The last maple sap of the season doesn't make the best maple syrup, which typically comes out darker, heavier, with earthy undertones. Turns out it's good for something though - a maple sap brew that'll put hair on your chest! In the old days, farmers would gather the late season sap, which has a "leafy" taste, boil it down, throw in some yeast, hops, and perhaps a few raisins, then let it ferment in barrels in the cellar until it was ready to drink in July. A few local Vermont brewers are...
Cheese News
Northern Italy suffered a huge blow early Sunday morning, when a magnitude 6.0 earthquake rocked the region. Tragically, seven people were killed, and many historical buildings were demolished.
In addition to the human loss, the cheese industry took a serious blow when shelving in the aging warehouses collapsed, damaging and destroying hundreds of thousands of pounds of cheese. Here at culture, we have been trying to get in touch with producers and affineurs in the region to...
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The BBC explores the process of fermentation in this radio food piece. Sandor Katz and Sheila Dillon offer their expertise on the subject, and discuss the human relationship with these microbes, many of which play a part in creating some of our favorite dairy treats!
Since ancient times humans have harnessed the power of microbes to preserve food and enhance its flavours. Rich and complex food cultures have developed that use this power in a process called fermentation -...
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Slow Food Madison, one of the oldest Slow Food Chapters in the country, held its annual meeting on May 20. Jeanne Carpenter of Cheese Underground reflects on what Slow Food truly means and how it has changed her life.
As a family, we were on our way to realizing what good food was, but we didn't...
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We heard yesterday that many wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano were casualties in Sunday's magnitude 6.0 earthquake that rocked northern Italy. Here's an update from The Huffington Post on the losses sustained:
In terms of economic impact, the artisanal cheese sector appears to be the hardest hit. At least 10 percent of Parmesan production has been impacted,...
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Origin
Ayrshire cattle originated in the county of Ayr in southwestern Scotland prior to 1800. Early Scottish dairymen selected various strains of cattle—including both European and Channel Island breeds—to cross with the small, native cattle, using any available stock they felt would improve their animals’ utility. The result was an efficient dairy animal ideally suited to the harsh climate and poor- quality forage found on the exposed moors and barren moss of the Scottish Lowlands...
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Michael Noonan, Ireland's Minister for Finance, got on trouble last week for saying that feta cheese was the only Greek product the people of Ireland ever put in their shopping baskets. Greece maintains that there is more trade between the two countries, but Noonan's standing by his statement:
Yesterday, Mr Noonan said international listeners to the online broadcast of the conference might not have understood the Irish position and tended to put International Monetary...
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Italy's Emilia-Romagna region had a long night, camping out in the cold to stay clear of buildings during the after shocks of yesterday's magnitude 6.0 earthquake that killed seven people. Other casualties were wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano:
The damage to agriculture and livestock, in what is one of Italy's most fertile food producing regions, was estimated to be at least 200 million euros, the farmers group Coldiretti said.
Stables, barns and...
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Bob Eshman relays the story of how he and his family stumbled into being goat herders in the heart of the city, and then goat cheese makers.
Goats don’t bark or scratch. In our urban ecosystem, their odorless pellets work like plant steroids, replacing the need to buy fertilizer. They come when I call them, will stand on two legs for treats...
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PRI's Living on Earth has a great interview up with "fermentation fetishist" and microbe-connoisseur Sandor Katz.
Human beings have been involved in this process refining the practices of fermentation over the process of millennia, really. All these cured meats and cheeses and breads. But what I really like to emphasize is the simplicity of these processes at...
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