JULY, 2010
 Friendly banter between opponents? The Tour de France as it passes by Parc du Cinquantenaire in Brussels.
posted by KRASK July 13, 2010 4:43 General comments (0) trackback URL (0)
MAY, 2010
 The latest Monday cheese comes from artisan affineur Jacquy Cange. So what's an affineur do? They take soft, young cheese and ripen them over time. They don't make the cheese, they finish it. Often times they'll wash the rind in different ways, changing and improving the taste. This ripening process is perhaps the most crucial step in making good cheese.
What makes Jac'Kriek special is that it is washed in Cantillon Kriek Lambic beer, a specialty of Brussels. The beer itself is very sour and dry, with a distinct cherry taste. While the beer isn't for everyone, it works brilliantly with the cheese. You can definitely taste the flavors in it.
The cheese is very pungent, with a moist and sticky rind. As I cut the cheese in half my fellow turophile proclaimed, "it even sounds stinky". Once you get past the aroma, and perhaps removing a bit of the rind, you'll find a delicious tasting cheese.
Unfortunately Jac'Kriek was a one-off, made for a cheese tasting held at the Cantillon Brewery. Not to fear though, as Jacquy Cange has several other beer and wine washed cheeses as well as cheese with mushrooms, herbs, and fruit. Check them out at his site at http://www.jacquycange.be/.
posted by KRASK May 10, 2010 7:01 Monday Cheese comments (2) trackback URL (0)
MARCH, 2010
 If a lion is stalking you, or a shark is out to kill you, you are of course in mortal danger. We have lived with these dangers for millions of years. The straight line is a man made danger. There are so many lines, millions of lines, but only one of them is deadly and that is the straight line drawn with a ruler. The danger of a straight line cannot be compared with the danger of organic lines described by snakes, for instance. The straight line is completely alien to mankind, to life, to all creation.
Friedensreich Hundertwasser
posted by KRASK March 13, 2010 1:18 Art comments (0) trackback URL (0)
 Tančící Dům
Prague, Czech Republic
posted by KRASK March 10, 2010 12:34 Architecture comments (0) trackback URL (0)
JANUARY, 2010
 Welcome back to the Monday Cheese series. Honestly, with my posting
history it should probably be called the Monthly Cheese series.
On a trip to Barcelona I visited La Seu Formatgeria,
a cheesemonger specializing in Spanish farmhouse cheese. I was hoping
to find Cabrales, a blue cheese famed for its spiciness. They didn't
have any, so I bought several other varieties instead.
The next day I ran across a small outdoor market where a farmer was
selling a goat cheese from Formatge del Montsec called Suau de Clua. He had
two types, a young and an aged. Having already bought a fair amount of
cheese and limited luggage space, I opted for for just one young
cheese. Usually I like to speak with the cheesemonger and learn a bit
about them and their cheese. Unfortunately, my knowledge of Spanish and
the Catala language is limited to just a few phrases, so the
conversation was rather short.
I brought the cheese back home where it sat in the fridge for
several days. I really didn't expect much. After all, I had purchased
several other cheeses at La Seu Formatgeria and I really wanted to try them first.
The cheese has a fascinating history. High in the hills of the La Serra del Montsec mountain
range lies the tiny village of Clua de Meià. After being abandoned for
many years, it was re-inhabited by a small group of people in the
1970's. There they became self sufficient, living off the land and away
from the big cities. In America they would be called hippies. Over
time, buildings were renovated, a good water supply was installed, and electricity and telephone services were added.
After some trial and error with raising livestock, rabbits, chickens, and pigs, it was the
goat that could survive the rugged terrain of the mountains. With
the goat's milk they made cheese, and a delicious one at that. It's off
white, creamy, and fairly mild. If I had realized how delicious this
cheese was, I would have bought more of it as well as the aged version,
leaving the other cheeses in Barcelona. Yes, it's that good.
Precious little information is available on the the net, and none of it in English. I found this video (http://www.tv3.cat/videos/236508607) which has an interview with the very same person selling the cheese at the market. If anyone knows Catala, please contact me. I'd love to learn what he says!
posted by KRASK January 28, 2010 5:01 Monday Cheese comments (0) trackback URL (0)
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