Roquefort – Girl Crazy, Cave Dwelling, Slow Kid – Thank you!

Roquefort Cosse Noir

I picked up some Gabriel Coulet Roquefort Cosse Noir at Whole Foods in Oakville, Ontario. This is a French cheese made from raw sheep’s milk.

According to Wikipedia:

Roquefort is one of the world’s best known blue cheeses. European law dictates that only cheese aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may bear the name Roquefort. Legend has it that the cheese was discovered when a youth, eating his lunch of bread and ewes’ milk cheese, saw a beautiful girl in the distance. Abandoning his meal in a nearby cave, he ran to meet her. When he returned a few months later, the mold (Penicillium roqueforti) had transformed his plain cheese into Roquefort.

That’s a great story but I’ve got a few questions.

In the first place, when I was young, if I had to choose between finishing a cheese sandwich or chasing after a girl I would have finished the sandwich then took after the girl. I mean seriously, how fast was this girl going, when she passed by, that required abandoning a cheese sandwich?

Secondly, that must have been some chase. That girl must have been really fast and the kid chasing her must have been half snail. How long does chasing a girl take? According to the story … a few months later? Well, if I didn’t get the girl within a few minutes, or a few hours at most, then I would give up and go back to finish my sandwich. With a full belly, I would wait for another girl to come along.

Ok then … I can come to terms with the kid being so girl crazy that he leaves his sandwich behind, and then he gets so distracted that he doesn’t come back … for months. BUT, when he returns and finds his cheese all moldy and stinky, WHAT IN THE WORLD was he thinking when he decided he should eat it anyway?

But I digress. It’s still a nice story and I’m glad he tasted it. I’m even more grateful that he had the sense to bring his discovery to the attention of the proper authorities to produce even more of the remarkable cheese.

The mold that gives Roquefort its distinctive character is Penicillium roqueforti and it is found in the soil of the Combalou caves in France.

Again, according to Wikipedia:

As of 2009, there are seven Roquefort producers. The largest by far is Roquefort Société made by the Société des Caves de Roquefort^[5] (a subsidiary of Lactalis), which holds several caves and opens its facilities to tourists, and accounts for around 60% of all production. Roquefort Papillon is also a well-known brand. The five other producers, each holding only one cave, are Carles, Gabriel Coulet, Fromageries occitanes, Vernières and Le Vieux Berger.

The cheese I tried, and that is pictured above, was produced by Gabriel Coulet. It is 44% milk fat with a 33% moisture content.

What does Roquefort Cosse Noir taste like?

It is milky, smooth, creamy, salty and packed with flavor. It is a strong cheese that will steal the show when put alongside a milder cheese. It spreads easily on crackers or bread. I recommend spreading it on a fresh warm baguette. On a cheese board it would take center stage.

I rank Roquefort high on my list of favorite cheeses and based on it’s popularity, I am not alone.

Here is a link to Roquefort France’s website.

Who the heck is Saint Agur?

Saint Agur – France

Saint Agur Blue Cheese

Today our cheese adventure takes us to the Auvergne region of central France to discover Saint Agur Blue Cheese.

Auvergne Region in France – Image from Wiki

I found this cheese at the deli counter at Michael-Angelos Market. They have a cheese case where they will cut the cheeses from the wheel in the amount you request. This was cut from the wheel … well it’s not really a wheel because Saint Agur Blue Cheese comes formed in an octagonal shape and wrapped in foil.

Saint Agur Blue Cheese Octagonal Form – Google Images

Saint Agur Blue Cheese was introduced in 1988 by the French Cheese Company Bongrain. When I first saw the name I assumed the cheese was named after some famous Saint in ancient history. I thought it would be interesting to find out who Saint Agur was and what notable accomplishment he must have achieved to have such a lovely cheese named in his honor.

The fact is, there is no Saint Agur and there never was. There isn’t even a town in France called Saint Agur. The name appears to be the result of a creative marketing department at Bongrain. I have to give them credit. The name is pretty swanky. And the cheese … well it is really good. Perhaps it will be a name that will live on for hundreds of years and someday will become a classic.

The cows milk for Saint Agur comes from the village of Beauzac in central France. The milk is pasteurized. This is a rich cheese with 60% butterfat which qualifies it as a double-cream cheese. The blue comes from the fungi penicillium roqueforti which is the same fungi used in Stilton, Cambozola and Roquefort.  The Saint Agur has a short aging time of 60 days. The foil wrap prevents the cheese from becoming more blue.

How does it taste?

I like blue cheese. When a I tried Cambozola it become my favorite blue, until now. Saint Agur might be the perfect blue for me. I find the Danish Blue cheese Rosenborg Castello a bit too salty. The Cambozola was nice, but it is very mild. I like a bit more blue flavor. Then along comes Saint Agur which is just right. It is a perfect balance of creamy and blue cheesy. It is buttery, like a triple-cream brie. It melts in your mouth and spreads smooth. It’s awesome.

The blue flavor I would classify as medium strong. If blue cheeses intimidate you then try Cambozola before stepping up to The Saint Agur.

I would suggest pairing it with any full bodied red wine, port or dessert wine.

Vive La France!
Vive La Saint Agur Blue Cheese!

Cambozola

Today our cheese adventure takes us to Germany. Cambozola is a very interesting cheese, a combination of Brie and Blue cheese. It is sometimes called Blue Brie or Bavarian Blue. It is made by Kasseri Champignon in Bavaria. The name “Cambozola” was trademarked in Germany in 1975.

Cambozola is made from pasteurized cow’s milk. It is similar to a soft-ripened triple cream but it has the added excitement of Penicillium roqueforti mold. The Penicillium roqueforti is the same mold used to make Stilton, Roquefort and Gorgonzola. For me it is the best of both worlds … smooth, nutty, creamy with a little zippy flavor from the blue. It spreads well on bread or crackers. The rind of the cheese is much like Camembert.

I did not get the best picture of the cheese but you can see what I am describing, streaks of blue in what otherwise appears to be  a piece of brie.

It is an excellent cheese for a cheese board as the mild blue would be satisfying to people who are not drawn to the stronger cheese varieties. I would suggest pairing it with apples, pears or grapes and a light to medium bodied Burgundy or Bordeaux wine. It also paired well with Graham’s 2003 Port on the evening my friend Mike and I did the tasting.

While researching I came across a recipe showcasing the Cambozola cheese and it looks amazing. I have not tried it, but I definitely will. The recipe is Warm Figs with Cambozola and Balsamic.

I found the official Cambozola website. Unfortunately it is not in English nor could I find an English version.

Blue cheese is my favorite variety of cheese and the Cambozola is near the top of that list.

Das ist wunderbar Käse! – This is wonderful Cheese!