly paste with a thin black centre line of ash
Aged:  soft ripened, not cave-aged 
Affineur and Aging: proteolysis continues to create ooze up to a quarter inch thick, cheese texture is firm and moist.
Culture:  peniciilium candidum sprayed over ash.
Coagulant: microbial enzyme (non-animal rennet), stands overnight to build up flavours
Shape:  1lb (Mini) and 5 lb wheels  (Grande)
Shelf-life:  8 weeks, uncut
Awards: First Place, American Cheese Society, 1998, 2002, 2005; World Championship Cheese Contest, 2010; Gold, London International Cheese Competition, 2004

Tasting Notes: Slight damp odour of mushroom and buttermilk. Paste lends some herbal flavours  and mineral tones with saltiness and a crisp finish of citrus. Rind is chewy with intense mushroom-fungus flavours that finish with some meatiness, leaving the palate begging for more.
Pairings Beer: Porter, Pale Ale or Stout. Wines: Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel or Pinot Noir
Serving Suggestions from the maker: Drizzle with honey to tone down the saltiness and serve with prosciutto, tart apple and marcona almonds. Crumble atop mixed baby greens and roasted beets and serve with a simple vinaigrette.

Yin and Yang - Ash Cheeses - Le Prestige

1.      Goat – Le Prestige (formerly Bouq’ Emissaire)

   

http://canadiancheesejournal.com/2012/07/26/bouq-emissaire/

Producer: Fromages Chaput, Chateaugauy, Que
Web site: www.fromageriechaput.com  Phone: 450 692-3555
Owners: Patrick Chaput, Master Cheese Maker
Designer:  Pierre-Yves Chaput
History:  Bouq Emissaire is French for “Scapegoat”.  The name is an intentional misspelling of the French term for "scapegoat". (bouc émissaire). With reference to bouguet (aroma) , and bouquetin (a reference to the Ibex mountain goat. The fromagerie has ceased using the name and it is now sold under “Prestige”. However, some distributers are still using the old name.Type:  raw goats milk, semi-soft, bloomy rind covered in olivewood ash
Terroir: South shore of the St. Lawrence River, near Montreal. Flat farmland. Affineur and Aging: Cave aged for 30 days until moisture drops and a tighter texture develops. The wheels are then further aged from 90 days up to 4 months. The cheese is supposed to be dry texture, not oozy.
Milk:  Goat, raw milk. Saanen local herds
Milk Fat: 25 %
Moisture: 54%
Rind: Natural, olivewood ash. Ash slows down acid production as the cheese matures. Rind colour changes from smoke-grey to green and blue hues with aging.
Culture: penicillium candidum
Coagulant: microbial enzyme (non-animal rennet)
Shape: 150g round
Awards: Local Quebec artisan cheese makers awards
Suggested Serving:  Smoked salmon salad with capers and Prestige cheese on a crusty baguette. This cheese is served in over 80 Quebec restaurants.
Tasting Notes:  Under the thin layer of mottled grey ash, the odor of the white paste is slightly lactic and floral with mineral notes from salting and the terroir. There is a delicate buttermilk- chevre flavour. The cheese dissolves slowly leaving a slightly sweet citrusy cleansed palate. As the cheese ages, the texture will changes as it loses moisture, going from  a  smoother texture to a  chalkier, drier section in the middle. The rind is tender and occasionally changes in colour from white to dark grey-green. The tanginess turns to meatiness. There is a long light linger of smooth chevre.
Pairing: White, off-dry Riesling styles, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc or Chablis, wheat beer with some light, high flavours.