What's your favorite cheese?

[Spaldeen]

The Limburger thread made me think to ask!

I've been on a Bellavitano Gold kick lately, but I've always been partial to goat cheese with herbs on crackers.

[elleng]

1. I love Gruyere,

but usually consume cheddar and swiss. I STRONGLY DISLIKE the blue cheeses.

[cbayer]

2. Pecorino.

I am passionate about cacio e pepe, and I love a very good pecorino.

[Galileo126]

19. Amen!

I can't have pasta without pecorino.

I...just...can't.

[cbayer]

20. I have not been able to find either pecorino or an acceptable parmesan

in Mexico.

I lived on it over the summer and am grieving now.

[Luminous Animal]

27. Mexico has some excellent cheeses.

Try the añejo cotija; the aged cotija (up to 36 months) is akin to parmesan and also stands on its own. In the US, parmesan is usually listed as a substitute in Mexican recipes. (Regular cotija is good too, but saltier and more feta-like.) Pecorino is usually listed as a substitute for manchego viejo and Monterey Jack as a substitute for regular manchego.

Mexico has some great cheeses in it's own right. I love the queso cincho.

The website http://lactography.com promotes Mexican artisan cheese. Explore!

[cbayer]

28. I am really trying to learn about them and not very successful so far.

I really appreciate the input and the link.

I do not like the crumbly, salty cheese that is most like feta and that seems to be the most popular.

I just bought some cotija and it sounds like it's going to be like the ones I don't like.

Manchego is good and I like the stringy cheese (oaxaca, I think) - it's best for quesadillas, imo.

I need to talk to the cheese people about quesos anejos, I think.

The mac and cheese I made last night from a cheese labeled as "gouda" was about as bland as it could be.

And the "mozzarella" I bought last week bore not resemblance to mozz at all.

I love cheese and just need to keep trying things until I find what I like.

And I definitely need to stop buying those with english names.

[NRaleighLiberal]

3. Parmesan Reggiano, Prima Donna aged Gouda, and for great value - Trader Joe Unexpected Cheddar

I love Shelburne Farms 3 year aged cheddar too - really expensive, though!

[Major Nikon]

4. Brie and Camembert

But not the crap you get in the states either domestic or imported. In France both are made from raw milk and are far superior over there.

[Spaldeen]

6. Oh I love Brie!

I haven't had it in such a long time though! I don't know if I can get imported Brie from where I buy my cheese. I'll have to check.

[Major Nikon]

8. Imported or domestic doesn't really matter

It's not the same as you get in France even if it's made in France. It has to do with the federal dairy rules here in the states which basically prohibit or severely restrict the sale of cheese made from unpasteurized milk. For most hard cheeses it doesn't really matter, but many soft cheeses just aren't the same in the states.

[cali]

18. I think Oma, Willoughby, Harbison and Moses Sleeper are superior to most bries and camemberts

they are domestic. Oma is a raw milk organic cheese.

and yes, I've had bries and camemberts in france.

[Major Nikon]

21. I haven't tried any of those

It is possible that local cheese makers can use unpasteurized milk so long as the state they are in permits it and they do not ship across state lines. For ones that are shipped across state lines, it's also possible to use unpasteurized milk under very specific conditions, provided the cheese is cured for more than 60 days. If the cheese maker you specified is shipping across state lines and using unpasteurized milk, I suspect that's what they are doing. Camembert and Brie you get in France (at least the artisan ones) are aged 3 weeks and the fresher you can get them the better.

[cali]

24. You can get these cheeses directly from Jasper Hill

Yes, most are aged more than 30 days.

http://cellarsatjasperhill.3dcartstores.com/

[northoftheborder]

5. Any real French cheese is delicious to me; (except for bleu cheese, which I cannot stand)

[greatauntoftriplets]

7. I'll go with gouda and gruyere.

[pinto]

9. I really like nutty or spicy cheeses. A good hard cheese for slicing, cheddars for general use.

Romano and Parmesans are on the list. Not a big fan of cheeses with blue mold, though some of the milder ones are good. And I love brie, a mild mold cheese.

[noamnety]

10. Blue brie.

I got seriously hooked on it when I lived in Germany.

[The empressof all]

11. Trader Joes Unexpected Cheddar is our go to every day noshing cheese

It is really kind of spectacular. I also really like Cougar Gold made at the Washington State University Creamery.

http://cougarcheese.wsu.edu/DirectionsWEB/webcart_itemBuy.php?itemid=100

It's really good especially if you let it sit for a while in the can. It sells out quick if you get it directly from the school but it is the best price...

[Retrograde]

12. Cowgirl Creamery's Red Hawk

a washed-rind soft cheese - I don't know if it's available outside of California. Luckily for my waistline it's pricey enough that I can't indulge too often.

And in a very close second place is a good strong cheddar. Or maybe a moldy one, like Maytag Blue or similar. Or an aged Parmeseam. Or a Manchego, or a Pont L'eveque, or a Red Leicester, or - there are very few bad cheeses.

