A Nod to the Nose: Truffle Oil and Herve Mons Cheeses

Lately, my desk has been the collection point for the wrappers and packaging of products that I've been sent and have tasted. Some food writers have a policy against receiving samples, but since I write about markets and a variety of products, I figure samples give me access to potentially wonderful items I'd otherwise not readily encounter. And, if I discover something fabulous, I can pass that along to you. Likewise, I can give you something to think about if I'm not altogether crazy about something I've tried.

I have a thing for olive oil and truffles, so naturally that makes me curious about truffle oil. There's been a lot of debate about the relative merits of truffle oil. Its existence alone makes some chefs cringe. And, well, who wouldn't prefer to have slices of white or black truffles adorning their pasta or scrambled eggs or integrated into sauces. But, the reality for most of us is that truffles are simply out of range for us financially. A good truffle oil -- and by that I mean a high quality olive oil incorporating real truffle pieces -- can add welcome earthy flavors to a dish and is far more affordable. I still remember the first time I enjoyed it --years ago at a restaurant in San Francisco; it was drizzled over very ripe Teleme cheese that drippingly adorned a pizza-like flatbread. I still like to make that combination.

What do you want to avoid when buying truffle oil? Those in which the primary ingredients are concocted in a laboratory using aromatic compounds that may or, more likely, not actually be derived from truffles. Sadly, when it comes to truffle oil, it seems it's all about the aroma and not the complex flavors that distinguish the real thing. A lot of companies have spent a lot of money trying to develop chemical compounds that mimic the scent, leaving consumers spending good money on products that only hint at what can be an extraordinary culinary experience. For an interesting read on this, check out this New York Times article.

So, I'm conflicted about the products I received from Susan Rice Truffle Products and which are sold, among other places, on foodzie.com. On the one hand, her Charlie's Truffled Popcorn is absolutely addictive. The three-ounce bag is made with truffle aroma, yes, but also black perigord truffle and summer truffle. I brought a bag with me to share with friends last Saturday for a limoncello-making session and their first reaction was that it had to contain garlic, but there's none there. It's simply a powerful musky flavor, enhanced further by Sicilian truffle salt. This is good enough to serve in a bowl as an appetizer before a dinner party, but so good that you may not be able to hold onto it long enough for a party. I ripped into a bag last night while my dinner was cooking and -- poof -- gone.

The packaging claims that the company grows European black winter truffles on their 200-acre farm near Pinehurst, N.C. And that's fine, although experts inevitably quibble over whether truffles grown in the U.S. are of the same quality as those found in Europe. My question is where do they go?

As in, are they in their truffle oils? If aroma is your basis for making a purchasing decision, have at it with the black truffle oil and the very unusual black winter truffle basil olive oil. But, if you look at the labels, you'll find that the ingredients include only olive oil and "tuber melanosporum" aroma. In other words black truffle aroma. In the case of the black winter truffle basil olive oil, you can also include basil aroma, not basil. Each has at first whiff that expected powerful musky perfume -- even more so the latter with the strong basil competing with the truffle scent. But where does the aroma come from? Certainly, if it were from real truffles, they'd be bragging about it and it would be on the label.

As it is with another brand: da Rosario. This is certified organic extra virgin olive oil that includes next on the label organic black winter truffles, and "100% organic truffles flavored extra virgin olive oil." From reading their literature, my understanding of this rather strange label is that the company's truffles are put into an extractor that pulls out the volatile molecules for infusion into the olive oil and then also adds pieces of freeze-dried truffle pieces to the oil. That gives it a push into at least the realm of real food and, to be honest, the aromas are gentler than the Susan Rice products but it has a nice truffle-like flavor.


Of the other two truffle oil products above, Roland White Truffle Oil, is made with Italian white truffles. Like the da Rosario, you can see small pieces of the truffle at the bottom of the bottle. It, too, is a combination of olive oil, truffle pieces and truffle aroma. A friend gave this bottle to me and I've been enjoying it on pasta, roasted vegetables and sauteed fillets of fish like red snapper and Dover sole. The other bottle -- on the right -- is something I bought at Whole Foods without even glancing at the label. It turns out to have been olive oil and chemicals or -- as it was described in the Times article "something from the truffle that is not the truffle." I ended up tossing it.

