Thursday, August 25, 2011

This Week's Warehouse Tasting

Some things in life are worth waiting for, and might even be made better because of it. First kisses, rain (sweet rain!) and new cheeses. This week, we'll have Asher Blue from Sweetgrass Dairy on the cheese plate for the first time ever. Made from raw cow milk, the dense, creamy paste is crumbly with an earthy, salty flavor.

Another thing we've been waiting for is our upcoming tasting with Saint Arnold taking place next Wednesday, August 31. The last one we had was in the winter, on what was maybe the coldest day of the year. This will pretty much be the opposite of that. Mitchell Whitley from the Mozzarella Company and Brock Wagner of Saint Arnold will drop some knowledge bombs on us as we sip cold beer and nosh on cheese. You can buy tickets here.

In the meantime, you'll be able to stock up on San Andreas, a California cheese modeled after Pecorino, Pure Luck chevre and CKC Farm's luxuriously creamy Baby Blue at the warehouse this weekend. Here's to no more drought!


Thursday, August 18, 2011

This Week's Warehouse Tasting: Riesling Bath Edition

You could call what happens to us at the bar every day at 5pm a Riesling bath and we have a valid reason for this. It is very hot outside.

One of our featured cheeses this week also enjoys a good wine bath (honestly, who wouldn't?). It's the Pierce Pt. from Cowgirl Creamery. It's made in California using organic whole Jersey milk from John Taverna's Chileno Valley Dairy. Then, the cheese is spritzed with organic white wine and coated in dried coastal herbs. This summer's mixture includes local field flowers, calendula, chamomile and Thai basil. Pierce Pt. is delicious: as the Cowgirls describe it, the cheese is "semi-firm yet creamy, complex yet never overpowering." Just like we like our men (that joke had to be made at some point).

We'll also have Green's Creek Gruyere, more Del Cielo from Pure Luck Dairy and the show-stopping blue, Tilston Point from Hook's Cheese.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

This Week's Warehouse Tasting: Cheese Meds

Earlier this week, I was sitting in my bedroom when one of those giant Houston tree roaches scuttled across the wall. I screamed, naturally, and leapt up to find my cat.

"Chairman Meow!" I cried, "Eat the roach!" I scooped her from the bed, jumped off it and my left foot landed with a crack. Now I have a contusion.

Anyways, I was pretty much immobile the rest of the night and the only thing that made me not feel crushing despondence over the state of my life was the round of Pure Luck Dairy's Del Cielo in my fridge and some downy, leftover Slow Dough cranberry walnut bread from the Saturday warehouse tasting. I ate all of it. True story.

The cheese is a creamy, Camembert-style and it's just now reaching the perfect softness. Even though it's delicate and light (nice for summer), it's still super flavorful. So thank you, Amelia Sweethardt, for curing my depression, if not my foot, with your cheese.

Goats produce a lot of milk in August, so we will have a full stock of Del Cielo for the tastings this weekend. We'll also have Mt. Tam, the buttery triple cream from Cowgirl Creamery in California and the coffee and lavender rubbed Barely Buzzed. Come say hi and cure what ails you with some delicious dairy.


Cows in Repose on Veldhuizen Family Farm. Dublin, TX