Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery

Cheese classes are back in 2012 at the Whole Foods Galleria and this month's theme featured cheeses from Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery. We got to try four different goat cheeses, and the last one was actually a whipped cream from cow's milk.

We started off with Bonne Bouche, which means "good mouthful" and it is a typical goat cheese with a pungent, gamey flavor. This was paired with roasted tomatoes and a highly acidic wine, to help cut through such a strong cheese.

Another aged cheese, Bijou, is a French-style goat cheese that was melted onto a Crostini for us, but it didn't lose any of its barnyard flavor. Another white wine with a sharp, crisp, and dry finish really helped to mellow out the cheese.

The Coupole looks like a domed brain with all its wrinkles on top and this one was much milder from the first two. This cheese was paired with a fig spread and the tangy flavor helped to calm down the flavor of the cheese as well. This cheese was paired with a red wine, which was a bit too much, and a red probably would have been better paired with one of the first two cheeses instead.

The Cremont is actually a mix of goat and cow's milk and is named for "Cream of Vermont". This cheese had a milder flavor thanks to the cow's milk mixed in and was easily my favorite since it is a double creme. This paired well with a mild red, 1912 Ventoux (France), and tasted similar to a Pinot Noir. Although, I am biased since that's my favorite red these days.

The last cheese, the Creme Fraiche, is a whipped cream that was mixed with raspberries to top. After milking the cows, the cream that rises up is separated and set aside. The cream had a smooth and sweet flavor, but definitely missing some chocolate sauce to make it an official dessert. As a dessert, this was paired well with a Crement sparkling wine.

Resources:

Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery = http://www.vermontcreamery.com/

Whole Foods Galleria = http://wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/st-louis/

1912 Ventoux = http://www.1912-ventoux.com/en/1912-ventoux.php