Italy wins. I think British cheeses are underrated. I love British cheese. France makes awesome cheese. Great cheeses from Spain, Austria, Switzerland, etc. Wonderful artisan cheeses from the US, too. But Italy takes the cake. Depth, breadth, quality. Fantastic.
6 comments:
My time in the Auvergne region of France helped me really appreciate French cheese. It still fascinates me to be offered a choice between dessert or le chariot de fromage. I always wondered, "Why not both?", but I usually chose the chariot.
Italian cheeses are perfect for Italian food I guess.
What are the British cheeses besides cheddar? I ask out of ignorance and curiosity not sarcasm, so I really am curious.
And then there's 'Merkin Cheese [tm]. I actually like it for certain things. For example a cheeseburger should have 'Merkin Cheese[tm] on it. Well, unless there are sautéed mushrooms - then it should be swiss cheese I guess... for some reason. Also the American-style grilled cheese sandwich should have 'Merkin Cheese[tm]. Cheddar is a close second here though.
Ah, Italian cheeses are for much more than Italian food. I just had a version of a ricotta that was aged a bit. Not a soft version, but requiring a knife to cut -- dry and a little crumbly, more like a manchego.
British cheeses that I most often get are cheddar (of course, but it's still great), gloucester, red leicester, wensleydale, and the noble and exalted stilton. Also some fine goat cheeses and soft cheeses from farmers mkts but I wouldn't expect those to ever get exported.
On cheeseburgers, cheddar is my default cheese, although a milder, younger variety (melts better, too). Although asiago is also good. Stilton or another blue cheese is excellent as well.
I will keep an eye out for those other British cheeses, but I think they will be difficult to find here in Reno. I may have to stop by an actual cheese shop if I can find one that hasn't gone under lately. Thanks...
Aside from cheddar, stilton should be your best bet in terms of export availability I would think.
Avoid Chinese cheese. Not good.
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