C'est Cheese and Chabichou!

This was an extremely cheesy weekend.  It's kind of taking over our lives... not that I mind. We've developed a semi-obsession, where we can't leave a store without checking out the cheese counter (even though we already have SO much in the fridge), and we're planning road trips to visit highly recommended cheese shops rather than historic landmarks. But, why be ordinary? Life is no fun without a little bit of eccentricity. And we like being weird :)

We went to C'est Cheese in Santa Barbara and had some lunch - grown-up grilled cheese and tomato soup, yum! -  and proceeded to buy too much cheese. We tried a couple samples from their cheese counters, and were very impressed by their selection of european imports and american artisan cheeses as well as a varied selection of cured meats.  And points to them for having an appetizing presentation in the dairy case - do you notice that when something looks cute and yummy you want to eat it even more? The C'est Cheesers definitely have it down. And everything was fresh and not too pungent or rancid smelling... thank goodness. After sampling, we went home with some Wensleydale (in honor of the Monty Python skit) imported from England, and some French cheese called Chabichou du Poitou (pronounced shaw-bee-shew doo pwa-too). It sounds so cute! When we got home we couldn't wait any longer, and we dug right in. We'll attack the Wenleydale later this week, so don't miss it!

But for now, let's talk about Chabichou. The brand that we bought is called Le Chevrot, and from that, you might be able to tell that this is a goat cheese (chèvre is french for goat). It is made in a western region of France called Poitou, and so it is called Chabichou du Poitou. And remember I told you about that naming board in France that protects cheese? Well, this particular cheese is protected by that organization, so you know it's authentic. It even has its own website! I find that amusing. You can find it here, but be warned, it is in French.  This particular brand (Le Chevrot) actually comes highly recommended in The Cheese Primer. About it, Steven Jenkins says "I have never tasted better goat cheese." That sounds promising!

Anyway, about our little Chabichou. It IS cute and little, just like it sounds. It comes in a small cylinder, about half the size of a can of soup. The rind is white and wrinkly-looking, like a brain. I'm 100% serious. And that's pretty much why we bought it - it looked nothing like anything else we've seen! So, you cut into it, and the inside is white and creamy, like cream cheese (but not as moist). So far, it seems pretty appetizing. Unfortunately, it is not as easy to eat as it is to look at. I struggle with goat cheese anyway- it makes my throat tense up and I gag - so its no surprise I couldn't eat very much of this.  Alan had no problem with it though, he dove right in. 

Because it's goat cheese, it has a sour, "goaty" punch. Not sour like a lemon, just a flavorless pucker-factor.  I guess the official term is "piquant,"  but just saying that makes me feel snooty. Veto: piquant. I'll stick with "goaty."  

It has zero sweetness, and has a strong earthy/mushroomy flavor. That's unexpected, because it looks just like cream cheese, yet tastes nothing like it.  It also smells like dirty socks... thankfully, it doesn't taste like them.  We found the texture to be silky, even though it looks a little bit chalky. It seems like this cheese is the poster child for "appearances can be deceiving." 

We did pretty well identifying the flavors (finally!); it was supposed to taste intensely like a barnyard and toasted nuts with a goat-like tang, according to Culture Cheese Magazine.  Mmmm... barnyard. That's what we got from it.

That wrinkly brain rind is edible, and it is suggested that eating it will intensify the flavors of the Chabichou, if you dare. Alan dared. And he regretted it, much to my amusement. His exact exclamation was "It's a nightmare!" and that it tasted like mustard punched him in the face. That's what you get for eating mold. He was still whimpering ten minutes later. 

Here's a photo of our cute Chabichou... don't judge it by it's cute exterior though. It's an intense cheese.  I couldn't handle it very well, because that goat gets me every time. And Alan would give his opinion, but he's still traumatized. I guess that's what makes a great goat cheese, though. We wish you better luck with it! Enjoy!

-Ashleigh

What the Challerhocker?!

We came across this interesting sounding cheese, and thought, "why not?" If it sounds funny, maybe it will taste delicious. This is another one that we got from C'est Cheese in Santa Barbara, CA.  It's a fantastic, quaint little cheese shop (which also has a delicious lunch menu) off the beaten in SB.  We love it there!

So, we got some Challerhocker, and looked it up without much initial success. But we kept at it, because I'm a research addict. Turns out, this is a lesser known relative of Appenzeller, and it hails from Switzerland - and what is with the swiss names for cheeses? They're so silly!

Time for a not-so-ancient-history-lesson: A man named Walter Rass, who is renowned for being an Appenzeller maker, tweaked his recipe for Appenzeller and created a brand new breed of cheese: Challerhocker. We haven't had Appenzeller yet but it sounds like Challerhocker isn't much like its granddad cheese.  It is cooked a little bit differently, and aged for 10 months in a cellar (and it's name translates to "sitting in the celler") and washed with wine and rubbed with a super top secret mix of herbs and spices before we ever get the chance to try it. And it sounds like this process makes it vastly different from the old fogey Appenzeller.
** If anyone knows, please correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds to me like Challerhocker is a recently invented cheese (since Walter Rass is still alive and handcrafting his original Challerhocker) and that it is only made by this one guy for one company in one town in Switzerland. To me, that sounds like a pretty spectacular cheese.  And, it has made such a name for itself that it's carried regularly at a small specialty cheese shop in SB... so it must be pretty good!

Enough with the disclaimers. Let's get munching!

Challerhocker is a firm, whitish cheese with a brown waxy rind. It has small holes in it like popular Swiss cheese, but its nothing like it. It's creamy, not at all plastic-y. And it's got those tiny little lactic acid crystals in it like we found in the Gouda. It melts on your tongue, if you have enough self-control to keep it there for a minute! As you can probably guess, we're not very good at that part. And now for the flavor. Very interesting, not like anything else we've tried. It's earthy, and nutty and has a very weird spice component. It reminded me of a spicy walnut rolled in dirt.  In a good way.  Alan and I argued (nicely) about how spicy it is... he says barely, with a slight acidity, and I say it's in-your-face spicy. Apparently, its only in my face. It literally burns my tongue, like black pepper. And don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy it. Probably because I love pepper.  I'm personally amazed that this cheese has such a crazy depth of flavor, which is actually what it is gaining so much notoriety for. It also has very little dairy flavor, which is refreshing - not like the rancid bleu cheese Alan made me eat last week. Yuck. The Challerhocker doesn't taste like sour milk at all. Hooray!

According to Cowgirl Creamery, which is a cheesemaker a few hours north of us, Challerhocker is supposed to taste a little bit like caramel, sweet cream, brown butter, and melted leeks. Leeks!? I've never had a leek... but it's related to onion, so that makes sense. Onions have a certain spiciness - In-your-face eye-burning spiciness. Tone it down a few notches, and you've got Challerhocker. We picked up on a little bit of the sweetness, too, so it looks like we're getting a little bit better at this.

So, I think this might be one of my favorites so far. Go Switzerland! I really like thats is so unique and un-cheesey. Alan likes that it is a light creamy cheese, without the pungent flavor that swiss cheeses can have. "It's good!" he says.  Highly recommended :) If you come across it, shell out the cash and get a small wedge... it goes for about $32/lb. But, for authentic, imported, one of a kind, original recipe cheesy goodness, it's worth it.  And tell us about your cheese adventures!

-Ashleigh