Funkmeister

                                                  


Didn't I recently say I was looking for a cheese with some funk? Well, I found it. Hold on to your extra tall and slightly outlandish Godfather hats. This is Funkmeister, a cheese named for that stinky, pungent odor that comes from a good washed-rind cheese. It's exciting and cool and slightly out there and maybe just a little bit dirty, but man, like those bad boys that are oh so good, you will want to keep coming back to this one.

Haystack Mountain in Longmont, Colorado is known for its goat milk cheeses, but they carry an excellent selection of cow milk cheeses as well. The company has been creating award-winning products since 1989. Jackie Chang is the lead cheesemaker at Haystack Mountain. She grew up in Taiwan and Korea and moved to Boulder in the late 80s. Her cheeses are designed to be flavorful but not overpowering. Such is the case with Funkmeister.

Funkmeister is a double cream, washed-rind cheese, washed in a cultured brine. This process encourages bacteria to spread and grow on the surface of the rind, enhancing the aroma, flavor and aging of the cheese. The cow's milk and cream used are organic. A vegetable rennet is used in the cheese-making process, so vegetarians can dig in without worry.

Inside the ochre rind that's ever so slightly sandy is a rich ivory paste. To say it's creamy is an understatement. The inner texture is divine and practically melts on your tongue. The complex flavor is equally magnificent. It consists primarily of a cream taste with strong notes of raw hazelnuts and softer undertones of straw, mushrooms and earth with a gentle but noticeable tang that goes right to your nose, not unlike the little zing associated with yogurt. This cheese is spicy and sharp without being obnoxious. There's a good dose of salt that hits your palate after the initial flavor has subsided and a very, very slight bitterness at the finish that's not at all unpleasant. The flavors intensify as the cheese ages. Oddly, despite the very obvious pungent and spicy flavor, my overall impression is that this is a delicate, fruity cheese. Sure, it's showy and outrageous on the surface and maybe a little bit offensive to the nose, but there's a refinement about Funkmeister that puts it up close in ranking to cheeses such as Epoisse and Pont l'Eveque.

Funkmeister has an interesting looking rind.

Saving room for some crusty bread on this plate.

The best way to serve this cheese is at room temperature straight up on some crusty French bread. It's a great cheese to put on sandwiches, too. Serve it on a cheese board with sliced tart apples, grapes, celery sticks and dried meats. Try Funkmeister in baked dishes as well. Heat softens and tames the flavor while allowing it to retain its depth. Any harsher notes disappear when it's cooked in pasta, eggs, or even when it's simply melted on toast. You can also serve it as suggested on the Haystack Mountain website, with savory preserves.

Funkmeister pairs well with Pinot Gris, Condrieu, Riesling, Gamay, Malbec, Blanc de Noir, Chenin Blanc or Jurancon. Haystack Mountain also suggests serving it with a floral, piney IPA.

Oh yes, we want the funk.

Try Funkmeister with a nice IPA.

Avalanche Cabra Blanca

Avalanche Cheese Company in Colorado.

After selling her restaurant company in Houston, Texas, Windy Mitchel spent a year in Scotland traveling and learning how to make cheese. From there, she moved to Aspen, Colorado, where she noticed there wasn't a reliable source of local milk if she wanted to pursue her dream of making cheese. As a result, she and her husband bought a farm in Paonia where they could raise goats. With the help of many organic farmers in the area, Wendy got the hang of the farm side of the business and eventually opened a creamery in Basalt, Colorado. In 2008, milk from her dairy was used to make cheese in the creamery. Since then, Wendy has gone on to produce some of the finest goat cheeses in the country, winning many awards and gaining fans not just because Avalanche cheese is good, but also because she works hard and has become an integral part of the farm-to-table movement in her neck of the mountains.

The Good Food Awards is presented to companies offering food that's tasty, authentic and responsibly produced.

Basalt, Colorado is located between Glenwood Springs and Aspen at an elevation of 6,611 feet. There are many varieties of Avalanche cheeses being made at this high elevation including traditional chevre, goat cheddar, midnight blue and the one I sampled, Cabra Blanca.

