Cheese Heads United

I admit it, I was surprised by the huge turn-out for last Saturday’s cheese cook-off. As much as I love cheese, the thought of preparing 200 stringy bites for strangers didn’t turn me on, so I went to the Philadelphia Cheese Experiment as a spectator, as a sniffer outer and spy. There were 16 contestants – all amateur chefs – and within an hour, the venue was jammed.

“We’re trying to create a curated food party,” Nick Suarez, one of the organizers, told me. Nick comes with a row of cook-off trophies to his name; he won “Best Dog in Show” at the 2009 Great Hotdog Cookoff and went on to drop his day job at Wine Spectator to become a professional organizer. Of cook-offs.

“In Brooklyn, there’s a whole cook-off community,” he told me, appraising the Philadelphia crowd with a smile. “I always say winning is fifty percent logistics and fifty percent seasoning.”

Word. The best nosh I tried was a subtle but surprising bacon-goat-cheese-ball dipped in dark chocolate and rolled in graham crackers. The Smorgasm. It didn’t win any prizes, but it was a great example of balance and invention: faintly salty and tangy with contrasting textures. Hats off to Dave Glowka and Baylen Linnekin (below) for that.

I’ve posted more shots below but first, here are a couple more opportunities for cheese and camaraderie:

Meet the Cheesemaker, Friday, June 17, 4-6 p.m.

A State-wide Happy Hour

Cheesemakers across the state will throw open their barn doors for tours and tastings on Friday, June 17. A map of the farms can be found here. Participating cheesemakers include Birchrun Hills Farm, Yellow Springs Farm, Doe Run Farm, Stoudt’s Wonderful Good Market, Dove Song Dairy, Calkins Creamery, Dean Farms, Keswick Creamery, Clover Creek Cheese Cellar and Pipe Dreams Fromage. Note: I'll be hanging out with Sue Miller at Birchrun Hills Farm, then attending her tasting (see below).

Local Cheese+Local Beer Tasting, June 17, 6:30-8

A Night at Birchrun Hills Farm

Enjoy pairings of six local cheeses and beers at Birchrun Hills Farm in Chester County. Birchrun is home to Sue Miller, one of the area's premier raw-milk cheesemakers (Red Cat, Birchrun Blue). We'll taste her cheeses along with libations from Tired Hands Brewery, Victory, and Sly Fox. Sue Miller and Paul Lawler host (along with yours truly). Tickets are $25. To reserve a seat, email birchrunhillsfarm@verizon.net or call Sue Miller at 610-827-1603.

Fair Food Farm Tour, June 26, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

A Field Trip to Two Cheesemakers

Hop in a van with Paul Lawler of the Fair Food Farmstand and drive out to bucolic Chester County to visit two star cheesemakers, Sue Miller of Birchrun Hills and Kristian Holbrook of Doe Run Dairy. Holbrook makes that luscious Hummingbird robiola I wrote about last month. This day-long tour includes transportation and lunch for $40. Reading Terminal Market is the pick-up and drop-off point. Tickets are available at eventbrite.

Cheese O’clock: Breaking Dairy News

Yes, that’s a cheese Swatch. Imagine my delight upon seeing it in the window of the Swatch store in Washington D.C.’s Union Station. It makes staying on time a pleasure, but my stomach growls every time I look at it. If you need a cheesy toast watch of your own, you can check them out here.

Now, for some local updates:

Au Revoir, Amazing Acres

One of my favorite goat cheesemakers, Debbie Mikulak, is retiring to Maine with her partner, Fred. That means no more Sea Smoke, a bloomy gem that has garnered press and praise across Pennsylvania’s dairyland. Get your last fix before March 15 (try DiBruno Bros. and Fair Food Farmstand), and if you know anyone who wants to buy a Chester County goat dairy with a beautiful cheese room…

Yellow Springs CSA

Forty slots are open for 40 goat cheese lovers. Check out the Yellow Springs website if you want to sign up for award-winning cheese from one of Chester County’s most decorated cheesemakers. I wrote about my visit to Yellow Springs a few weeks ago and highlighted one of their cheeses, Nutcracker, in the current issue of Grid Magazine. If you live in Philly proper, you can pay extra for delivery through Panache, a company that delivers organic produce. Click here to register for the CSA.

Bobolink at the Farmstand

Cheesemonger Paul Lawler sends word of his new dairy case princess, Bobolink cheese. This is the first time that cheese from this much-lauded dairy will be retailed in Philly (woot, go Paul!).

Paul writes, “I don't mean to be all star-struck, but well, I kind of am. Jonathan [White] was one of the very first on the east coast to really put fully grass fed dairy on the map, - supplying...the Clinton White house (where he taught the kitchen to make mozzarella).” Stop by the Fair Food Farmstand this weekend for a wedge.

Secret Winnimere Stash at DiBruno’s

Hot scoop from the cave at DiBruno Bros.: the store has a secret supply of Winnimere that’s being washed in Root, a local liqeuer. It should be coming in from the Cellars at Jasper Hill in late February. Winnimere is a Vacherin-style cheese (read: oozy). Gorgeous. I want a Winnimere Swatch.

Clipped from: www.culturecheesemag.com (share this clip)

Three Winnimere tastings are scheduled in conjunction with the folks from Root:

Di Brun Bros. 9^th Street , March 5, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Di Bruno Bros. Center City, March 6, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Ardmore Farmers’ Market, April 9, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Cheesemonger+Restaurant 943

Ian Peacock, a.k.a. Mr. Fiore Sardo over at Di Bruno Bros. (9^th Street), is making morcilla and blood sausage at his new restaurant in the Italian Market, 943 South 9^th Street. He’s a partner in the city’s first Latin-Italian meat laboratory. Given that he’s a longtime DB’s monger, you can be sure he’s serving up some pretty wicked cheese, too. The restaurant opened last week and is slated to start serving brunch, in addition to lunch y dinner.

Brewer’s Plate

Last but not least, don't forget to mark Sunday, March 13 on your calendar for the city of Philadelphia's best craft ale and local foods dinner party. Tickets are still available, and Yours Truly is on board for some cheese cutting. Stop by, and I'll blow you a kiss.