The bottom line, I guess, is that you have to decide if you want to enjoy the oils for what they are -- pretty much an artificial enhancer that approximates truffles -- and then find the brand that you think has the best flavor. Remember, a little goes a long way. And, it's best to use these as a finishing oil. It would be nice if the manufacturers would bottle them in dark glass to keep the light from ruining the oils but all of the ones I've tried have clear glass bottles, so keep them stored in a dark, cool place.

As long as we're talking about aromatic products, let's talk cheese. I received two small cheeses from Whole Foods to taste -- a Camembert and a Cazelle de Saint Affrique from Herve Mons. Herve Mons is an "affineur," a cheese ager, and many of the French cheeses imported into the U.S. are aged by Herve Mons; it's worth keeping an eye out for them.

I grew up with pungent -- and I stress pungent -- cheeses. One of my grandfathers was a zealous afficionado of Limburger cheese (he also chain smoked cheap cigars, making me think he had a terrible sense of smell, was out to torture us or simply had a need for strong olefactory stimulation). Camembert was another cheese I remember having at his house and given its strong earthy -- almost truffle-like -- aroma, that, of course makes sense.

With its papery rind and creamy interior, this Norman cows cheese is similar to Brie. Reportedly, during the French revolution a priest hid in the farmhouse of a woman named Marie Harel and taught her how Brie was made. She adapted the recipe and Camembert is the result. You'll always find these small rounds packaged in a thin wooden box that prevents them from getting spoiled during shipping. Camembert is among those foods granted a protected designation of origin as "Camembert de Normandie" and these true Camembert are made with unpasturized milk.

That brings us to the Herve Mons Camembert I sampled. Because it's pasteurized, it can't be identified as "Camembert de Normandie" but it's still a good tasting cheese that I enjoyed both at room temperature with a crusty loaf of bread topped with red onion confit and later incorporated into a very tasty dish of grits. Take a step away from "safe" brie and try this on a cheese plate.


The other cheese I sampled I had been unfamiliar with but enjoyed enormously. Cazelle de Saint Affrique (on the left above) is a sheeps milk cheese from the Midi Pyrenees near Spain. It gets it name -- and its odd stone shape -- from the squat little huts shepherds in Saint Affrique long used to protect themselves from the weather. This same breed of sheep, Lacaune, also produces milk used to make Rocquefort cheese. An artisinal cheese made in small batches, the Cazelle de Saint Affrique has got a firm, creamy texture thanks to the high levels of milk solids and there's a bit of bloom to the nose -- a sheeps milk cheese with attitude. If you're looking for something a little different to serve your friends, I recommend this little odd-looking gem.

Taste: Holiday Helpers in Hillcrest

Years ago I was invited to the CIA at Greystone in St. Helena for a three-day cheese course. It was a total immersion that also included wine pairings, learning how to make homemade mozzarella and even how to make corn tortillas. I tasted everything from the nutty Vella Dry Monterey Jack and luscious Strauss organic yogurt to Bellwether Farm’s oh-so-gooey Crescenza (try it on focaccia with a little truffle oil drizzled on top). I met many of the local cheese makers as well as local wine makers and even got a chance to cook in the CIA kitchen to try out new cheese-infused recipes. It was fabulous.

Then I came home to San Diego.

While other writers and editors were swooning over the cheeses and making notes of specialty cheeses to pick up at their local cheese shop back in San Francisco, I could only hope that some of these cheese makers could do mail orders. My best hope back then was that perhaps Whole Foods might carry some of the bounty I’d discovered and fallen in love with.

Times certainly have changed and here we are at the end of 2007 with three thriving cheese shops in San Diego—Venissimo, Aniata and Taste—along with pretty good selections at Whole Foods, Bristol Farms, Trader Joe’s and other more enlightened markets.

