Automotive description cheese writer6/23/2023 The cheesemaker jobdescription is a must have for any successful cheesemaker. Skills required for CHEESEMAKER HELPER position. “Comté is very complex, and it requires a slow tasting to appreciate what an incredible cheese it is.Get info about CHEESEMAKER HELPER job description and duties. Greco recommends tasting your way through the oldest Comté you can find-she prefers a 24 to 36-month wheel for snacking-to figure out your favorite. “What’s fun for us is that each batch is so different, and it’s great to be able to taste through them and see the nuances.” “We firmly believe that each cheese has purpose and place,” said Hallman. Formaggio Kitchen stocks up to seven different styles of Comté at any given time, from fruity, eight-month Melodie to three-year-old Comté Extra Grand Cru by legendary maker Marcel Petite. On her food tours, Greco typically uses a middle-aged wheel-12 to 18 months-and contrasts it with a three-year wheel to illustrate the difference and help tasters decide which they like best. On both sides of the Atlantic, cheese experts invoke the Comté rainbow to show tasters how aging can transform a cheese. Older wheels have more complex, nutty, caramel and butterscotch flavors and are perfect for snacking.” Younger wheels are more fruity and lactic and can be used as a melting or cooking cheese. “It's versatile, delicious, and has such a broad range of flavors. In France, said Greco, most cheese shops will stock at least two ages of Comté. “It's a really rare opportunity to see such a steady increase in the age of a cheese and how it affects flavor.” “It’s rare to find a cheese at so many different ages, where you can really see the nuance of the different ages and how it affects each wheel, because every little detail that goes into cheesemaking can dramatically impact the final outcome,” she said. Wheels are evaluated for flavor and aroma and graded to be sold or matured further.įor Julia Hallman, general manager of Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Comté provides a fascinating example of how a cheese develops during aging. Here’s where things really get interesting.Ĭomté is sold at several different ages: During aging, the affineur must carefully calibrate the temperature and humidity of the cheese to develop the right kind of bacteria that will lead to the richest flavor development. A few weeks after wheels are produced affineurs, or cheese agers, take over the process. All Comté is made in just three French departments of Jura, Doubs, and Ain at around 150 fruitières. This ultra-specific production process ties Comté specifically to its region. Makers using the traditional form of rennet, the salted fourth stomach of a calf, will add it to the thermophilic starter to infuse the mixture with its coagulating enzymes. The milk must be heated in copper vats, and it’s cultured by saving whey from the previous day’s make and adding mesophilic and thermophilic cultures. Cows must be milked no more than 16 miles from the fruitières, or cooperative cheesemaking facilities, at which Comté is produced to ensure the milk is as fresh and rich in flavor-creating microflora as possible. The production process is strictly defined, too. These standards cover which breeds of cows can be milked (Montbeliarde or French Simmental), their feed (fresh grass in summer and dry hay in winter, with a small supplement of non-GMO grain), and how much grazing space for each (at least two acres). “I always say, don’t trust a monger who isn’t a fan of Comté, and I can’t think of any mongers I know who don’t love Comté.”Ĭomté is protected by a European Union PDO that details strict standards around its production. It’s great for cooking or on its own,” Harper said. It goes with some red wines, some white wines, some beers. “Comté is the little black dress of cheeses. He’ll recommend a young variety for cooking or sandwiches, while longer-aged batches shine on a simple cheese board. ![]() ![]() When communicating with customers about the cheese, Harper starts with how they plan to use it. The store stocks the cheese at four different ages, from young to a special reserve that, pre-Covid, a lucky monger was chosen to go to France to taste and select. Later, working at Di Bruno Bros., Harper got to experience a much wider spectrum of Comté. At the time, the store got one shipment of a single variety each year-a moment of excitement for the cheese team. ![]() Philadelphia-based cheesemonger David Jeffrey Harper first tasted Comté early in his career while working at Whole Foods.
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