Who Moved My Cheese?
January 2, 2013
Two new cheeses have been spotted on the menu at The Blind Monk. Moses Sleeper–the name comes from a Revolutionary War scout who was killed along Greensboro’s Bayley Hazen Military Road–is a bloomy rind cheese with a meaty, buttery flavor and earthy aromas from the Cellars at Jasper Hill Farm. Brie lovers will love this complex yet subtle American rendition. The cheese pairs well with a number of our craft beers and wines, particularly our IPAs and dry and full-bodied roses.
Bonne Bouche, or “good mouthful,” is a Loire Valley style cheese and the flagship of Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery. It is a geotrichum-rinded aged goat cheese, which means it is surface ripened with a microorganism–Geotrichum Candidum–that neutralizes or de-acidifies the cheese surface and allows other molds, yeasts and bacteria to grow. These other molds, yeasts, and bacteria produce enzymes that break down the cheese’s protein and fat, creating that creamy, tangy paste and rich aroma. Geotrichum’s signature is that wrinkly, brainy surface. Humboldt Fog lovers will fall in love again! Bonne Bouche pairs particularly well with Sauvignon Blanc and wheat beer.
‘Tis the Saison
July 24, 2012
For our final week of Belgian Beer Month at The Blind Monk, we are highlighting the ultimate Belgian summer beer style: SAISON.
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Originating in Wallonia, the southern, French-speaking part of Belgium, Saisons are farmhouse ales named for the French word for season. The season it refers to is “Brewing Season.” Although Saisons are now brewed year-round, in the days before refrigeration, it was too hot to properly ferment beer in the summertime, so a large quantity of Saison would be made during the last weeks of brewing season.
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Each farmhouse would brew it’s own unique beer, and thus there was (and still is) a wide variety of styles within the saison family. Saisons in general, however, tend to share some common features. They were designed to be quenching, flavorful beers to refresh farmworkers during the heat of summer. The beers are thus lighter in character, even though many tend to be stronger in alcohol (in order to help preserve the beer for the summer months).
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As a style, Saisons tend to be pale to golden, but can be slightly cloudy, as many saisons contain some wheat and are bottle conditioned. All Saisons are fairly dry and crisp on the palate, even with the stronger “Provision” version, and have distinct herbal and black pepper flavor and aroma. Beyond these common characteristics, they can occasionally be hoppy, tart, wild, funky, session or imperial and spiced with anything and everything the brewer can dream of.
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As they are flavorful, refreshing beers with distinct herbal and spice character, saisons canpair with just about any food imaginable, from light appetizers to savory entrees to desserts. Garret Oliver calls Saison du Pont the “Swiss-army knife” of beer and food pairing, due to its versatility. Moreover, Saisons pair extremely well with certain types of foods that other beers (and wines) do not. The quenching character of the beer means that it can stand up to some pretty intense heat, and the herbal and spice notes means that it can enhance the flavors of heavily spiced dishes. As such these beers go great with Thai, Mexican, Cajun, Indian, and Middle Eastern Cuisine, along with pretty much anything else.
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So, ’tis the saison to drink some great beer!
The Pucker Factor
Last week we celebrated Belgium Beer Month at The Blind Monk by showcasing the sour and wild beers of Belgium, which includes some of the rarest and most unique ales produced anywhere. As the name implies, these beers are indeed sour, with flavors that can range from lactic acidity to more vinegar-like notes. Fermented not just from classic pure ale-yeast strains, as most beers are, sours gain their distinctive taste from a variety of micro-organisms introduced during the fermentation process. Moreover, the use of hops in these beers is minimal, thus sourness takes the place of bitterness as a balancing counterpoint to beer sweetness.
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LAMBICS:
These beers are from the region around Brussels and are known for their classic combination of wild, barnyard, rustic character with the crisp sourness that comes from lactic acidity. They are usually quite dry; although, the sweet fruit lambics are probably the most well-known lambics in the United States. These beers are often a blend of both young and old beer, and wood aging is traditional.
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Gueuze (ex: Lindemans Cuvee Rene): a blend of one, two, and three year old lambics. Usually dry, with a gripping acidity, complemented by rustic, earthy notes, often with a touch of oak character.
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Dry Fruit Lambic (ex: Cantillon Rose de gambrinus): an aged Lambic to which fruit has been added for a secondary fermentation and left to ferment until almost all sugar has been converted to alcohol. Crisp, dry, and bracingly tart with a pronounced fruit character.
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Sweet Fruit Lambic (Timmerman’s Kriek): similar to the dry fruit lambics, but with much of the sweetness from the fruit left in the beer (and often with more sugar added). The beer is decidedly sweet, with enough tartness left to balance it out.
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FLANDERS SOUR ALES:
These beers often show both lactic and acetic acidity, with more malt character than the Lambics. These ales often will show signs of autolysis, which gives the beer some savory dimensions.
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Flanders Red Ale (ex: Rodenbach Grand Cru): classic Beer of West Flanders. Complex, fruity, red wine-like character, with oak notes and a balanced sourness.
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Flanders Brown Ale (ex: Petrus Oud Bruin): classic beer of East Flanders. Balanced sourness with deeper malt character of caramel, figs, and dates, sometimes with notes of Sherry.
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Cheers!