[Adsos Letter]

26. Used to love the orange Mimolette that Cowgirl Creamery used to import...

...before it was banned for import because of it's use of cheese mites.

Have you been to their shop at the Ferry Building on the SF Embarcadero?

[HeiressofBickworth]

13. Jarlsburg

Like Swiss, but a nuttier flavor. Love it on a hunk of French or Italian bread with real butter. Some apple slices and a cup of tea -- that's a perfect lunch as far as I'm concerned. Of course, neither cheese, bread nor real butter are on my daily diet, but occasional indulgence can't kill me, right?

[betsuni]

14. I am a cheese monster.

I love the creamy buttery soft European processed cheeses like Laughing Cow and the tube cheeses of Scandinavia, the Emmental blend from Austria, Hello Toni. Boursin and the little flavored Belcubes; runny wheels of brie and camembert. Nutty Emmental, Jarlsberg, Gouda. Havarti, Port-Salut, Ridder. Gjetost on rye crispbread. Extra sharp cheddar with apple slices. I've developed a taste for blue cheese and even the powerful Stilton -- crackers made with blue cheese are delicious.

[Snarkoleptic]

15. I'm partial to fontina and gruyere.*

*Plus a dozen or so others.

Living in Illinois near the Wisconsin border has it's advantages.
These folks produce some of the best cheese I've ever had.
http://www.rothcheese.com/

[cali]

16. I don't know where to start, but Oma is fabulous. Amazing

<snip>

Sebastian and Dan Von Trapp (yes, related to those Von Trapps!) have a small herd of mixed-breed cows in the Mad River Valley of Vermont. The brothers craft their cheese several times a week, and then work closely with the Cellars at Jasper Hill to age their raw milk cheese to 60-75 days. "Oma" is German for "grandmother," and the cheese is named after Sebastian and Dan's Oma, Erica Von Trapp, who started the family farm over 50 years ago..."

Oma is a washed-rind, cow's milk cheese with lovely, silky texture. It has fast become a staff and customer favorite at Formaggio Kitchen, and for good reason: it's buttery, rich, funky, tangy, and addictive. Try it with some of our house-made pate de campagne and a few cornichons on the side.

<snip>

http://www.formaggiokitchen.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=2438

Then there's Moses Sleeper:

http://culturecheesemag.com/cheese-library/Moses-Sleeper

In fact, anything out of Jasper Hill Farm is nothing short of phenomenal: Bailey Hazen Blue, Willoughby, Harbison, Cabot clothbound cheddar.

http://www.jasperhillfarm.com/

Alas, all these cheeses are quite expensive, but in my book, worth every penny.

If you can get your hands on any of them, do it.

[Major Nikon]

22. Really good cheeses are expensive for a reason

There's a lot of resources, steps, labor, and artisanship involved. It's just one of those things that doesn't lend itself to mass production.

[cali]

23. oh, I know. I live just down the road from Jasper Hill and some of the other

fantastic cheese makers in Vermont. What's going on here re artisan cheese making is just wonderful. There are literally dozens of world class cheese makers here. I don't for a second begrudge the high prices.

[sinkingfeeling]

17. Italian Fontina.

[Worried senior]

25. We like Butterkase

[no_hypocrisy]

29. Provolone

[Nac Mac Feegle]

30. My favorite nibbling cheese

Smoked gouda

Although a good sharp cheddar is welcome.

Feta is great with Kalamata olives.

Make a grilled ham & cheese with a good sliced ham and gruyere.

A good pepper jack cheese makes an awesome cheeseburger.

Brie and nushrooms are a match made in heaven: dice up the shrooms fine and mix with the brie and spread on a cracker.

I guess I'm a weirdo; I like the blue cheeses.

I do have fond memories of a small Greek restaraunt that had a real Saganaki: Flaming Kaseri put out with lemon juice.

[sir pball]

31. 10 year cheddar, probably.

There's a fantastic little dairy that sells waxed pounds at the green market, I can never resist..

Of course, that's not all I love...also see a good Stilton, buratta, tomme creyeuse, raclette...and specifically Land O'Lakes white deli American!

[japple]

32. I love sage derby, extrasharp cheddar, Wensleydale (thank you, Wallace &

Grommit), smoked Gouda. I also adore dry jack, but have been unable to find it in any store in my area. If I want it, I guess I'll have to order from CA.

[Spaldeen]

33. Wensleydale!

Yeah, that and Stilton.

The only problem I have with Wensleydale is finding it without bits of fruit or other things in it. I like my Wensleydale straight up!

[cbayer]

34. Mmmmm, Cheese! A nice piece of Wensleydale would be perfect right now.

[bif]

35. All of them!

I never met a cheese I didn't like. Trader Joe's has a double cream Brie that's especially good. And lately I've been buying a Michigan smoked Gouda at Costco that's quite tasty.