Gorgonzola: Italy's Most Famous Blue Cheese

Gorgonzola  cheese is produced only in the Lombardy and Piedmont regions of Italy. It is a pasteurized cow's milk cheese with an inedible outer rind. The history of Gorgonzola cheese starts with the town of Gorgonzola in Lombardy where herdsmen rested their cows on the trek back home form their Alpine pastures. Here milk was traded and the surplus converted into cheese.Some of the Gorgonzola that arrives in the US is still made by small artisan dairies but the bulk of the production is made by lager scale facilities in both the Piedmont and Lombardy regions. This cheese comes in two forms Dolce (sweet) and Naturale or Mountain (Spicey). Both forms are made in the same way, the only difference between them is the amount of time that they are allowed to age.

This cheese is made by layering the dried curds form the evening milking and the next mornings milking. The bluing originally occurred naturally in the caves were the cheese were left to age. Over time it was noticed that by piercing the young cheeses  the blue veins would grow more pronounced and that the bluing would proceed faster. Now penicillium gorgonzola is introduced into the curds before they are formed and set out in caves to age. After about one month the young cheeses are pierced with needles to allow oxygen to enter and accelerate the blue veining.

Dolce (sweet) Gorgonzola is aged for 2 to 3 months and during this time its thin outer rind will have been washed several times with a brine solution. At this stage the cheeses are quite fragile and must be handled carefully to avoid damaging them. The aged cheese wheels are then cut in half horizontally and wrapped in a protective foil to keep air away from the surface of the cheese. The Dolce version  will be moist and have an open texture, the interior paste will be have a light yellowish color and blue-green veins throughout. The outer rind as stated above is thin and will have a very light brick color. The flavor and aroma are mild and milky with a slight salty and lactic tang on the finish. This version provides a great introduction to the world of blue cheeses.

Naturale (mountain) Gorgonzola is aged from 3 to 12 months and has also been washed frequently with brine during the aging process. The longer aging process allows a thicker rind to form  be handled easier and also creates a drier and whiter interior paste along with deep and dark blue veining. The flavor of  mountain Gorgonzola will be powerful and spicy with an earthy flavor and  the interior paste will be dense but smooth and may have crunchy amino acid crystals. As the cheese ages the darker the interior paste is the stronger the flavor will be. Be forewarned this cheese with have a heavy cheesy aroma but it will not overly offensive. This cheese will be heavenly for any blue cheese lover.

When shopping for Gorgonzola avoid any wheels that have pinkish, brownish or gray  interior paste, are too crumbly or show excessive pooling of butterfat. Please remember that this cheese should be moist but not oozy or wet.

Gorgonzola is perfect served with fresh fruit or crumbled into fresh salads. Also try it melted over baked potatoes, hamburgers or mixed with creme fraiche as a dressing.

Wine Pairing: Big Italian reds like Chianti Reserva, Barolo, Amarone or Gattinara or desert wines such as Marsala

Humbolt Fog An Iconic American Goat Cheese

Humbolt Fog is a soft pasteurized  mold ripened goat cheese produced in Arcata, Humbolt County, California and is named for the fog that rolls in from Humbolt Bay. This cheese has been around for awhile and I am sorry that I have not written about it sooner but other writers have written reviews and have made the case for trying this great cheese.In my travels I recently revisited this cheese and I decided that I will add my accolades for this great cheese to the ones already out there. So here it goes.

Humbolt Fog as stated above is an aged goat cheese, it has an edible bloomy white rind and an ash line going through the center. The cheese molds are filled half way a layer of White Pine ash and salt is added then the molds are topped off with more of the curds. This procedure is a tip of the hat to the French cow's milk  cheese Morbier.The ash layer does not impart any flavor but it does make a distinctive and eye catching presentation when the cheese is cut. The ash is also used to coat the finished cheese before it begins forming the blooming white mold during the aging process. As the cheese ripens from the outer layer to its core the cheese will become a bit oozy. The top most layer will be runny and the inner core will stay somewhat compact. As the cheese ages the oozy layer near the rind will begin to thicken as the core gets softer so there is a continuous transformation of texture of flavor. Speaking of flavor Humbolt Fog does not let you down. It is not overly goaty and it has a buttery flavor but also has a subtle tang on the finish. The flavor will be stronger at the center but it is not overpowering. A perfectly aged Humbolt Fog will have a hint of the salt and will not have a mild soapy flavor at the core.

Serve Humbolt Fog at room temperature but beware the longer you leave it out the runnier it will become. However scooping up a puddle of heavenly cheese is not a task that you or your guests will frown upon.
With that said only take out a portion of the cheese that you think you will use at the time you will be serving it. As a nice mid-meal snack serve it with sliced apples and pears drizzled with honey, also try it paired with walnut and cranberries.Humbolt Fog will pair well with earthy flavors such as mushrooms or potatoes.

This cheese needs to breathe so only wrap it in wax paper, never use plastic wrap and always rewrap it in a new sheet of wax paper.

Wine Parings: White wines, Chenin Blanc, Piont Grigio, Sancerne and Sauvignon Blanc
                         Red Wine, Piont Noir

Roncal Cheese: A Distinctive Spanish Original

Roncal is produced in the Navarra province from the milk of the Latcha and Aragonesa breeds of sheep. Roncal gets it's name from the Roncal valley..The valley is the Pyrennes mountains and home to seven villages that work cooperatively to make this cheese. The herdsmen from these villages allow their flocks to graze in the lush mountains during the spring and early summer. The milk that is produced is sweet and high in butterfat and creates an exceptionally wonderful cheese. In 1981 Roncal was honored by being the first Spanish cheese to receive the DOC (Denominacion de Origen).

Roncal is an uncooked, pressed natural rind (inedible) sheep's milk cheese that is aged for a minimum of 4 months although, some are aged up to 8 months. The aging process yields cheeses with firm beige or reddish brown rinds that may have spots of gray mold on them. The interior paste is light yellow and will have small holes or what appear to be cracks. When cut and allowed to stand a bit of butterfat may weep out, this is not a sign of a cheese gone bad but is a sign of the richness of the cheese.. The younger cheese will be moist with a smooth olive flavor, as it ages longer the paste will turn amber and will develop a more meaty flavor that is nutty and savory with a very slight tang. Roncal is available all year but if your cheese monger happens to get a fresh supply around October through December the cheese will have a wonderful aroma of cut hay. If you are getting bored with Manchego this is a great sheep milk cheese that will please your taste buds.

When shopping for this cheese look for cheeses that are not discolored ordried out.  Please note that mold on the rind is perfectly OK but mold in the interior is a sign of a cheese that should not be purchased.You can find Roncal in both pasteurized and raw milk versions, we suggest purchasing the raw milk one because of its superior depth of flavor.

You can serve Roncal with fruit, raw vegetables and cured pork. It also works well as a grating cheese for soups, casseroles or pasta dishes.

Wine Pairing: Any Navarra reds, Rioja or Ribera del Duero for the aged cheese, and for the younger one a light Navarra , dry sherry, or a sparkling Cava.