Despite carrying very similar products, each of our local cheese shops is wonderfully unique. Having spent an afternoon at Taste last week I’m going to declare it the party shop. This is where to go not just for wonderful cheeses and other epicurean treats, but to simply have a good time. And, why not? It is in Hillcrest after all and shares space with Wine Steals next door. Call a friend and meet up on a weekend afternoon for a glass of wine and an international tour of fabulous cheeses. Go this weekend and pick up last-minute holiday or hostess gifts or fill the larder for the inevitable parties you're hosting or attending through New Year's.

Owned by Mary and George Palmer, Taste is a true reflection of their gregarious, open-armed approach to retail. Their clear enthusiasm for playing with food and educating customers is very endearing and will likely send you out the door with several delicious bundles.

There are no counters at Taste. The cheeses are on display on tables and shelves or in the refrigerated case that lines the wall next to a collage of cheese labels that goes to the ceiling. Want to sample something? Mary will bring the cheese to one of the tables to slice and probably tempt you with a pairing or two.

Enjoy the deep muskiness and incredible sharpness of Old Quebec vintage cheddar? Try it with a dab of red onion confit. It improves the taste of both. How about Colston Bassett Stilton? Oh, it’s mellow. But with a little dried fig compote mellow turns to memorable. The ultimate? Parmesiano Reggiano with rich, syrupy 12-year-old balsamico. Stunning on the palate.

Jars of these confits, compotes and vinegars are displayed throughout the store, along with local artwork that’s also for sale.

One wall of shelves holds gems like truffle salt (perfect on eggs, pasta or steak), honeys, pasta, crackers, olives and the very special Fra’Mani dry salami made by former Chez Panisse chef Paul Bertolli. Try this—it’s very mild but carries a splendid burst of garlic.

On a table against another wall are rich and fruity olive oils from Spain, Portugal and Italy, and balsamicos varying in age from 12 to 25 to 40 years.

And, from Sardinia, there are jars of Saba, a very sweet grape must that’s made by reducing grape juice to a syrup. (Grape must is the juice pressed from grapes before fermentation; it's also used to make balsamic vinegar, which then undergoes fermentation as it ages.) With must, acid plays no role, nor does age. It’s all about the reduction and this sauce marries well with oil to create marinades and dress salads, but use it solo over ice cream, fruit or pastries.

Another table nearby is all about chocolate.

There are the elegant orange boxes of hand-crafted local chocolates by Dallmann Confections in flavors like jasmine, pistachio, fleur de sel, Provence (lavender, of course, with Bourbon vanilla) and rose water. Taste also features Eclipse Chocolat made by local artisan chocolatier Will Gustwiller (his shop is on El Cajon Blvd. in North Park). Try his exotic salted caramels, rich distinctive flavors topped by just a sprinkling of artisanal salts and infused with flavors like ginger and lavender. These are perfect and unusual holiday gifts.

Also on display are bars of Vosges, Casa Don Puglisi chocolate from Modica and Chocolates El Rey from Venezuela. I enjoyed the smooth as silk sweetness of the Bucare dark chocolate bar.

Mary and George moved to San Diego several years ago from the Bay Area. They started as wine geeks but began focusing on food, especially cheese. It was George’s idea to start a cheese shop and they met Bob and Martyna Stonebrook who opened Aniata in Flower Hill Mall in 2001. Bob invited the Palmers to come work for him to learn about the business and the groundwork was set. Three years ago the couple opened Taste on University Ave. and have been building the business since.

The Palmers share resources with Venissimo, whose owners have since bought Aniata so that the Stonebrooks could focus on distributing cheese. The same fabulous blue-and-white cheese paper you see at Venissimo is also used by Taste (more about that later), but the collaboration also allows them to split wheels of cheese that would otherwise be too much stock for one shop to carry.

