Hey Everyone,
Thanks for participating and making our first Wine & Cheese a success. Thanks for your patience as we were figuring things out for the first time and helping out. Just wanted to also thank everyone who brought fruit, wine, cheese, crackers, bread, and got involved with baking, prepping and cleaning.
We also want to survey you guys to see what your favorite parts of the night were. Please list your favorite 3 (or more) pairings and/or wine and/or cheese. I know it's hard, there's so many yummy things! Please use the blogger comments to leave your thoughts - this participation is mandatory =) !
GL's Top 3 pairings:
Piave/Osborne Sherry
Brie de Meaux/Sparkling Wine
Manchego/Rioja
MM's Top Choices:
Pairings:
Piave/Osborne Sherry
Roquefort/CEV Late Harvest Vidal
Crottin (du chevre)/Vineland Semi-dry Riesling
Wines:
Vineland Semi-dry Riesling
Chateaux des Charmes Gewurztraminer
Henkell Sparkling Wine
Cheeses:
Piave
Manchego
Brie
Here's the menu from the event:
Course 1
Manchego, Spain
Rioja, 2003 Reserva Muga, Spain
Brie de Meaux, France
Sparkling Wine, Henkell Blanc de Blancs, Germany
Stilton, England
Port, Croft Indulgence Port, Portugal
Course 2
Saxonshire, England
Cabernet Sauvignon, 1996 Magnotta Millenium, Ontario, Canada
Piave, Italy
Sherry, Osborne Santa Maria, Spain
Smoked Gouda, Holland
Gewürztraminer, 2006 Chateaux des Charmes, Ontario, Canada
Course 3
Fourme D’Ambert, France
Select Late Harvest, 2001 Twenty Valley, Ontario, Canada
Crottin (du chevre), France
Semi-dry Riesling, Vineland, Ontario, Canada
Cremeux du Jura, France
Pinot Grigio, 2006 Santa Margherita, Italy
Course 4
Roquefort, France
Late Harvest Vidal, 2005 Colio Estates Vineyard, Ontario, Canada
Course 4.5 (Cheese Only)
Calabrese
Prima Donna
12 Year Old White Cheddar
Read the full story »
Showing posts with label piave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label piave. Show all posts
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The Day I Met Piave. . .
The day I met Piave, the very first taste was love. You think I'm joking, but it's true.
Let's Talk About Cheese Shops, Baby
This past Saturday, we went cheese-trying, which quickly turned into cheese-buying (as it often does) - to test and try out some cheeses for our first wine and cheese party this Saturday. The first stop was Alex Farm Products at Bayview and just south of Eglinton, while the second, the Cheese Emporium, was just around the corner at Avenue and Eglinton. Both had quite the variety of cheeses, while different in selection - but being Saturday afternoon, it seemed that store keeps and the real cheese experts, had little patience for those "trying" rather than "buying."
All day I searched high and low for my beloved Prima Donna, a cheese I discovered last year at my beloved Global Cheese store in Kensington market (by far one of the best cheese shops in Toronto, in terms of knowledgable, friendly service). Cheese Magic is good, too, but the claustrophobia often takes over. CM's great because they refrigerate a lot more than GC, though. Cheese Boutique on South Kingsway is amazing, but a little farther off :)
Back to our story. Alas, neither CE nor AF had to me, what was my "grail" of cheeses.
It was then that Rico at CE (his name wasn't really Rico, but I like calling him Rico) suggested I try a 4 year old Gouda - which would be "better" than my Prima Donna. That finished on the tongue as rather salty and so I declined.
The mark of a real cheese expert, like Rico, despite his impatience at 2 foolish beginner cheese appreciators - is his/her mastery and skill to match a cheese to a person. Much like Ollivander with wands, this skill must be appreciated: to be able to read one's very distinct and specific taste preferences, and try and match the perfect degree of saltiness, age, moistness, dryness, nut or fruit flavour, taste experience - all in one palm sized piece of cheese. Truly a gift, and possibly required years of intensive training in monasteries to develop.
