What’s been happening around the store?
LOTS.
Last week-end you all came out to honor our own Geezers on the front porch. Rain be damned; you came anyway. This week we mounted our one-week-only quilt show full of so many sentimental memories and really good stitching. This Saturday magnificent big quilts will be hanging in the Gazebo all day.
And we are getting ready to hang the next art show on Monday, “A History of the Land. Landscapes of our forebears” featuring the artwork of Jayne Hastings! A reception for her and all the artists will be on Friday, September 26 from 5-6pm. Beverage and food tastings plus good friends. Mark your calendar!
What’s new.
Moses Reaper cheese is coming back today! MOSES SLEEPER is a Jasper Hill Creamery original, inspired by classic, French Brie. This cheese’s historic namesake, Moses Sleeper, and his compatriot, Constant Bliss, were Revolutionary War scouts killed while defending a blockhouse along the Northeast Kingdom’s legendary Bayley Hazen Military Road.
This time of year Jasper Hill Cellars releases a festive version of this called Moses Reaper tinting the cheese with anato for a Halloweeny-fall vibe. One of our most favorites cheeses, we ordered lots for the season. Try it with some seasonal jam spreads. We love what Blake Hill in Vermont does with their flavors.
Cabot Cloth Bound cheddar is back. In 2003, Cabot Creamery asked Jasper Hill Cellars to age a special batch of cheddar, sparking a revolutionary collaboration. After more than a decade the cheese has developed into the cornerstone of Jasper’s collection. After it comes to the Cellars, they coat the young cheese in lard and add an additional layer of cloth. The cheeses ripen in a specially calibrated vault in their Cellars, where they are constantly brushed, turned, and monitored for quality. Clothbound has a signature tang and caramel nuttiness with a rustic crystalline texture that becomes creamy on the palate and has won multiple awards including American Cheese Society’s Best in Show 2006.
Tasting cheese.
Like many foods, eating cheese at the right temperature enhances your eating experience. If not too cold, the taste opens up to melt on your tongue allowing all your taste buds and your olfactory glands to receive the experience. Tasting it while smelling it lets it’s nuances curl up inside of your head for a prolonged eating experience.
All cheese tastes best at room temperature.
Rule of thumb: set your cheese out 1 hour before serving it to allow the flavor and smell molecules to develop. Softer cheeses are meant to smear and ooze on your vehicle of choice while hard cheeses are meant to be sliced thinly so it can melt on your tongue.
Topping your cheese with condiments that compliment its flavor enhances the cheesiness and brings out surprising flavor notes. You’ve heard wine experts talk about “licorice”, “vanilla”, “toasted nuts”, etc flavor notes in the bottle, and cheese, because it is also an aged food, will similarly take on recognizable flavors forced out with the pairing of condiments…or wine.
Great with cheddars…
Cheese pairing Tomato jam
Do you have a lot of tomatoes left in your garden? You could make your own cheese jam!
Chop up washed, unpeeled tomatoes and simmer them until they are no longer watery. Add sugar to taste and cook longer until the mixture gets thick and jammy. Add autumn pumpkin-like spices if desired. Try different sugars to get different flavors. Brown sugars and raw sugars will give a more caramely flavor.
Starting this week-end we can offer you made-to-order hot cider and cocoa. We’ve worked out how to make our concentrates to blend with hot water for on-the spot comfort. Add some extra syrup or 1/2 ‘n 1/2 for a customized experience. Take that Starbucks!!
Have a great week-end we hope to see you round the store,
Jane and Dave
Canterbury Country Store 