I won’t list the 80 to 100 cheeses Taste carries at any given time; you can visit the shop or check out their website for that. But, I found some favorites that I had to buy or will return for that you should put on your list:

• Parmigiano Reggiano: Taste carries a Reggiano Doc, meaning that it is certified as coming from Northern Italy and meets the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese Consorzio criteria. It’s branded with the Consorzio’s logo once it’s been inspected and passed at 12 months. Cut straight from the wheel, this hard, granular cheese resembles nothing like the stuff in the green cardboard container. It’s earthy and crumbly—irresistible to nibble in little slices with a red wine or dry champagne.
• Purple Haze: I love chevre and this soft goat’s milk cheese ups the ante with the addition of lavender and fennel pollen. Because it’s so perfect crumbled in a salad, I pulled out my Grandma Anna’s weathered old wood salad bowl and filled it with organic baby romaine, fresh mizuna from Nijiya, chopped scallions, toasted walnuts, orange heirloom tomatoes from the farmers market and ruby red cherry tomatoes. No vinaigrette on this salad—just a good drizzle of unfiltered Italian extra virgin olive oil and Saba. Now, I loved the Purple Haze in the salad, but Mary also suggests adding it to mashed potatoes at the end of preparation.
• Ewephoria: This Dutch ewe’s milk cheese is one of my favorites because it is all big nutty flavor. I adore it on toast in the morning but try slices on a crisp apple or pear accompanied by a big, robust red wine.
• Idiazabal: This is a something of a curiosity. It's a raw sheep’s milk cheese from Spain that has a burst of smokiness but, surprisingly, it actually isn't a smoked cheese. Instead, it gets that crazy flavor because it’s aged in chimneys. Go figure. But, it’s a tremendous hard cheese—nutty and just a little oily.
• St. Agur: Oh, I did love this blue cheese from France’s Auvergne region. This is simply one of the best blue cheeses you’ll find because it’s so creamy. A full fat blue, it has a sumptuous flavor that finishes with bacon. Dreamy.
• Roquefort Carles: Another sumptuous blue cheese that comes, of course, from Roquefort. It’s strong, it’s tangy and I adore it.
• Vacherin Fribourgeois: My grandpa Sam was a stinky cheese kind of guy, and was especially fond of the astoundingly pungent Limberger. He’d have loved this strong smelling small batch Swiss cheese. I certainly did. While he would have eaten it straight up, you might want to balance the strong flavor with some crusty bread and a robust red wine or Porter. Mary suggests using it for fondue or raclette.

I tried a lot of different cheeses at Taste but bought only a few because I hate the idea of these magnificently living foodstuffs going moldy or hard before I can finish them. Cheese storage has been on my mind and over the years I’ve gotten a lot of different advice on how best to keep cheese fresh. Aside from buying small portions and eating them promptly, what do you do? First some don’ts: don’t wrap them in plastic wrap, Ziploc bags or moistened paper towels covered by wax paper. Instead, Mary pointed directly at the lined blue-and-white paper she wraps the cheeses in. She calls it “Gore-Tex” for cheese. The liner wicks moisture from the cheese. The paper keeps the cheese dry. You can also use parchment or wax paper enveloped in foil. Label your little packages with a Sharpie pen. They should keep for several days. Ideally, you don’t buy more than what you can eat fairly quickly.

Taste Artisan Cheese & Gourmet Shop is located at 1243 ½ University Ave. in Hillcrest.

Have some thoughts about Taste or other cheese purveyors in San Diego? Do you have a favorite neighborhood market or shop that carries unique or unusual foodstuff? Let me know or add to the conversation by clicking on comments below:

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Taking on Thanksgiving

I’m not normally a fan of potlucks, but let’s face it, Thanksgiving is the ultimate potluck dinner and the best. Of course, every family has its ironclad traditions when it comes to food—don’t bother to rhapsodize about your mom’s oyster stuffing or your grandma’s cornbread stuffing; I want my mom’s chestnut stuffing. Period. So, if you’re a guest, it’s going to be a challenge to make everyone happy with a dish that works with the dinner you’re invited to. And, if you’re the host, how do you get your guests to bring a dish that complements what you’re serving?

I think the answer is to keep all the hardcore dishes intact—the turkey, the stuffing, the gravy, the mashed potatoes and the sweet potatoes probably all revolve around recipes handed down through generations. They’re the immovable objects of the meal. So, do the novel flourishes at the periphery—the appetizers, side dishes, salad and dessert.

