First off, let’s address the elephant on the page—yes, you are reading an article about cheese written by someone named Brie. And yes, that is my real name.
And although I may be predisposed to appreciate the complex, wonderful world of cheese, I am certainly no Maître Fromager (master of cheese). Rather, like so many, I am a simple caseophile (cheese lover), trying to wade through the jargon and junk to find a rind I can sink my teeth into. And let’s face it, we have a lot of rinds to choose from. No longer are Americans relegated to Velveeta or squeeze; with the rise of artisanal, small farm, and imported techniques and craft, cheese—like wine, tea, chocolate, and beer—has a world unto itself.
Cheese Makes Everything Better
The beauty of cheese is that it is at once simple and complex, blending the fine line between spoiled milk and crafted delicacy, and producing such varied products as mild cottage cheese to foot-smelling taleggio.
Cheese making starts with the simplest of ingredients—milk. However, depending on where you are in the world, it can be cow, goat, buffalo, pig, or sheep’s milk, and it can be pasteurized or raw. In America, most of our cheese comes from pasteurized cow’s milk. Pasteurization is the process of heating milk to kill both good and bad bacteria; only those cheeses aged for over sixty days can use “raw” or unpastuerized milk. In other parts of the world, these requirements are less stringent and raw milk cheeses, which supposedly have better flavor, are common and coveted.
After pasteurization, the milk is inoculated with a bacterial starter culture. The bacteria convert lactose, a naturally-occurring sugar, into lactic acid, which begins the curdling process. Rennet, derived from either animal intestine or vegetarian sources, is added. Rennet contains an enzyme called rennin that helps turn the milk into curds and whey. Curds are clumps of milk protein that compromise the majority of the final cheese product, while whey, the liquid part, is separated out and used for animal feed or other food products.
The curds are then sold as fresh cheese. They can be kept in molds and aged for days, months, or years, salted and brined, or dusted with flavor and color-producing molds. In addition to the type of starter culture and milk, the final steps help develop the flavors and textures that make the many types of cheeses.
Fresh Cheese
A cheese is considered fresh if it hasn’t been aged, or is only slightly cured. Most of these young cheeses have a mild flavor and, because they are highly perishable, are best eaten soon after purchase. They contain higher moisture content than their aged counterparts and usually have a creamy feel in the mouth. You may see these cheeses spruced up with an ash coating, blended with herbs, or covered with fruits and nuts.
The Big Fresh Cheeses: mozzarella, chevre, feta, queso fresca, cream cheese, ricotta, mascarpone, cheese curds, farmer’s cheese, and robiola.
Soft Cheese
Not yet hard cheese, but past the point of fresh cheese, soft (or soft-ripened) cheeses are the oozing triangles found on many a cocktail party cheese plate and are often only appreciated after you’re old enough to attend such parties.
Since these cheeses still have a high percentage of water and are so soft, they are sometimes part liquid at room temperature. Most notably, soft ripened cheeses usually have an edible white or yellowish rind with a smooth, creamy interior. Many of these cheeses are mold-ripened, meaning that the cheese makers spray or inoculate the outside of the cheese with strains of fungi, like penicillium camemberti and geotrichum candidum, which help break down the fat and protein present in the curd. This helps soften the cheese as well as contribute to its unique flavor. These cheeses are aged briefly in cool temperatures caves, and usually consumed within a month or two of production.
