Small and mighty is the theme of this week’s pairing, from the cheese itself to the state it comes from. Though tiny, Vermont is one of the prime locations for cheesemaking in the US. With bountiful forests and excellent soil, dairy farming has flourished and created some of the best domestic cheeses in the country. This week, we’re focusing on our first mixed-milk cheese, Cremont from Vermont Creamery. Sweet cow’s milk and cream mixed with herbaceous, tangy goat milk creates the decadent, dynamic soft cheese of our dreams. For the wine, we’ve chosen a fruity Beaujolais-Villages with enough body to hold up to the density of this Vermont gem.
Although Vermont is now well-known for its local, artisan cheese scene, Vermont Creamery was one of the first to champion Vermont cheese. The creamery began as a collaboration between Allison Hooper, a Vermont cheesemaker who learned the trade in France, and Bob Reese, who worked for Vermont’s Department of Agriculture. Allison was one of the few Vermont cheesemakers Bob could find to supply fresh goat cheese back in the early ‘80s. Together, they started a 60 goat dairy farm. This goat dairy became Vermont Creamery, growing from 5 to 25 to over 100 employees. They were the first to sell American made Mascarpone and American made European-style butter. Today, they get their cow’s milk from the century old St. Albans Cooperative Creamery, which includes over 350 family farm members who produce milk at the highest standard. As is pretty common for high-distribution creameries, Vermont Creamery no longer hosts their own goat herd, but receives high quality goat milk from twenty farms across New England and up into Canada.
Modeled on the soft cheese traditions Allison learned in France, Cremont is a delightful dive into cow and goat mixed-milk cheese. The cow’s milk provides sweetness that mellows out the tart and tangy goat’s milk, tampering any gamey notes that often pop up in 100% goat cheeses. The hint of cow cream creates a luxurious, smooth texture that starts fluffy and melts in your mouth as you eat it. Only aged for 15 days, this cheese is fresh and bright and deeply satisfying. Because Vermont Creamery uses microbial rennet, all of their cheeses are entirely vegetarian, too.
We’ve picked a 100% gamay grape Beaujolais-Villages to handle this rich and flavorful wheel. In one of the 38 designated villages for Beaujolais-Villages, Domaine de Roche-Guillon is made by the family’s fifth generation winemaker. The wine evokes cherries, earth, and a slight tobacco note. The wine’s acidity and dryness balances out Cremont’s decadent texture and sweet cream flavor. If you’re looking for a comforting pairing that has enough complexity to have you going back for more, this Beaujolais and mixed-milk softie is the way to go.