Perhaps it’s the heat, perhaps it’s just me but I’ve finally realized I have been missing out on a great opportunity to share.
We work with Western Montana Growers Cooperative, a local distribution center up here in our corner of the world and are also part of their CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) baskets of fresh foods. Twice a month, those who have the cheese share receive a piece of our cheese and a little write up about the item we’ve sent along.
Sheesh. I could be sharing that info with you. I’m a little behind as I just wrote my 6th installment so expect something new to read on a far more regular basis.
If you’ve never heard of or have yet to try joining a CSA program in your area, here is WMGC’s site, http://www.wmgcoop.com/, for you to look around and peak your interest in eating local. Of course, purchasing artisanal cheeses on line (yes, I promise, it’s coming soon!!) is still quite acceptable and not quite the same as local produce. There are incrementally fewer of us. Now I’m just rambling. Here’s the first of cheese notes talking about our signature aged Gouda – Doorstop.
Greetings from Flathead Lake Cheese
Since we are just into our first full year of operation, we thought it would be nice to introduce our cheeses to you. Today you’ve got a piece of Doorstop Gouda. Odd name? Well there’s a story to go with it. Waiting for our test batches to age 6 to 8 month to come to full flavor, Joe quipped, “Heck, if they don’t work out, we can always use ‘em for doorstops.” The cheese worked great and the name stuck, too.
Now you’re probably looking at it wondering where the wax went. Well, we choose to use a polymer coating on our cheeses which allows for moisture dissipation. This results in a drier, more complex flavor.
The Doorstop we cut for you is nearing 11 months in age and has formed a lovely crystal crunch. Those are lactic acid crystals that give it a wonderful bite.
While the coating is edible, it is far from the best part of the cheese and we’d suggest you cut it away and if you find the edges under the coating a little hard or dry – don’t toss them out, they grate quite nicely. In fact, I’ve been using them rather than a Parmigianino Reggiano. Yum!
Wendi and Joe, Flathead Lake Cheese