Certainly, the recipes for Thanksgiving dishes overfloweth. But, if time or talent is in short supply and you need to bring something smashing to the big meal, you’ve got a great selection of high-impact, low-fuss prepared foods from around San Diego County that you can choose from.

Let’s address appetizers. No, we don’t want to fill up on them before the main act, but no one wants a crowd so hungry they feel compelled to pounce on the food as it makes its entrance. So, here are some suggestions for host assignments or guest offerings—and some will work well as side dishes, too:

• Brie en croute or a plate of luscious cheeses from Venissimo (Del Mar and Mission Hills). If you’re confused about what to order, Gina and her staff can help you select just the right cheeses, along with crackers, bread or fruit to accompany it. And, in Mission Hills, head across the street to Sausage King to pick up sliced Hungarian salami to accompany it.
• Homemade vegetable salads from the newly revamped Aaron’s Eatzz on Convoy—the spicy Turkish salad with carrots, tomatoes, onions and spices like cumin; the Matbucha salad (also with a bit of a bite) with tomatoes, eggplant, red and green peppers, onions and garlic; the sweet Spanish sliced eggplant with tomato sauce and the grilled chopped eggplant that’s magnificently rich in flavor. They also have tahini and baba ganoush and chopped liver, and in their refrigerated section, smoked mackerel in oil, herring and vegetarian chopped liver.
• Fresh ceviche (fish, shrimp or octopus) from Northgate Gonzalez Market, along with freshly made tortilla chips.
• Dolmas (stuffed grape leaves) or other stuffed vegetables (cabbage leaves, peppers, zucchini, eggplant and kale), fried eggplant and grilled eggplant are a little exotic and truly delicious. And, is there anything easier than buying cans of these at Balboa International Market, North Park Produce, Aaron’s Eatzz or Parsian? I’ve tasted them all and, yes, they are perfect party pleasers. All you need to do is plate them. Another option is a plate of fresh sliced feta, olives, hummus and freshly baked flat bread.
• The beet salad at Continent European Deli in La Jolla. It converted me to beets, with its sweet accompaniments of walnuts, prunes, garlic and mayonnaise. And, that beet vinaigrette salad with potatoes, pickles, carrots and sauerkraut is delicious with sliced mini rye bread. Like garlic? Try their mushroom salad. Finally, I’d suggest the Israeli salad, with its mild flavors of eggplant, garlic and mayo.

Assigned to make the green salad? Trader Joe’s comes in handy here. All you need to do is buy some bags of pre-washed lettuces—perhaps baby spring mix or the herb salad mix—along with a bag of dried cranberries, a package of candied pecans, a container of pomegranate seeds and their cranberry, walnut and gorgonzola salad dressing (or make a vinaigrette yourself). Add some thinly sliced red onions and slices of peeled orange and you have an amazing salad. Want to really impress? Add crumbled cranberry stilton from Venissimo (yes, I do love the place).

Speaking of Trader Joes… they really are the go-to resource for prepared foods for Thanksgiving. My friend Paula is a sucker for their corn and chile tomato-less relish, as am I. She loves to serve it as an appetizer with tortilla chips on a bed of greens. Pick up a few jars of one of their tapenades—olive or roasted red pepper and artichoke—or bruschetta—plain, mixed olive or mixed grilled vegetable—and loaves of sour dough baguettes to slice. Just stand in front of the refrigerated section of dips, close your eyes and pick. You’ll land on something amazing, like their spinach and artichoke dip, cilantro roasted pecan dip, artichoke jalapeño, or three-layer hummus (traditional, cilantro jalapeño and spicy). Then all you need are some boxes of crackers or, better yet, bags of pita chips with sea salt or “everything” bagel chips.

What about dessert? Again, Trader Joe’s is easy with their fresh pumpkin and pecan pies and a delicious-looking pumpkin cranberry pecan upside down cake. They also have pumpkin and apple pies as well as a lovely French apple tart in the frozen food section.

