Storing, Serving and Matching Artisan Cheese

Store, Slice, Arrange, Match, Enjoy, Repeat.

Feb 6, 2009 Stuart Stein

"A cheese may disappoint. It may be dull, it may be naive, it may be oversophisticated. Yet it remains cheese, milk's leap toward immortality." - Clifton Fadiman

Cheese is usually made in the form of a wheel or a block, sometimes with some sort of protective coating that keeps the cheese fresh and moist. Once cut, the goal is to preserve it - AVOID MOISTURE LOSS. The softer the cheese, the shorter the shelf life. Buy what you are realistically going to use during the next 10 days to two weeks. It's better to buy little and often, rather than having to battle to keep your cheese in good condition.

Storing Cheese

• Cheese doesn't mind being chilly (although not below 38 degrees please!). What cheese hates more than anything else is the circulation of cold air that might dry it out.
• Wrap the whole cheese in wax or butchers paper and put it in an enclosed box (cardboard or wood is preferable, but plastic will do). This allows the cheese to breathe, while protecting it from the dry air. Store like minded cheeses together.
• Find a place in your refrigerator that is the least windy (often this is near the floor directly beneath the fans (if the fans are positioned to blow horizontally). It's also a good idea to place the box near salad or vegetables, as the moisture from these will help keep the cheese hydrated.

The Cheese Plate

Serve all cheeses at room temperature! Remove cheeses from the refrigerator at least an hour before serving. Hard cheeses take longer to reach room temperature. As a rustic peasant food, cheese displays well on wood or marble or stone. Try to avoid cubing or slicing in advance, and put out one cheese knife or cheese plane per cheese.

• Vary varieties of milk
• Vary texture
• Vary cheese making styles
• Vary producers and locations
• Vary flavor intensity
• Choose cheese based on the wine you're serving
• Arrange - mild to strong, soft to firm, serve at room temperature

What Else Can I Serve With Cheese?

• Nuts - Almonds help bring out the subtleties of cheese flavor and aroma. Toasted hazelnuts, walnuts and pecans go well with sweet or unctous cheeses.
• Fruit - Olives naturally complement sheep and goat's milk cheese. Experiment with dried fruits like raisins, figs, dates, and any number of fresh or dried berries.
• Chutneys are a tasty alternative that meld nicely with the texture and nuances of English farmhouse cheeses. Think Cheddar and French chèvre.
• Fruit pastes, such as membrillo made of quince, with slices of an array of semi-hard sheep's milk cheeses and delicate flavored cow's milk cheeses. Seasonal fresh fruit is the key. Apples with Cheddar and pears with blue cheese.
• Cured Meats - Serve thin slices of proscuitto, Serrano ham and sweet or spicy cured sausages, especially with aged cheeses like Pecorino and Manchego.
• Bread - Unsalted, plain crackers. Crusty rustic sourdough with creamy soft ripened cheese and grain-packed hearty specialty breads with bits of dried fruit and nuts, or olives baked in breads with Cheddars and the like.

Matching Wine & Cheese

Successful match depends on the particular cheese, the available wine and personal taste.

• Don't diss whites - Acidic, herbacious whites (Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Gewurztraminer) can cut through the butterness of rich cheeses.
• Don't forget reds - Lighter-style reds with little tannis, lots of fruit and some acidity work well.
• Experiment - Argyle sparkling with Bravo aged white cheddar? You bet - YUM!
• Remember the classics - Acidic whites with goat, sweet wines with blue, cheddar with Cabernet Sauvignon.
• Consider birthplace - Wine & cheese from the same area. Flinty Sancerre with chalky goat cheese of the Loire. Try Cow Girl Creamery "Mt. Tam" with Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc.

"Cheese that is compelled by law to append the word ‘Food' to its title does not go well with red wine or fruit." - Fran Lebowitz

Part 1, Artisan Cheese Primer - Food not Fuel explores what is artisan cheese while Part 2 of the Artisan Cheese Primer explores Cheese Types.

Source: Cowgirl Creamery

The copyright of the article Storing, Serving and Matching Artisan Cheese in Gourmet Food is owned by Stuart Stein. Permission to republish Storing, Serving and Matching Artisan Cheese in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Red Wine & Cheese

Storing Cheese

Matching Cheese