Grayson Cheese: The American Taleggio

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Grayson  is not a unique cheese but it is one of the excellent newer arrivals in the renaissance of American cheese making.. It is produced by the Meadow Creek Dairy located in the southwestern mountains of Virginia. This area of Virginia is well known for its mineral rich soil, pure air and pristine water, these elements form the backbone of the dairy and agriculture production.
Grayson is a strictly seasonally produced cheese so the milking process begins in early March and continues until mid Fall and the last milking day is Christmas Eve. The raw milk used to make Grayson comes from a free ranging, closed herd of Jersey cows that graze on mixture of perennial grasses, grains and iodine rich Norwegian kelp.

This cheese is based on the recipe for the popular Italian cheese Taleggio but it has its own signature due to its longer aging process       ( 60 days) and the type of raw milk that is used to produce it. However like Taleggio it is formed into squares that weigh about 5 pounds. Grayson is a surface ripened, washed rind raw milk cheese so it will have a moderate stink factor however this will begin to disappear when the cheese is cut and allowed to breathe. Its edible washed rind  is well formed with a deep red color and is soft and pliant to the touch. The inner paste has a light yellow or straw color and when ripe will be bulgy or slightly oozy. like brie. Grayson's flavor profile is rich and beefy, very slightly salty with a nutty sweet buttery finish.

Serve Grayson as a dessert course drizzled with honey, spread on crusty bread, or with dried fruirt or sweet melons. It can also stand on its own so it can be used as a table cheese and can be substitute for Taleggio or Brie in your recipes. .Please remember that this is a seasonally produced cheese so is may be hard to find, but when you do find it you will be rewarded with an excellent example of American cheese making.

Store Grayson in the vegetable bin of your refrigerator wrapped in wax paper and placed in a zip lock bag. If any mold should form in its rind or inner paste simply cut or scrape it off .When shopping for this cheese do not purchase  any that look very runny or smell like ammonia another side of abuse is a dried out looking cheese.


For a discussion about Taleggio cheese please go to:
http://aroundtheworldcheese.blogspot.com/2009/03/taleggio-italian-cheese.html

Wine Pairing: Malbec, Albarino, Cabernet or Gewurztraminer Grayson also pairs well with beer