Cabra Blanca is an all-around beautiful product. It's a semi-soft cheese with a thin natural rind that has all the intrigue and flavor of a cross between a bloomy and a wash rind. Perhaps this is due to the naturally occurring bacteria that develops during the aging process. Brevibacteriim Linens is the same bacteria some cheese makers add to their brine when making traditional wash-rind cheeses. Cabra Blanca cheese is shaped in a colander that ends up leaving the surface of the developing rind slightly craggy. The outer surface is also slightly sandy but not in an unappealing way. The rind looks tame compared to most wash-rind cheeses, but, in a similar fashion, there are some faint white, autumn-orange and tan spots. The overall appearance is light and angelic looking, though. As far as the taste of the slightly chewy rind, though it's mild, it's wonderfully earthy and mushroomy.

There is an obvious fresh milk smell that rises from the interior of the cheese, like when you stick your nose deep into a carton of milk and take a grand whiff. If you let your nose linger above the cheese long enough, a few very light sour notes will become apparent. The bouquet is slightly floral, but it's the milky smell that's most prominent.

Ahh, the aroma of fresh milk.

Right away I wanted to take a bite, so I did. And over the course of a few days, I suddenly became aware that I had chewed my way through an extra large wedge of cheese without realizing how quickly it was disappearing.

Cabra Blanca is a very mild cheese. Because it's not pressed, the interior is open and lacy. The texture is smooth, sticky and very slightly chewy. It has an almost squishy feel to it, and boy is is smooth, really smooth. It's also extremely well balanced with a subtle nutty flavor similar to blanched almonds. This is not like typical goat cheeses that pack a punch, but you can recognize it is a goat cheese. Cabra Blanca is super light and mellow. Even though the flavors are subtle, this little treasure is much more exciting than something like a low-moisture mozzarella, though I had visions of mild cheddar, young brie, chevre and mozzarella dancing in my head while I was sampling this one. It's far from bland is what I mean. Still, it's a very tame goat cheese.

Cabra Blanca from Avalanche Cheese Company.

Some claim there's a slight citrus flavor. I agree, but it's very faint. Since it lacks the kind of powerful tang that catches in the back of your throat that most goat cheeses offer, Cabra Blanca goes well with lighter foods, especially fruits. It's the perfect cheese to serve on an autumn afternoon with crisp, fresh apples and Stonewall Simply White crackers or 34 Degrees Natural Crispbread. Really, though, this is a cheese that is versatile, so you can do just about anything with it. Make grilled cheese sandwiches, eat it as a snack by itself or cook it in a pasta and pesto or even a tomato-based pasta dish. You can't go wrong no matter how you serve it.

Liquor Mart in Boulder has an outstanding selection of wines, beer, champagne and more.

Kevin Downs, Assistant wine manager at Liquor Mart in Boulder, Colorado, suggests the following pairings for this cheese:

Wine Pairing with Avalanche Cabra Blanca

The earthy, tangy flavor of chevre calls for a fruity, citrusy white as its perfect match. The classic match for this cheese is Sauvignon Blanc, and particularly one from the Loire Valley, e.g. Sancerre or Touraine. The Loire is home to some of the best goat cheese in the world and this is a classic example of “it goes where it grows”. Since this example of chevre is on the mellow side, I wouldn’t go with a New Zealand version of this wine because the strong flavors in the wine might overpower it. Chais St Laurent Sancerre or the Clos Roche Blanc Touraine, both around $20 are perfect matches, and for less money, try the “Les Jarriers” Touraine at $11.99.

Other whites that work quite well with this cheese are two Spanish varietals. Albarino, such as Burgans at $12.50 and Godello, such as Montenovo at $16.99, exhibit nice acidity, with wonderful floral and stone fruit notes that compliment the flavors of this cheese. A crisp dry Riesling also works well. Jim Barry’s Lodge Hill ($16.99) from Australia would be a good choice.