That was how I met Prima Donna last year, and how I met Piave on Saturday. Piave is made in the Piave River Valley region of Belluno, Italy - and is a sweet and delicate cheese, and the block we tried was slightly aged and thus dry, but had a full and bold flavour with a little bit of crunch and nuttyness, especially near the end. Absolutely beautiful.
It was as if I was flying free, high in the skies - until I met Roquefort (scary music duh duh duh) - and fell 50 feet in the air, while breaking my arm hitting the ground.
Despite my love and my experience in cheese, I have learned that in the world of cheese, humility is always required. And so it was at CE, soonafter Piave, that I met my greatest challenge thus far: a very blue, moldy, and veined Roquefort that stung the tongue and made my head spin. Roquefort is known as one of the "king of cheeses" and I know that, much like coffee when you are 5 years old, Roquefort is something that grows on you with enough cheese experience.
Until then, I am amateur enough to be able to say - should someone really eat something with that much moldy blue in it? ;) Don't forget to RSVP for the Wine + Cheese Party by Wed/Oct/31/07 - you'll meet Roquefort in the "try if you dare" course. Read the full story »
Let's Talk About Cheese Shops, Baby
This past Saturday, we went cheese-trying, which quickly turned into cheese-buying (as it often does) - to test and try out some cheeses for our first wine and cheese party this Saturday. The first stop was Alex Farm Products at Bayview and just south of Eglinton, while the second, the Cheese Emporium, was just around the corner at Avenue and Eglinton. Both had quite the variety of cheeses, while different in selection - but being Saturday afternoon, it seemed that store keeps and the real cheese experts, had little patience for those "trying" rather than "buying."
All day I searched high and low for my beloved Prima Donna, a cheese I discovered last year at my beloved Global Cheese store in Kensington market (by far one of the best cheese shops in Toronto, in terms of knowledgable, friendly service). Cheese Magic is good, too, but the claustrophobia often takes over. CM's great because they refrigerate a lot more than GC, though. Cheese Boutique on South Kingsway is amazing, but a little farther off :)Back to our story. Alas, neither CE nor AF had to me, what was my "grail" of cheeses.
It was then that Rico at CE (his name wasn't really Rico, but I like calling him Rico) suggested I try a 4 year old Gouda - which would be "better" than my Prima Donna. That finished on the tongue as rather salty and so I declined.
The mark of a real cheese expert, like Rico, despite his impatience at 2 foolish beginner cheese appreciators - is his/her mastery and skill to match a cheese to a person. Much like Ollivander with wands, this skill must be appreciated: to be able to read one's very distinct and specific taste preferences, and try and match the perfect degree of saltiness, age, moistness, dryness, nut or fruit flavour, taste experience - all in one palm sized piece of cheese. Truly a gift, and possibly required years of intensive training in monasteries to develop.
That was how I met Prima Donna last year, and how I met Piave on Saturday. Piave is made in the Piave River Valley region of Belluno, Italy - and is a sweet and delicate cheese, and the block we tried was slightly aged and thus dry, but had a full and bold flavour with a little bit of crunch and nuttyness, especially near the end. Absolutely beautiful.It was as if I was flying free, high in the skies - until I met Roquefort (scary music duh duh duh) - and fell 50 feet in the air, while breaking my arm hitting the ground.
Despite my love and my experience in cheese, I have learned that in the world of cheese, humility is always required. And so it was at CE, soonafter Piave, that I met my greatest challenge thus far: a very blue, moldy, and veined Roquefort that stung the tongue and made my head spin. Roquefort is known as one of the "king of cheeses" and I know that, much like coffee when you are 5 years old, Roquefort is something that grows on you with enough cheese experience.Until then, I am amateur enough to be able to say - should someone really eat something with that much moldy blue in it? ;) Don't forget to RSVP for the Wine + Cheese Party by Wed/Oct/31/07 - you'll meet Roquefort in the "try if you dare" course. Read the full story »