Hiking the Swiss Alps for our September Cheese of the Month Club

Sweet Annie

Landmark Cheese Co

Albany,Wisconsin

Pasteurized Sheep Milk

Landmark Cheese Co is owned by two women, each named Anna, which is a bit confusing, but allows them to take great liberty in naming their cheese. We have been offering their AnnaBasque Pyrenees style cheese for a few months, and were recently introduced to their latest cheese, Sweet Annie, their youngerGoudastyle cheese.  Aged about 4 months, this sweet and nutty cheese has a firm texture that’s a little crumbly.   While researching the internet we found a photo of a recipe using Sweet Annie in a soup of pears and parsnips with black truffle, which sounds delicious even as we write this on the hottest day for the year here in San Francisco.  So maybe tonight we’ll opt to serve Sweet Annie in a salad of sliced pears and endive with a drizzle of roasted walnut oil instead.

Sweet Annie

Güntensberg

Kaserei Bütschwil

Bütschwil,Switzerland

Raw Cow Milk

For a long time when we talked about cheese from Switzerland here in the US we were confined to a very small number of cheeses like Gruyere, Emmentaler, Appenzellaer, Sbrinz, maybe a little Vacherin Fribourg, and then it trailed off dramatically. About 10 years ago the Swiss Cheese Union opened itself up to allow cheesemakers to explore new cheese, some based on the classics and some totally new creations.  Today we have a bountiful selection of Swiss Alpine cheese to offer and regularly feature them as COTM selections. Güntensberg is the family’s namesake cheese, a variation on Appenzeller that incorporates Reto Güntensperger’s own housemade cultures and raw, whole milk. Reto and his father partition their milk supply, sending the 75 lower altitude farms’ milk to their Appenzeller production and using the remaining 50 Bergmilch suppliers (whose Brown Swiss and Braunvieh herds average 10-30 cows) for their own recipes. Güntensberg develops beautiful golden brown rind during its 5 months in the cellar, encasing a densely creamy body that releases a bright lactic blast that warms into buttered popcorn. Pleasantly balanced with bold flavors of cream & egg yolks.

The aging room at Buetschwil

Cabricharme

La Fromagerie de Méan

Maffe, Belgium

Raw Goat Milk

A Cheese Made in Belgium Selection

This tender and gooey delight is brought to us by our friend Peter Verbruggen at Cheese – Made inBelgium. Peter sources fantastic Belgian cheese for us here at The Plus and we’ve been enjoying this washed rind goat cheese all summer long. Made in the traditional Trappist style (think true Port Salut) this aromatic beauty is brine-washed producing its rich golden exterior. The rind is a bit salty and chewy, which makes an enjoyable contrast to the luscious creamy interior. In the mouth it’s like a meaty Pot de Crème, loaded with earthy flavors of mushrooms and broth with a tangy finish. A perfect match with beer, preferably a cloudy Belgian hefeweizen, served alongside a few slices of smoky ham or prosciutto, a crisp, and a crusty baguette!

Cabricharme