I love trying different kinds of cheeses, although I have yet to train my taste buds to appreciate the blue cheese varieties or the stronger goat cheeses. And I am by no means a connoisseur... at least, I have yet to notice the subtle differences between the finer cheeses. Nonetheless, I do like a number of less commercial or well-known cheeses, but which are still probably easily appreciated by typical Singaporean taste buds. So you're all welcome to bumble along with me in my journey of discovery. ^_^
First up on this blog is comté, which is a kind of quality-checked French cheese, according to Wiki. Apparently, those that don't make the mark are sold in France as gruyère, a cheese of Swiss origin and the kind used in many Swiss cheese fondues. (Don't ask me why French think low quality French cheese = Swiss. Isn't that kinda insulting? O_o)
Anyway, this one that I tried didn't have much salt or acidity, but there was a clear milky flavour, and it was creamy. Strangely, I remember gruyère as having a slight sweetness to it, which I don't recall in this particular slice of comté, a further puzzle to how on earth it can be passed off as gruyère... -_-;; Anyway, It was quite pleasant to have on its own, and the price was also quite reasonable in my opinion. I suspect it would go well with salamis and other cured meats, as well as dried fruits or pastes, although I didn't try that this time.
I distinctly remember trying my first comté at the French restaurant called Gunther's. It's possible that I remembered wrongly, but that particular cheese I tried gave me a most bizarre impression - it had an aftertaste reminiscent of seafood essence O_o if I could put my finger on the flavour. Can someone please tell me how something from a land mammal can somehow end up tasting like the crustaceans that scour the ocean floor?? Maybe my taste buds are off, but my family was there and they didn't dispute my comment.
Anyway, it's possible that it was a very aged version of comté, as it cost much more. And while it was a most interesting and worthwhile experience, not everyone will enjoy the aged comté taste. So this commercial version probably suits most Asians just fine, and costs a lot less too.
Another cheese I've tried recently is iberico, which is Spanish in origin. In addition to cow's milk, sheep's and goat's milk are also used.
The texture is firmer and slightly pliable, but with a hint of being crumbly, reminding me of parmesan once I start chewing on it. It has some sharpness, but I would still consider it to be a mild flavour.
It goes very well with cured meats for sure! I once had a simple meal with just iberico and a couple of other cheeses with various salamis, and I remember it being an absolutely delightful explosion of taste and texture, mouthful after mouthful.
Edit: I realise my taste buds may be biased. My standard for "sharp" may be on the high side... so if I say it is "mild" in this post, maybe adjust the sharpness one or two notches up haha. I may have been spoiled by Coon vintage cheddar cheeses, or maybe it's because I tend to seek out stronger flavours. But I'll bear this in mind and adjust my descriptions for future posts especially on cheeses.
First up on this blog is comté, which is a kind of quality-checked French cheese, according to Wiki. Apparently, those that don't make the mark are sold in France as gruyère, a cheese of Swiss origin and the kind used in many Swiss cheese fondues. (Don't ask me why French think low quality French cheese = Swiss. Isn't that kinda insulting? O_o)
Anyway, this one that I tried didn't have much salt or acidity, but there was a clear milky flavour, and it was creamy. Strangely, I remember gruyère as having a slight sweetness to it, which I don't recall in this particular slice of comté, a further puzzle to how on earth it can be passed off as gruyère... -_-;; Anyway, It was quite pleasant to have on its own, and the price was also quite reasonable in my opinion. I suspect it would go well with salamis and other cured meats, as well as dried fruits or pastes, although I didn't try that this time.
Anyway, it's possible that it was a very aged version of comté, as it cost much more. And while it was a most interesting and worthwhile experience, not everyone will enjoy the aged comté taste. So this commercial version probably suits most Asians just fine, and costs a lot less too.
Another cheese I've tried recently is iberico, which is Spanish in origin. In addition to cow's milk, sheep's and goat's milk are also used.
Edit: I realise my taste buds may be biased. My standard for "sharp" may be on the high side... so if I say it is "mild" in this post, maybe adjust the sharpness one or two notches up haha. I may have been spoiled by Coon vintage cheddar cheeses, or maybe it's because I tend to seek out stronger flavours. But I'll bear this in mind and adjust my descriptions for future posts especially on cheeses.
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