This Cheese Stinks!

Young Epoisses, about 10 days old

We've all had that experience at some point: you open up a piece of cheese from its package, and your nose is immediately overwhelmed by the smell of a "stinky cheese." Love it or hate, it's a fact of life: sometimes, cheese stinks!

So what makes a cheese smell that way? The answer, in short: cheese is ALIVE! (The more sqeamish among you may not want to read further; those of you who enjoy knowing the origins of what you eat--this is for you.) In very brief terms, cheese is made by inoculating milk with cultures and then coagulating it. Basically, you add mold to milk and then separate the milk solids from the milk liquids (the curds from the whey--yes, Miss Muffet was basically eating fresh cheese, something akin to cottage cheese). You then gather up the solids and wait.

"Middle aged" Epoisses, about 3 weeks old

As you wait, the mold slowly eats the curds, and turns them into cheese. The process is basically the controlled spoilage of milk. That white fluffy stuff you see on the surface of your Brie or Camembert--that's mold, and it gives the cheese much of its flavor and character.

But wait, you say, Camembert and Brie aren't stinky cheeses. What does this have to do with stinky cheese?

There's another way to ripen cheese. Instead of letting the mold continue to grow on the cheese's surface, certain cheeses are "washed" in a brine solution, usually salt water, though sometimes wine, an eau-de-vie, or even beer will be used, as well. This prevents the mold from growing, and instead (squeamish people should really stop reading here!) encourages the growth of certain bacteria on the surface of the cheese. Obviously, the bacteria is harmless to humans, and it is this bacteria that gives a cheese its "stink" (so you could make the claim that the bacteria is even beneficial, especially to lovers of smelly cheeses).

Almost Ripe Epoisses, about 6 weeks old

I got to visit a cheesemaker in France who makes Epoisses (pronounced "ay-pwahs"), France's most famous stinky cheese, and have posted some photos here of the cheese at different points in the aging process. You can see in the young version how there's still plenty of white mold growing on it, and the bacteria hasn't really started growing yet. But by the end, its a beautiful, stinky orange, with almost no signs of white mold (other than the smell, you can always recognize these washed-rind cheeses by their yellow or orange rind).

Portugal: It's not all about Port!

When people think about Portuguese wines (I'm sure you've all spent many sleepless nights pondering this subject), they usually think about Port, the famous fortified dessert wine made in the Douro Valley of northern Portugal. While Port can be absolutely delicious,  it tends to overshadow the many wonderful dry table wines that Portugal produces. It's unfortunate, but if it's not Port, people just tend to forget about Portuguese wine.

That's why we were so thrilled when we found Casa Antiga. It's just a textbook example of everything we love about Portuguese wines:

• First of all, there's the "geek factor." Portugal is known for growing all kinds of indigenous, nearly unheard-of wine grapes--and we wine geeks love weird grapes! Casa Antiga is chock full of them: Bical, Cerceal-Branco, Malvasia-Fina, and Encruzado make up the blend. Dont worry if you've never heard of them--we hadn't either!

Vineyards in the Douro Valley

• Portugal also has a number of wine regions that are absolutely ideal for making wine. The Douro Valley (pictured above) is the most famous, with its picturesque sloping vineyards, but there are plenty of other fascinating places that make some wonderful wines. The Dao Valley (pronounced "dow"), where Casa Antiga is made, is one of the best. Surrounded on three sides by mountain ranges, with soils rich in schist and granite, the terrain is ideal for making wines with finesse and elegance. Casa Antiga is a great example, with a wonderful balance between fruit and acidity, and a stunning dose of earthy minerals that you don't usually find in wines at this price
• Lastly, Portuguese wines are often very inexpensive. Vineyard land is still pretty cheap over there, and since Portuguese wines are so obscure, the demand isn't terribly high, keeping prices low on these high-quality wines, and providing great bang-for-your-buck! 

