Odd Cheese?

December 1, 2006 9:57 AM

What interesting or wonderful cheese should I try?

I love cheese. By my calculations I've tried over 100 distinct cheeses just in the last few months. Recent off-the-beaten-path cheese finds include Dorset Blue Vinny and Zamorano. Suggestions?

I like most cheeses. Things like Stinking Bishop and Limburger aren't really to my liking, but I'm not adverse to a fragrant Camembert. I live in San Diego where we have several good cheese shops, plus Bristal Farms, and I've had reasonably good luck with mail order, so I can usually get anything I want as long as it's legally imported. I do like to find great American cheeses. So local small producers are a favorite.

I'm sure I can find interesting things on my own, and cheese mongers always have something to try, but I thought it might be fun to query the AskMe crowd. What great yet rare cheeses should I try?

posted by MrCheese!!! to food & drink (50 comments total)

Oka.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 10:09 AM on December 1, 2006

Drunken Goat cheese.
posted by matildaben at 10:28 AM on December 1, 2006

manchego. ican't recommend it enough! yum!
posted by infinityjinx at 10:29 AM on December 1, 2006

If you like French triple-creams, definitely try:
Delice de Borgogne
http://www.gourmetfoodstore.com/gourmetclub/2004045/delicedebourgognecheese.asp
posted by stevemur at 10:34 AM on December 1, 2006

Wensleydale cheese is wonderful, iespecially f you can get a whole cheese. Start eating it fairly young, preferably with a slice a fruity (English) Christmas cake.

If you get a whole cheese, cut the entire top off as a thin slice, then slice off the pieces to eat; put the top slice back on top and wrap with cheesecloth to keep it fresh. Like all cheese, best not put in the refrigerator.
posted by anadem at 10:35 AM on December 1, 2006

Another excellent French triple-creme is Brilliat-Savarin
posted by briank at 10:41 AM on December 1, 2006

Ah, cheese, the meaning of (a good) life.

I guess you've already had a go, but make sure you try Epoisse - often said to be the smelliest (however they measure that) cheese in existence. Smelly, yes, but very very tasty.

Norway has a few interesting ones:

Jarlsberg is by far the most available internationally and is excellent as a snack and even better when melted, be it on a pizza or part of a hefty lasagne bechamel.

If you can get hold of it, try Gamalost -- if you ever meet any Norwegians they will be mighy impressed as the name means "old cheese" and it looks and smells really awful, while sporting a superb taste. Most Norwegians have never even dared tasting it.

While not technically a true cheese (it's made of caramelized whey), most foreigners can never understand Norwegians' passion for Brunost (aka Geitost - Brown or Goat's cheese) which is completely different from chevre or other goat's cheeses, with a light brown color, sweet taste and tender structure.

Back to other countries --- make sure you have had a sandwich with bacon, tomatoes, and grilled Haloumi -- perfect as lunch after a night out.
posted by jonmartin at 10:49 AM on December 1, 2006

Mutton buttons are the absolute best!
posted by sulaine at 10:56 AM on December 1, 2006

You must try aged mimolette. It is like nothing you have ever eaten. It is amazingly good and indescribable.
posted by solid-one-love at 11:01 AM on December 1, 2006

Fontina! Gruyere! Double Glouchester! (my three favorites, thought probably not all that rare)
posted by Devils Rancher at 11:01 AM on December 1, 2006

Mahon and Parrano are my two favorite cheese discoveries of the past year. They're both somewhat salty, nutty, hard cheeses, great for snacking. Either one in thin slices on top of Kashi TLC crackers is pretty much heaven.
posted by vytae at 11:08 AM on December 1, 2006

Explorateur. Brin d'Amour (do eat the rind too).
posted by Gilbert at 11:21 AM on December 1, 2006

I'll second Jarlsburg, and add in Irish Swiss cheese. It's quite a bit stronger than regular Swiss and very good.

