[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9sKpDSAQ7I?rel=0&w=480&h=360]
From our house to yours, all the best of the holidays! May much cheese be with you in 2016!
—Georgs Kolesnikovs
Savvy Cool Curds: Canadian Cheese-of-the-Month Club
Just in time for Christmas, Debbie Trenholm and I are thrilled to announce the first all-Canadian artisan cheese-of-the-month club in Canada: Savvy Cool Curds.
Savvy Cool Curds is our “whey” of strengthening the bond between Canadian cheese producers and consumers, sharing the stories behind the uber-talented, passionate, creative and often eclectic individuals who give so much of themselves for the enjoyment of others through one of the world’s favourite foods.
Over close to ten years of working with cheesemakers, distributors, industry associations, cheesemongers, retailers and sommeliers across our nation, never has it been so important to support local. Even in the face of increased competition from imports, Canadian cheesemakers are shining on a world culinary stage, trending big wins in major competitions such as the American Cheese Society Competition and the World Cheese Awards. Proof positive that we don’t have to look farther than our own backyard for a wide variety of tasty artisan cheese that rivals any across the globe.
For $55/month ($60 after December 30), your Savvy Cool Curds subscription brings all this cheesy goodness right to your front door.
Each month, a different Canadian artisan producer will take the spotlight and you’ll receive a package to delight: 4-5 hand-selected delicious cheeses (just less than 1 kg), plus my tasting notes, tips and tricks, along with cheese-laden recipes in our Curd On The Street eZine. Plus, you’ll become a VIP member of the Savvy Company family, giving you VIP invitations and special discounts to Savvy Events featuring Canadian artisan cheese, wines, and craft beer, too!
Our first months feature delicious Canadian artisan cheeses from Gunn’s Hill Artisan Cheese, Cow’s Creamery, Back Forty Artisan Cheese, Fromagerie Les Folies Bergères, and new on the scene Lighthall Vineyards & Dairy.
Canadian artisan cheese brings joy to my life everyday. Cow, sheep, goat and buffalo milk cheeses. Cheddar, aged and sharp, washed rind, soft and delicate, fresh, fruity, blue and bold or rustic and vegetal, they’re all so delicious.
Through Savvy Cool Curds, you, too, can experience the same cheesy pleasure. It’s the gift that keeps on giving (for others or yourself). Sign up today and spread the curd!
—Guest blog by Vanessa Simmons, Cheese Sommelier, Curator, Savvy Cool Curds, Savvy Company
Fuoco leads Canadian charge at Worlds
Who says Canadian cheese cannot compete on the world stage?
Jason Fuoco, a young Quebec cheesemaker who began producing cheese three years ago, was a major winner at the 2015 World Cheese Awards last weekend. His eponymous Fuoco, a soft washed-rind cheese made with water-buffalo milk, was named Best Canadian Cheese and honoured as one of the top 15 cheeses in the world.
Three Canadian cheeses were among the 62 which attained Super Gold recognition. They are:
Washed rind cheese
- Fuoco, Fromagerie Fuoco, Sainte-Sophie, Québec
Farmhouse cheddar
- Avonlea Clothbound Cheddar. Cows Creamery, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
Hard cheese produced on small farm or dairy
- Alfred Le Fermier, Fromagerie La Station, Compton, Québec
“Fuoco displays beautiful balance between the paste and rind, soft creamy rich paste that runs through right to the finish, very lactic milk flavour with strong barnyard scent, wonderful with crusty bread. Would not pass up on this cheese! “
—Jackie Armet, Cheese Co-ordinator, The Great Canadian Cheese Festival
Two Canadian producers, Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser in Québec and Quality Cheese in Ontario, each returned home with four medals apiece.
Eight Canadian producers won gold medals:
Semi-hard cheese produced on small farm or dairy
- Gold medal: Tomme de Grosse-île ~ Fromagerie Isle-aux-Grues
Cow’s milk blue cheese
- Gold medal: Météorite ~ Saputo
Cheese made with the milk of more than one animal
- Gold medal: Pionnier ~ Fromagerie Nouvelle France
Washed rind cheese
- Gold medal: Le Douanier ~ Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser
Washed rind cheese
- Gold medal: Champfleury ~ Agropur
Ricotta
- Gold medal: Bella Casara Ricotta ~ Quality Cheese
Ricotta
- Gold medal: Ricotta di Campagna ~ Saputo Dairy Products
Semi-hard cow’s milk cheese
Ten Canadian producers won silver medals:
Semi-hard cow’s milk cheese
- Silver medal: OKA ~ Agropur
Soft goat’s milk cheese
- Silver medal: Paillot de Chèvre ~ Saputo
Soft ewe’s milk cheese
- Silver medal: Madelaine ~ Fromagerie Nouvelle France
Extra mature creamery cheddar
- Silver medal: Old Cheddar ~ Bright Cheese & Butter
Mozzarella, fresh, cow’s milk in ball
- Silver medal: Fresh Mozzarella ~ Quality Cheese
Brie made from pasteurized milk
- Silver medal: Brie ~ Quality Cheese
Washed rind cheese
- Silver medal: Raclette naturelle ronde ~ Fromages CDA
Cheese made with the milk of more than one animal
- Silver medal: Le Soeur Angèle ~ Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser
Hard cheese produced on small farm or dairy
- Silver medal: Chemin Hatley ~ Fromagerie la Station
Soft or unpressed cow’s milk cheese with sweet savoury additives
- Silver medal: Délice des Appalaches ~ Fromagerie Rang 9
Nine Canadian producers won bronze medals:
Creamery cheddar
- Bronze medal: COWS CREAMERY Extra Old Cheddar ~ Cows Creamery
Semi-hard cow’s milk cheese
- Bronze medal: Asiago ~ Bright Cheese & Butter
Soft goat’s milk cheese
- Bronze medal: Chevrochon ~ Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser
Mature traditional cheddar
- Bronze medal: Cheddar Fort Ile-aux-Grues ~ Fromagerie Isle-aux-Grues
Soft or unpressed cow’s milk cheese
- Bronze medal: Triple Cream Brie ~ Quality Cheese
Washed rind cheese
- Bronze medal: Mont-Jacob ~ Fromagerie Blackburn
Washed rind cheese
- Bronze medal: La Tentation de Laurier ~ Saputo
Soft cow’s milk cheese
- Bronze medal: Le Mi-Carême ~ Fromagerie Isle-aux-Grues
Soft or unpressed cow’s milk cheese with sweet savoury additives
- Bronze medal: Raclette Griffon ~ Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser
Nick Tsioros of Olympic Cheese, Toronto, was the sole Canadian judge on the jury.
Le Gruyere AOP Premier Cru made by Switzerland’s Cremo and Von Muhlnen was named Best Cheese in the World.
The biggest cheese competition in Canada, Canadian Cheese Awards/Le Concours des fromages fins canadiens returns in 2016 with the Awards Ceremony and Tasting Gala taking place in Montreal in mid-April.
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