Gourmet Cheese of the Month Club

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Gourmet cheese of the month clubs are one of the dozens of “of the Month” club memberships that are available. What better way could there be to discover delicious gourmet artisan cheeses from around the world. If you love cheese but aren’t sure what makes a cheese a “gourmet” or “artisan” cheese, a club membership is a perfect way to find out.

If you already belong to a club and have been appreciating handcrafted aged cheeses, you can share your love with friends and family by giving a gourmet cheese of the month club membership as a gift.

What is a Gourmet Cheese?

Some cheese of the month clubs call themselves just that, a “cheese of the month club”. Others have the name “gourmet cheese of the month club”. In many cases the name doesn’t mean anything, but just in case, you might want to become educated in exactly what a gourmet or “artisan” cheese is to make sure you are getting what you want. Some of the differences between an artisan cheese and the typical cheeses purchased in the supermarket are:

1. Artisan cheeses are manufactured by hand using old and traditional techniques.

2. An important part of artisan cheesemaking is the aging and ripening of the cheese. This is how the flavors develop as well as the texture and firmness that are associated with each cheese.

3. Mass-produced cheeses that are manufactured in big operations are packaged, shipped and sold almost immediately after production is completed.

4. These mass-produced cheeses have very mild flavors because they are not aged or ripened.

What Type of Cheeses Can You Experience?

Some of the gourmet clubs have gained a lot of experience at pairing cheeses with wine, food, and even the different sexes. Many of these clubs have experts choosing their cheese based on what they see at wine and cheese exhibits in which they participate. By observing who tastes what as visitors stop by their exhibit, some experts have observed that men seemed to enjoy cheese like the bold cheddars and Gouda, while women prefer the more delicately flavored cheeses.

With each month’s shipment, some gourmet cheese clubs send out an assortment based on the type of wine they pair with or what kind of tastes they appeal to. Here are some examples.

· Cheese for Women – This group of cheese may include things like white Stilton flavored with different tastes like ginger or mango. Another might be a particularly creamy blue cheese or one of the varieties of “drunken” goat cheeses made in Spain that bathed in wine.

· Cheese for Merlots – California and the Bordeaux region of France grow most of the merlot grapes used in winemaking. Merlots are smooth and soft with a plummy taste. If a monthly shipment for your cheese of the month club contains cheeses best served with merlots, it may include:

o An aged Gouda. The aging develops the body of the cheese and gives it an intense flavor.

o Manchego – This is the most famous cheese that Spain makes and is made from sheep’s milk. Its zesty taste comes from the variety of herbs added to the cheese.

· Cheese for Cabernet Sauvignon – These are some of the best wines in the world. Flavors associated with a Cabernet are deep cherry, currant, mint, and tobacco. Cheeses that pair well with Cabernets are:

o Smokey Blue Cheeses – This is similar to Roquefort and is smoked for 16 hours. The flavors of a cabernet are perfect with a smoked blue cheese.

o Aged Mimolette – This cheese is traditionally made in the Italian Alps. It has a fruitiness to it that comes from the milk of Alpine cows that feed on wild grasses.

These are just examples of the type of cheese you can get with your gourmet cheese of the month club membership.

What Do you Get with a Membership?

Most clubs have different levels of membership and let you choose different lengths of time that your membership lasts, normally 3, 6, 9 or 12 months. You will probably receive about ½-pound of three different cheeses each month.

A membership to a good club will often include a monthly newsletter with plenty of helpful information. It should explain the monthly selections you received, the origins of each cheese and how the diet of the animal and when the animal is milked can have an effect on the final product. The newsletter may also have tips on ways to cook with or serve each cheese and may even include recipes.

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