Port Salut is yummy too.
posted by SisterHavana at 11:36 AM on December 1, 2006

truffle cheese from Umbria
posted by jouke at 11:39 AM on December 1, 2006

Manchego is a regular at our table. But you might also try Piave, a hard Italian, a little like Parmesan, but better on a cracker.
posted by booth at 11:40 AM on December 1, 2006

La Tur! It's an Italian triple-milk cheese (sheep, goat cow) that is really soft and creamy. It has a little bit of a mushroomy flavor. Definitely my favorite cheese discovery of the past few years.
posted by nekton at 11:43 AM on December 1, 2006

I've found some really great Quebec cheeses in the past year: Rassembleu, a raw milk blue cheese; Riopelle de l’Isle, a raw milk soft cheese similar to Brie; Le Pizy (PDF), a soft pasteurized cheese similar to Camembert.
posted by KathyK at 11:58 AM on December 1, 2006

Ossau Iraty from Pyrenees Mountains.

"The least known of any French Origin-Protected Cheese is probably the one with the most flavor."
posted by yeti at 12:12 PM on December 1, 2006

Have you tried any of the goat cheeses from the Capriole folks? Made in Indiana and rivals some of the best in the world.

If you like Spanish cheese, try Tetilla. You won't be able to keep your hands off it. (It's also very tasty.)
posted by j-dawg at 12:13 PM on December 1, 2006

Cabrales, from Asturias in Spain. It's a blue cheese and it makes strong stilton seem like philadelphia spread. I love it.
posted by itsjustanalias at 12:45 PM on December 1, 2006

I like gorgonzola from trader Joes, it smells like the unwashed feet of a homeless person who has been drowned in sewage for a week but it tastes nice.
posted by Iron Rat at 12:48 PM on December 1, 2006

Here's a list of "The South's Best Cheeses" from the Southern Foodways Alliance. I can vouch for no. 6, Chapel Hill Creamery...delicious. Plus they're always nice at the farmer's market.
posted by paleography at 12:52 PM on December 1, 2006

humboldt fog.
posted by culberjo at 12:57 PM on December 1, 2006

Here in the NW, this cheese isn't at all "odd", but remains one of my favorites. Also, it is made by a farmer cooperative which gives it extra bonus points in my mind.

Tillamook Special Reserve Extra Sharp Cheddar

Above, Anadem says "Like all cheese, best not put in the refrigerator." Is that true? Is it safe to keep it out? Then why is it always refrigerated in stores?
posted by Invoke at 1:10 PM on December 1, 2006

I'm guessing you've had Manchego, but if not, well, have it. Very good.

This has got to be at the top of the list of odd cheeses, but I highly doubt that you could ever get it shipped to the States.
posted by Deathalicious at 1:12 PM on December 1, 2006

I second La Tur, it's like cheese ice cream.
posted by rmless at 1:17 PM on December 1, 2006

A nice cheese (and punk rock, and politics, and booze) blog from a professional cheese buyer. Might give you some ideas.
posted by serazin at 1:22 PM on December 1, 2006

Etorki is one of my favorites that is a bit off the beaten path, though my cheesemonger stocks it with varying regularity.
posted by milkrate at 1:34 PM on December 1, 2006

Old Amsterdam aged gouda (like a cross between a smooth parmesean and a sharp cheddar)
Piave Vecchio (nutty, semi-soft Italian cheese, most similar to Asiago or Gouda)
St. Andre (French triple creme -- buttery heaven!)
Cheshire (rustic and sharp English farmhouse cheese)
Roquefort Papillon (smooth, spreadable French cave-ripened bleu - miles ahead of its more popular sister, Société, IMO)

... in fact, if you were to pull together the lot of the cheeses I recommend onto a single plate, you would have a cheesegasm.
posted by parilous at 3:51 PM on December 1, 2006

How about a sampler from the fine Bobolink family of products? Raw milk, grass-fed stinky goodness. I like their Drumm a lot.
posted by bink at 3:57 PM on December 1, 2006

Invoke: IAMACE (cheese expert), but I clerked in a gourmet cheese shop for 2 years. As far as I could tell, the refrigeration was used to slow the ripening process (soft cheeses) and to prevent the cheese moisture loss due to sweating (hard and semi-soft cheeses). The hard cheeses that we kept out of refrigeration 15 hours a day had to be re-wrapped every other day because they lost weight. (Lost weight = lost profits.)