Rose’ is a good match, especially the delicate, dry and fruity examples from Provence. St Roche is a perfect choice at around $12.99 and Domain Salvard from (of course) the Loire Valley Appellation of Cheverny works wonderfully.

Finally if you must have red with this cheese, go with a light to medium, fruity red with light to medium tannins and a good acidity. A good Beaujolais, like the one from Kermit Lynch, works well, but my first choice would be a Caberet Franc from (where else?) the Loire Vally. Baudry Chinon ($19.99) and Domain Filliatreau Saumur ($16.99) would pair spectacularly with this cheese, the mild tang and nuttiness not being overwhelmed by the wine.

Wine and a good chevre. It doesn't get any better! Cheers!

Try Clos Roches Blanche Touraine Sauvignon Blanc with Cabra Blanca.

Haystack Queso de Mano

Haystack Mountain

Founded in Niwot, Colorado in 1989 by Jim Schott and his wife, Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy has since become one of the more renowned cheese-making facilities in the country, consistently winning awards for their goat cheeses. Their cheese maker, Jackie Chang, and her crew have developed some of the most outstanding cheeses on the market, cheeses that capture the attention of aficionados and master judges. She has a knack for creating cheeses that appeal to everyone, not just those in the business, and that's not always an easy task when it comes to goat cheese, as sometimes the flavor of these cheeses can be rather pungent.

One interesting side note about the company is that Haystack Mountain's president, Chuck Hellmer, has a serious dairy allergy. It was his allergy that forced him to search for an alternative to cow's milk cheeses. That, in turn, led him to Haystack Mountain cheeses. Goat milk is often easier for people to digest, because it contains much less Alpha s1 Casein, the protein allergen that most people react to when it comes to dairy. Fortunately for Chris, finding cheeses he could eat also led him to a job running the goat dairy.

Queso de Mano

I decided to try Haystack's Queso de Mano cheese. Inspired by some quesos Jim Schott discovered in Spain, this little delight has all the best aspects of a rustic cheese without being excessively powerful in flavor. This version is made with raw milk.

Queso de Mano literally translates as "cheese of the hand" and is often used in cooking. This one need not be cooked to be enjoyed, though. In fact, it makes for just about the most perfect snacking cheese I have ever had. Though many would suggest eating the cheese with apples or pears, I prefer it either by itself or on a hunk of crusty bread.

Haystack Mountain's version of Queso de Mano has a curious thin natural rind with bluish tones. My first impression of the cheese came from the lovely aroma that floated up to my nostrils. Immediately I thought of how Brie smells. This is very similar. I had a feeling I would like it. The texture is oddly fluffy and crumbly for a semi-hard cheese. It's as if they took the qualities of a fresh chevre and somehow shoved them into this aged creation. Unlike a fresh cheese, though, your mouth won't be coated in dairy residue. This has a drier finish. The cheese is subtle both in texture and flavor, but it still has a bite to it. It's just that the tang is balanced nicely.

As for the flavor, it is heavenly. It's not overly goaty, and it's a cheese I could eat every day without getting bored. I know it's the perfect cheese to add to pasta dishes or to put in sandwiches, but I love it on its own. The thin rind is chewy and packed with earthy flavors. There's a definite bloomy rind taste that is reminiscent of button mushrooms, and as you work your way to the center of the cheese, the flavor becomes more subtle while still retaining the earthy, mushroomy and nutty notes. The tangy kick that many goat cheeses give off is subdued here. It's the perfect cheese to introduce to people who have never tried a goat cheese before and might be hesitant. It goes with just about everything I can think of, from potatoes to black olives to fruit.

As far as pairings, I could see this cheese going well with a full-bodied red or even a sweeter dessert wine, depending on your preference, and though it might go against what some people would suggest, certain fruity but crisp white wines would definitely go very nicely with this cheese. That's how I would serve it. Imagine a light summer lunch of Queso de Mano, a baguette, some grapes and a glass of white wine. Perfection.

Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc