Joe Widmer's Cheese Cellars Brick
Brick is a unique Wisconsin cheese, first made by John Jossi in 1877 as an alternative to Limburger. It gets its name from the shape of the cheese and the fact that bricks were used to press the curd into molds. While there are hundreds of thousands of pounds of bland, commodity "Brick" made each year, only a tiny percentage is still made in the authentic, traditional way by a handful of cheesemakers. Master Cheesemaker, Joe Widmer of Widmer's Cheese Cellars in Theresa, Wisconsin is one of these. He still uses the same bricks his grandfather used to press the cheese, and insists on the traditional methods of brining and "smear" ripening. This means that while ripening, each cheese is "smeared" by hand with a whey solution and bacterial cultures. This causes the cheese to ripen from the outside in and produces a creamy, smooth interior with a tangy, pungent, earthy flavor that gets more intense the longer the cheese is aged.
Widmer's Aged Brick is a great American Original, worthy of a place on any cheese plate. It is an especially good companion to beer, and provides a wave of flavor to grilled sandwiches (try it on rye, with sweet onion and strong mustard). Widmer's Aged Brick is also a great melting cheese and is wonderful in soups, and baked dishes in place of cheddar.
Stickney Hill's Goat Cheese Log with Honey
Oh my goodness! Oh my golly! Oh my gosh! I tasted this cheese today that was like a dream, a dream come true. I've heard that some cheeses like this have been described as being as decadent as ice cream, so fresh and tongue tingling. This one though was so subtle and sweet that I didn't want to limit its usage to just dessert. I wanted to find a use for it with everything. I wanted it in a salad, on a baguette, on a sandwich, with fruit, in a light pasta, with grilled vegetables, melted on a steak, etc. I don't know, maybe it sounds like exaggeration but Stickney Hill's Goat Cheese Log with Honey is a much welcome addition to my list of cheese fav's. And how long have I waited!
Not so many years ago I had my first taste of Capra, a Belgian goat cheese with honey. My first reactions ranged from vulgar words of elation to thoughts that this was the new nectar of the gods. Why hadn't I had this before! Now in hindsight, I can't believe that it took so long for a domestic version of this cheese to develop. Thankfully it did. Our friends at Stickney Hill Farm in Kimball, MN took great care to find not just any honey to add to their time honored tradition of goat cheese production. They use honey from Honey House in Chisago City, MN.
To top off the pleasures of my palate, I also get to boast about supporting locally made products. How cool is that!
— Jerry
Read about the previous season's cheese: Roth Kase's Reserve Gruyeres.