I recommend keeping most cheeses in the fridge until the day I serve them, and then taking them to warm to room temperature for the best flavor.
posted by parilous at 4:00 PM on December 1, 2006

Ricotta salata--it is awesome, salty, tangy and crumbly.
posted by FergieBelle at 4:18 PM on December 1, 2006

One of the yummiest cheeses I've ever had was this firm-ish, caramel coloured, caramel flavoured cheese. I'm sorry that I can't offer you a name - maybe someone else knows this one. If it helps, it was someone from the Netherlands who introduced me to it.
posted by arcticwoman at 4:57 PM on December 1, 2006

Butterkase!
posted by sunshinesky at 5:18 PM on December 1, 2006

Parmigiano Reggiano
Maytag Blue

I second the Piave and Epoisse recommendations.
posted by Wet Spot at 5:23 PM on December 1, 2006

Garrotxa cheese

re mimolette: I bought someone a 12 month mimolette before, and was disappointed never to hear back from home what he thought of it. never gonna get him any food gifts again.
posted by bleary at 7:17 PM on December 1, 2006

arcticwoman, it's probably Gjetost you're thinking of, and I second the yumminess. I first had it at Restaurant Akershus at EPCOT down at Disneyworld. It is on the sweet side, and not for everyone. My current favorite is Campo de Montalban. I also love a good Stilton drizzled with honey. Oh, and check out Zingerman's for some American cheeses.
posted by booksherpa at 8:05 PM on December 1, 2006

Oh god. I got some smokey bacon cheddar cheese from this place that I think is amazing.

They have many other cheeses, and ship everywhere.
posted by drstein at 8:09 PM on December 1, 2006

Taleggio is a very stinky soft cheese, aged in caves, very nice. Stinky enough that you'll want to double-bag it for transport (IME).

Petit Basque (or P'tit Basque), a semi-soft sheep cheese, is awesome, one of my all-time favorites.

A 4-year cheddar from Zingerman's in Ann Arbor, and they also had an amazing Italian hard sheep cheese that I haven't been able to find again.

A real buffalo mozzarella

Lots of good suggestions above; I'd like to second:
Riopelle;
Manchego in thin planar slices;
Gjetost (caramelish; a thin slice is great with a slice of apple; weird at first but then you may not be able to stop going back for one more little taste);
Humboldt Fog and Drunken Goat are winners, ones that pretty much everyone will love.

Wegman's grocery stores, around the northeast US, have surprisingly excellent cheese selections in my experience.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:33 PM on December 1, 2006

I remembered! Pecorino Toscana was the amazing Italian hard sheep's cheese. A lovely friend got me a wedge of it two years ago and I still dream of it. Sigh.
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:09 PM on December 1, 2006

Labani are sour & delicious middle eastern balls soaked in olive oil. Excellent with olives, tomatoes, cucumbers
posted by growabrain at 12:15 AM on December 2, 2006

Pleasant Ridge Reserve is an excellent, if kind of expensive American cheese. It's kind of similar to Gruyere, but it's more buttery and smooth. Good stuff.
posted by lackutrol at 8:47 AM on December 2, 2006

Saga is a cross between blue cheese and brie. You should be able to find it in any grocery with a good imported cheese department.
posted by w_boodle at 10:28 AM on December 2, 2006

I definitely have to second the Humboldt Fog and Drunken Goat cheeses. Two really good ones. The Fog looks kind of...interesting...when at room temperature (for serving), but is wonderful.
posted by croctommy at 1:50 PM on December 2, 2006

I'm a big fan of Fougerous, which is kind of brie-like, but it's stored with a fern on it. I've bought it at Whole Foods.
posted by SoftRain at 2:56 PM on December 2, 2006

Uplands Pleasant Ridge Reserve is richly flavorful, Gruyere-ish but more complex. Azeitao (a sheep cheese from Portugal) was another favorite of ours last summer. In France I loved Clacbitou. You've tried more cheeses than I have, so what do you especially like?
posted by sevenstars at 8:28 PM on December 2, 2006

Morbier is a personal favorite, difficult to find but worth the search.
posted by Acetylene at 8:15 AM on December 3, 2006

Thanks folks. Lots of food for thought here.
posted by MrCheese!!! at 6:10 AM on December 5, 2006

More comments in this thread which was deleted today (for being similar to this one).
posted by ericb at 1:31 PM on December 6, 2006

Sant-Agur.
posted by meehawl at 4:45 PM on December 6, 2006