Each week we taste a sampling of cheeses in our Cambridge office and discuss their flavors, textures, and our general impressions of them. Yum!

Each week we taste a sampling of cheeses in our Cambridge office and discuss their flavors, textures, and our general impressions of them. Yum!

Each week we taste a sampling of cheeses in our Cambridge office and discuss their flavors, textures, and our general impressions of them. Yum!

Each week we taste a sampling of cheeses in our Cambridge office and discuss their flavors, textures, and our general impressions of them. Yum!

Crema de Blue
Cow's Milk - New Jersey

Tasting Tuesdays have become a regular feature over at the Boston office, and when they asked me to pitch in, of course I said yes. It didn't hurt that they were sending me Beemster's XO Gouda, which is one of my avowedly favorite cheeses. XO is aged 26 months, and has a wonderful grainy texture because of it, along with a sharp-sweet-savory flavor like that reminds me of a liquor-filled, salted caramel bonbon.

As an indiscriminate media zealot and avid snack lover, nothing pleases me more than the mash-up of food and pop culture. For this week’s Tasting Tuesday at culture, I thought it would be fun to play director, imagining some of this year’s Oscar nominees in the role of a lifetime, as one of Point Reyes’ amazing cheeses. Here are a few of my picks to invite for a (snack) session on the casting couch.

Each week we taste a sampling of cheeses in our Cambridge office and discuss their flavors, textures, and our general impressions of them. Yum!

Tasting Tuesday: Sheep's Milk Pecorino and Reblochon

Pecorino de Pienza in Fossa
Sheep's Milk - Italy

This is Part 4 of a multi-article series about a recent visit to Point Reyes Cheese Company in Point Reyes, California.

Karen, one of the Giacomini sisters, had taken out cheese to taste about an hour prior, so it was at room temperature by the time we returned from our tour. In addition to the Original Blue, New Blue, and Toma, she had laid out pecans, apricots, and Rustic Bakery crackers. And she had mason jar glasses! So cute! I love mason jars, but then again, who doesn’t?

In the middle of a cool, drizzly day, three of us from Culture Magazine (Stephanie, Eilis and myself) took a little field trip to the Concord Cheese Shop in Concord, Massachusetts. Driving from our office in Somerville, it felt as if we were entering the countryside for a vacation, a nostalgic feel that continued into the shop itself.

Tiny, wooden and old-timey, the Concord Cheese Shop certainly gives that old-fashioned feeling. A large wine collection engulfs the back end of the store, packed with careful selections. Taste rules over brand in this shop, so count on finding many new and unique bottles. The shop’s sommelier also has a bit of an affinity for Rosé, so if you find yourself craving something light in February, stop by—they stock a variety of pink wines year-round.

Hi, I'm John from Maryland.

Was it a premature birth? I was really pleased to find out that I was selected as one of the cheese tasters for Jasper Hill's new cheese. Received the cheese this past weekend and first impression upon opening the box was WOW, three large wedges and such nice color and unusual rind, but each
piece looked pretty much the same except maybe for wedge size.

My wife and I thought, well maybe they are aged differently.