Of course, Julian pies are always a pleaser. If you can't get up to Julian, lots of shops sell them year round. I can find them locally at my little Tierrasanta Farmers Outlet and their sister store off Friars Road and Mission Gorge.

Want to send the crowd swooning though? Go for the non-traditional but oh so amazing pastries at Sage French Bakery on Convoy, next to Nijiya. Owned by a Korean baker, this Japanese-style French Bakery is one of the best in town and you can focus on chocolate with the Chocolate Mousse cake, Raspberry Ganache or Elby or enjoy the raspberry Mistral. This man is truly gifted.

I’ve only touched the surface. So, I leave it to you, dear readers, to offer some other irresistible ideas. Just click on “Comments” below and add your thoughts.

And, have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Caron

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Venissimo: Say Cheese in Mission Hills

So, I’m standing behind the counter of Venissimo, the Mission Hills cheese shop, sampling and photographing cheese and chatting with owner Gina Frieze when a slender young woman comes through the door clutching a piece of yellow paper. She looks prepared for disappointment but states her case. “I’m looking for a rare cheese,” she says. “It’s from France and it’s called Reblochon. I need it for a recipe I want to make from my French mother-in-law. Do you have it?”

I laughed. Just half an hour before I had come in with a similar quest, only mine was for a gorgeously runny artisan cheese made by Bellwether Farms called Crescenza. I had been introduced to it many years ago at a cheese course I took at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena. I long ago had given up on finding it down here because at other stores I’d been told it was too delicate to stock. My final memory of it was at a restaurant in San Francisco, which served it on warm focaccia with white truffle oil drizzled on top.

What were the results? Well, Gina beamed when she told me that Venissimo does carry Crescenza but then she had to break the news that they didn’t have it at the moment. So, pleasure delayed, at least temporarily.

And, the young woman’s Reblochon? Success. Venissimo can’t carry the unpasteurized version that her mother-in-law would recognize, given U.S. laws. However, Gina had the pasteurized version. How much did she want? The young woman wasn’t sure. She said the recipe, for a potato tart or casserole, called for three-and-a-half wheels melted over it. Gina held up a one-pound wheel and they decided three would be plenty. And, the customer also picked up blue cheese olives as a treat for herself.

As for the Reblochon, we both sampled some and sighed. A creamy cheese, its herbal flavor comes first, followed by a nutty aftertaste. Reblochon literally translated means “to pinch a cow's udder again.” It comes from the Savoie region of France, the result of some ingenious 13^th-century herdsmen. Back then, dependent on landowners who insisted that all the herd’s milk was their property, farmers cleverly worked around this by only partially milking the cows. Once the controllers left, they completed the task, “re-blochaient.” Thus, the name Reblochon.

In the hour or so I spent at Venissimo on a Wednesday afternoon, customers flowed in almost continuously. And, Gina greeted almost all by name and knew what kinds of cheeses they were coming for, offering samples of others she thought they might enjoy.

It’s that kind of place. Around for three-and-a-half years, Venissimo is the result of a lifelong passion Gina has had for cheese, that comes from her Austrian mother and their family visits back to Austria and its cheese shops. Gina, who had a career in marketing with Coors and other companies, decided she wanted to follow her passion and opened the store in Mission Hills with her husband, Roger.

On average, the shop carries 120 cheeses at any one time and has carried some 800 varieties in over three years. The shop also sells a variety of cheese implements—knives, planers, spreaders, cheese wrap paper, French paper leaves, cheese boards, flags and holders.

And, there are packages of crackers, jars of olives, tapenade, honey and jams. Gina also carries Bread & Cie breads, chocolates and little cakes—fig chocolate, date walnut and fig almond. It’s a picnic or cocktail party in the making all in one place.

