Correction: After posting this on Tuesday evening, it was pointed out to me by Bi-Rite's head monger Anthea Stolz that the vertical tasting I mentioned was actually of the wonderful Barinaga Baserri, which happens to be our fall centerfod:

"Marcia Barinaga was gracious enough to let us buy the whole batch, and we’re tasting 2 wheels each month for 10 months and then the last wheel when the batch will be 12-months old, sending her our feedback along the way."

Bi-Rite is ALSO the exclusive source for Kuba's Kreation experimental cheese from Point Reyes, but they are not performing a vertical tasting. I apologize for the confusion; Bi-Rite is apparently participating in too many awesome cheese experiments for me to keep track of.

Last weekend's San Francisco Street Food Festival proved to be a lot of fun. The Scientist, her Colleague and I stuffed ourselves on tasty pupusas, succulent pumpkin curry, and the infamous waxworm tacos. Filled to bursting, we decided to take advantage and do a bit of shopping before the long drive back to Davis CA.

The Colleague helpfully directed us to Bi-Rite, a seasonal gourmet grocery in the Mission District. I'm a recent transplant, and so I had no idea what a great little shop the Bi-Rite was (or what great ice-cream they scoop just across the street!). The Scientist and I dove in, grabbing some figs, mushrooms, spices, and other less-perishable tidbits that'd survive the long ride home. And, work-a-holic that I am, I took the opportunity to chat with their helpful monger-on-the-spot, Tammie Gilfoyle.

Turns out, the guys at Bi-Rite are in the midst of an exclusive months-long vertical tasting (nope, the vertical tasting is of of Barinaga Baserri) of yet another Point Reyes Farmstead experimental cheese, which they're provisionally calling Kuba's Kreation. Named for Kuba Hemmerling, PR's experimentalist cheesemaker extraordinaire, it's a firm cow's milk cheese. The staff and customers are sampling progressively older wheels of Barinaga Baserri every month and sending comments back to Kuba Marcia Barinaga. So if you're feeling left out of the whole Birth of a Cheese thing, and you live in the Bay Area, drop in at the Bi-Rite, and you can have a taste of another great cheese-in-progress.