March 18, 2008

La Fête du Fromage - Brebis Frais and le Bouchon de Chèvre

We tasted a soft, earthy Fromage de Brebis Frais and a deceptively strong Bouchon de Chèvre this week.


The Brebis Frais comes from a sheep farm in the Corbières whose cheese we've tasted before. In January we tried their sublime Brebis des Corbières, so I was excited to try another cheese from their farm.
This cheese was frais, meaning fresh, thus the flavor was mild. At first bite it was very soft, then as the flavor developed it became tangy and sweet. We loved it! It was a dewy, dense little disk that had a grassy, fresh aroma.
An all around very friendly cheese.

Wine from the same area, the Corbières, would pair well with this cheese.



This flavorful little goat cheese is named for the object it resembles, a wine cork - a bouchon. (which can also mean a cap, a plug or a traffic jam - go figure)
Le Bouchon de Chèvre was commonly referred to as le Bouchon de Sancerre, until it became clear that people were confusing it with an actual Sancerre wine cork, so the cheese's name was changed to le Bouchon de Chèvre. It hails from the region around the town of Sancerre, in the gorgeous Loire Valley.

To achieve its small cylindrical shape, the curds are wrapped in linen and placed into little cork shaped molds to age for at least seven days. It had a smooth texture that was oozing a bit around a blooming, white crust and had a heady aroma. It made for a very smelly kitchen! The flavor was difficult to describe: hints of sourness that became spicy on the tongue and an undertone of wine or marc. This was an excellent cheese!

Avoid red wine, instead have a glass of Sancerre wine with le Bouchon.

blooming exterior

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9 comments:

Betty Carlson said...

Sancerre is one of my favorite wines. I just ate today at a restaurant in Rodez called Chez Marie which specializes in cheese-based dishes, very nice ones too. She also sells the best cheese in town. If you ever get to Rodez, you'll have to try that place out -- avec moi, bien sûr!

Anonymous said...

You said that the cheese in the picture had a smoothe surface, but it looks fuzzy. I'm not sure if I like the fuzz on my cheese. Of course, I'll try it! Love the goat.

Anonymous said...

Finally, finally, someone says the right thing about goat cheese and white wine! Bravo!

Jennifer said...

Betty,
Sounds like a great place. If I ever get up there we'll have to book a table!

Colleen
The texture of the goat cheese was smooth but the surface had a nice bloom on it but didn't feel fuzzy on the tongue. The Brebis was smooth all over.
Some of the best cheeses have mold and fuzz!

Jennifer said...

Hande
There are some that definitely don't go with red!
Although there are a few locally made goat cheeses that can tolerate a glass of local red. Le Terroir is everything.

Alyssa said...

This is totally late (and unrelated)--I just wanted to tell you that I did make that lemon cake this weekend, and it was HEAVENLY! Tangy, moist, with that delicious glazed texture over the top (especially as the days go by)--absolutely the best lemon cake I've ever had! And this is coming from someone whose idea of dessert ALWAYS includes chocolate!
Thank you!

Jennifer said...

alyssa
Thanks for letting me know what you thought! I'm thrilled that you liked the lemon cake, especially since you prefer chocolate.
Yea!

Alyssa said...

I served it with vanilla yogurt and mixed berries over the top, though it was delish all by itself too.
YUM!
(:

Jennifer said...

Alyssa
That sounds perfect! I'll try the yogurt next time. Thanks for the idea.