And, what about the cheeses? You name it and she probably carries it. I tried a number of them and here’s just some of what I found:

Roaring Forties Blue from Australia’s Kings Island Dairy. A bright, tangy blue. Great with honey, according to Gina. If that sounds a little odd, she explained that Italians will dip cheeses in honey like we dip chips in salsa. And, a note to my friend, Jolene: Venissimo carries your favorite Maytag Blue. (Below, in the middle, is the Roaring Forties surrounded by two other blues: the strong, oozy Mont Briac, on the left, and, on the right, a creamy Valdeon from Spain, cow and goat’s milk cheese wrapped in maple leaves.)

Hook’s 10-Year Cheddar. Looks like any old cheddar, but this Wisconsin cheese was a terrific surprise. I expected it to have a sharp bite to it. Instead, it was bold, sweet and had an element that made me do a double take. Crunchiness. Not a lot, but it’s there and the result of calcium lactate crystallization. Some experts say this is not a good thing and there are technologies to try to eliminate it. They’re wrong. A little crunch in a cheese adds a bit of fun to the palate.

Quebec Vintage 5-Year Aged Cheddar. This also had a bit of crunch to it. It’s a lovely cheese, a bit sharper than the Hook’s but tangy and buttery. I’ve been eating it on toast, but it would be great with pears or apples.

Il Boschetto. This is Gina’s favorite. It’s well deserved. It’s a semi-soft cheese blending sheep and cow’s milk with, get this, white truffle shavings. In short, total decadence.

Cahill Porter. Visually gorgeous with flavor to match. From Ireland’s County Limerick, the cheese is enveloped in a soft milk chocolate brown wax. Cut inside and you find a stunning mosaic, the result of Irish cheddar being pressed into Porter beer. It’s got a mellow flavor that, of course, goes well with crackers and ale. I like looking at it as much as eating it.

Cathare. From Languedoc-Rous, this ash-covered goat cheese has that subtle tang you expect from a goat cheese, but with a richness that comes from aging. The “occitane” cross stamped on the top is a symbol of the Languedoc region. (Below is the Cathare with a slice of orange Mimolette and Tomme de Savoie, a nutty skim milk cheese.)

Mimolette. Another happy discovery for me since my first sight of it—and it’s a gorgeous pumpkin orange—was at a Paris farmers market last year. I adored it then and was ecstatic to learn it can be purchased here. Also known under the name of Boule de Lille because the cheeses originally matured in cellars in Lille, France, Mimolette is similar to the Dutch Edam. It’s a semi-hard cheese that works beautifully with crackers or grated in salads.

Lemon Stilton. This is one of several fruit cheeses Venissimo carries. I also tried the Blueberry Stilton and Cranberry Wesleydale (similar to Stilton). Venissimo carries a popular Mango Stilton, but didn’t have it in that day. I ended up buying the Lemon Stilton with some ideas of how to use it. It’ll be perfect crumbled over an arugula salad with toasted walnuts and a lemon-olive oil dressing. Already I crumbled it on asparagus, which I had sautéed in olive oil and garlic and finished with lemon juice and toasted pine nuts. It was a great pairing. (Below, l to r, are the Blueberry Stilton, Lemon Stilton and Cranberry Wesleydale.)

Pecorino Foglie di Noci. Brushed in olive oil and wrapped in sheets of walnut leaves, this hearty cheese is great over pasta and Gina swoons with thoughts of it drizzled with honey. A crisp dry white Italian wine is the perfect pairing.

Speaking of pairing, when you buy cheese from Venissimo, save the register receipt. It is filled with information about the cheese, its provinence and food and wine pairing suggestions. Very smart. And, if you like, the store will keep track of your favorites and send you a newsletter and information about when they’re in stock.

Venissimo sells cheeses to restaurants like Café Chloe in downtown San Diego and Jordan Restaurant in Pacific Beach’s Tower23 Hotel, as well as the San Diego Wine and Culinary Center. Gina does cheese events at Great News and the San Diego Wine and Culinary Center. And, if you’re looking for an interesting gift, she will make gift boxes.

Venissimo is located at 754 W. Washington at Falcon St. in Mission Hills.

Have some thoughts about Venissimo or other cheese purveyors in San Diego? Do you have a favorite neighborhood market or shop that carries unique or unusual foodstuff? Let me know or add to the conversation by clicking on comments below: