Soft Cheese:
Münster
Semi-Soft Cheese:
Gorgonzola
Firm Cheese: Brick,
Colby, Farmers’, Lappi, Monteray Jack
Hard Cheese: Sardo
Münster:
A traditional table cheese made with cow’s milk, it has a smooth, sticky orange washed skin, cheese with a firm, creamy white interior perforated by tiny holes. Mild, piquant to mellow, milky, buttery flavour with a slight milk aroma.
Best for cubing, shredding, slicing, and snaking it
produces long, narrow strips for use as a topping and
in cooking. It melts and browns at high temperatures.
It cuts nicely into chunks for salads and cheese trays.
It is delightful on rye bread or pumpernickel sandwiches.
At the end of a meal or at a tasting, it goes very well
with pâtés and deli meats.
Try Münster with Pinot noir, Baco Noir, Marchel Foch, dry Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Seyval, dry rosés or blush wines.
Available in whole and wedge form.
Gorgonzola:
This is a traditional, soft, creamy blue cheese made from cow’s milk with a red to orange rind streaked with greenish veins. It has a less pungent flavour than most other blue cheeses. The greenish-blue mould imparts a sharp, spicy flavour and provides and excellent contrast to the rich, creamy cheese.
Gorgonzola can be used for a table cheese, in dressings,
on salads, or on pasta or gnocchi. It breaks easily
into small pieces for potato or salad toppings or for
use in fillings, dips and dressings. It can also be
used as a snack with fruit and crackers.
Try Gorgonzola with light, fruity white wines (Vouvray, Chenin Blanc, or a rosé).
Available in wedge form
Brick:
Modern small cheese made from cow’s milk. Sticky burnt orange, washed rind.
Used as a table cheese. Rind has a pungent aroma. The pale yellow interior is velvety smooth and dense. It has a sweet and savoury taste with a spicy tang.
Mild and slightly tart. Creamy white; mild and sweet to pungent and slightly tangy flavour.
Creamy, yellow cow’s milk cheese with small holes. Mild to sharp flavour.
Brick is a white to ivory rindless firm cheese with a springy texture. Its flavour is similar to cheddar but milder. Brick is good as a snack, in sandwiches or salads and in cooking.
Used in appetizers, salads, salad dressings, in cooked foods and desserts.
Can be spread on crackers or cut into cubes and slices
of eating out of hand. Cuts easily and generally melts
well for use in sandwiches.
Try pairing it with apples, pears, red or green grapes.
Try Brick cheese with Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Baco Noir, Riesling, Cayuga or rosé wines or beer.
Colby:
A firm, traditional rindless, washed, curd cheese made with cow’s milk. Colours range from white to bright orange. It has a soft and springy texture with a sweet and mild, mellow, milky, buttery flavour.
Colby is used as a table cheese, for grating, shredding, slicing or grilling. It can be can cut into cubes or slices for snacking. It melts best when shredded or grated.
When used in recipes it is for texture rather than flavour
As versatile as Cheddar, Colby can be used in many ways.
Delicious in a sandwich, in a salad, in an omelet or
in a quiche, it is just as delicious in ham or asparagus-stuffed
pancakes. It browns very nicely on lasagna, pizza and
soups.
Try pairing Colby with apples, pears, mushrooms, tomatoes, pumpernickel and rye breads.
Try Colby cheese with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Seyval wines, port, beer, or apple cider.
Available in brick form.
Farmers’:
Farmer’s is a rindless, firm cheese usually in the shape of rectangular blocks. Both its surface and body are ivory in colour. It has a creamy texture and its body may have a few openings scattered throughout. Its taste is mild, milky and buttery.
A good Farmers' can be recognized by the fact that it cuts easily into thin slices without crumbling. It melts and browns at high temperatures.
Very versatile, Farmers' will do very well in sandwiches,
on pizzas, in soups or in salads. It is a delicious
filling for strudels and blintzes and nicely pairs with
fruit and a cup of tea.
Try fuller-bodied or full-bodied reds with Farmers’ cheese such as: Bourgogne, Bordeaux, Médoc, Côtes-du-Rhône, Zinfandel, Chianti, Saint-Émilion, Merlot, and Porto. Also try white wines such as: Riesling, Ice wines, Dessert wines, and Sauternes.
Available in wedge form.
Lappi:
Lappi is so named because its recipe was developed in the Lapand region of Finland. It is a tasty, smooth and pleasant cheese made with part skim milk and therefore lower in fat than many other cheeses. It is similar to Swiss cheese, but with smaller holes and slightly firmer texture. It is also less nutty and more sweet than your average Swiss cheese.
It is a classic melting cheese and can be substituted
into your favourite fondue recipes. It slices easily
and is used as a table cheese, dessert cheese or sandwich
cheese.
Try Lappi with beer, ales, ciders, stouts or red and white wines.
Available in wedge form.
Monteray Jack:
This Firm, cheddar-type, rindless cheese made with cow’s milk is yellow, gold or orange in colour and has a firm creamy texture. It has a mild, slightly nutty flavour, mixed with a delicate sweet and sour tang.
Monteray Jack is best cubed, shredded, or sliced. This
cheese is excellent as a sandwich cheese, as a cooking
ingredient, or on a cheese platter. Try pairing it with
plums, peaches, jalapenos or toasted pecans.
Try Monteray Jack with Sauvignon Blanc, medium-bodied Merlot, fruity Zinfandel, Riesling, Pinot Noir, Baco Noir, Marechal Foch, Gewurztraminer, Cayuga, Seyval, Vignoles, dry rosé, or blush wines, sherries, sparkling wine, or lemon-lime sparkling water.
Available in wedge form in either regular or hot pepper flavours.
Sardo:
A traditional, hard, grainy, straw-coloured, compact cheese made with sheep’s milk with a hard ridged, natural rind is golden-yellow to dark brown.
Mellow, rich and slightly salty, this cheese has a wonderful rich flavour with a caramel sweetness, a salty tang and a hint of fruit.
A grating cheese with a distinctive taste. Similar to
Romano. It has a delicate, nutty flavour when young
and can be eaten but it develops a much more distinctive
sharper taste as it is aged. Sardo can also be used
as a table cheese, as a snack and in cooking.
Try Sardo grated over pasta, rice, soup or steamed vegetables. Also try it shaveed thinly over salads or enchiladas.
Try red wine with some robust fruit and restrained tannin
with Sardo cheese.