Pastures overlooking the Serra da Estrella mountain range, one of the ranges that encloses the Dao

Tequila: Beyond Margaritas

Doug and I have recently made it our mission to bring some new and unusual tequilas in to the store, so we went into Boston a few days ago to taste a few. Life can be so hard sometimes!

We tasted seven tequilas in total. Seven may sound like a lot for tequila, but please bear in mind a) they were all small pours; b) we were taking public transportation. Our focus was on reposados and anejos, the two "rested" versions of of tequila. "Rested" just means that they've been aged in oak barrels for a certain amount of time, reposados from 2 to 11 months, anejos a year or more. This mellows the tequila out and makes it easier to sip without the strong "burn" silver tequilas can have.

Here are some of our discoveries from the tasting:

• The best tequila of the night: Corralejo Reposado. I didn't know tequila could be so good! It was delicate, seamless and complex. Creamy, with a touch of sweetness, it has aromas of white flowers, cracked pepper, and butterscotch, and goes down extremely easily. Our first case just came in. It's a tacky bottle (pictured here), but it's what's inside that counts! An interesting side note: they apparently use three different types of oak to age their tequilas: American, French, and White oak. It's an unorthodox approach, but they seem to be on to something.
• Overall, there was a surprising range of flavors, textures and styles, especially given how small a tasting it was. I always thought that all tequilas taste pretty much the same--shame on me! Floral, peppery, creamy, butterscotch, orange peel, and wild herbs are just a few highlights from our tasting notes that evening.
• While anejos are typically more prestigious, since they've been aged longer, we actually enjoyed the reposados more as a group. They were mellow enough to sip on, but still retained that unmistakable pepper-and-herbs tequila flavor, while the anejos in some cases tasted more like oak barrels than tequila. (As a bonus, they also tend to be cheaper!)

The tasting really opened our eyes--these tequilas are meant to be sipped and savored. If you've ever thought that tequila was just for margaritas and shots (and until this tasting, I would have included myself in that category), think again!

Why don't people drink more Chablis?

A couple of us from Shubie’s went to a seminar on Chablis a few days ago, and an interesting question was raised that no one had a very good answer for: “Why don’t people drink more Chablis?”

A number of reasons were suggested, but I think we missed the most important one, which is this: people like me have been remiss in recommending Chablis. So here it is: You should drink more Chablis!

Why? Because good Chablis is exactly what Chardonnay ought to be but rarely is: fresh and clean, with zesty notes of lemons, limes, green apples, and even sea salt and minerals. It’s absolutely perfect with seafood (and we New Englanders love our seafood!) but can also be served with many cheeses, chicken dishes (especially those with a little bit of butter or cream), and makes a great aperitif.

I’m a huge fan of Chablis (in case you hadn’t already guessed), but I think it suffers from a couple of misconceptions that have prevented more people from trying it. Hopefully I can clear that up here:

• Real Chablis is always Chardonnay, always from France (I've posted a couple pictures of the town and vineyards here). Chablis is not one of those California jug wines from Almaden or Gallo that you used to see in the 70s and 80s. Wipe those wine-in-a-box laden memories from your mind.

• Chablis is never “oaky.” A lot of people seem to be tiring of that heavy, oaky style of Chardonnay that used to be very popular. Those of you who are will love Chablis. Most Chablis sees no time in oak barrels at all (the best wines of the region spend time in used oak barrels, which impart little or no flavors to the wine). So it stays crisp, bone dry, refreshing, and never heavy.

Finally, the wine geek in me needs to explain one more aspect about Chablis—the thing that makes these wines so incredibly unique. And that is: dirt.

Seriously, Chablis’ soil famously contains significant deposits of limestone and fossilized oyster shells. I’m not making this up! It sounds crazy, but some of that calcium makes its way into the grapes, giving the wines that sea-salty minerality I mentioned earlier.

Taste it for yourself—we have a great selection of Chablis in the store now, and I’m happy to guide you through it. Ask for me next time you’re in, and say: “I want to drink more Chablis!”

Bill Shube