02/22/2011- Cahill's Porter Cheese

The sixth meeting of the International Cheese Club commenced on February 22, 2011. Present members were Moobs, Jesse, Scott, Tony, and Susie the Cat. Special guests joining us were Brennan and Irene.

This week's cheese was provided by Scott and it was an Irish porter cheddar. It was served cold with sliced apples and pears. Melted over nacho chips and butter snap pretzels. Grilled on potato bread. Brennan, Scott, and Irene drank some Guinness with their sampling.

Opinions:

Moobs- The cheese was alright, but I'm not sure what porter's supposed to taste like. By itself, it was bitter and with the apple it was very bitter. The pear was very sweet and complimented the cheese very well. I tasted more pretzel than cheese, it was better with the nachos. It was better baked than by itself. The grilled cheese was odd mix of flavors and I'm not sure I would it eat in again like that. Probably not my favorite cheese or that I would buy it.

Scott- I really liked the cheese. By itself, it was very bitter and stout. You could definitely taste the hint of porter with it. The apple was okay, but the pear brought out the taste of the cheese better. The butter snap pretzels overpowered the cheese, the nachos were pretty good. I felt like grilled cheese was very good, the sweetness of the potato bread brought out the flavor of the cheese. The Guinness brought out the porter flavor from the cheese. I would buy this cheese again, probably for an appetizer with a sampler platter.

Jesse- Inital reaction, it tasted like the smell of a dried wet towel or an armpit. Not sure what application this has unless you were drunk. The quality of the cheese was decent, but this is the second Irish cheese we've eaten. The Dubliner cheese seemed like a higher quality cheddar. Apple and the pear just tasted flat, like I was eating cheese and apples. The chips brought out the burntness of the baking pan they cooked it on. I would never buy it or recommend it to anyone.

Tony- I wasn't a fan of the cheese from the start. By itself, it was very strong and bitter, not that pleasant. The apple was extremely sweet and blocked out the cheese flavor, but the pear was actually decent with it, probably my favorite application of the cheese. The pretzels just tasted like butter and the nachos enhanced the bitterness of the cheese. I wasn't a fan of the grilled cheese at all. My main issue here with the cheese was the weird coloration of it. It was a yellowish-white with brown marbling in it, not very pleasant and didn't make the cheese go down any better.

Brennan- The first taste of it, it was not very good. However the cheese with an apple was VERY good. The pretzel was not as good as the apple. The chips were probably my favorite and tasted the best. The grilled cheese tasted really good too. I can make that and eat it for a snack. With the Guinness, it really wasn't that bad.

Irene- I thought the pretzel was delicious, especially after I drank the Guinness.

Susie the Cat- Liked it.

02/13/2011- Habanero & Jalapeno Cheddar Cheese

The fifth meeting of the International Cheese Club commenced on February 13, 2011. Present members were Moobs, Scott, Jesse, Susie the Cat, and Tony. Old Greg was absent for the meeting this week. Special Guest Brennan joined us.

The cheese this week was provided by Jesse and Tony's mom Pat. It was a Troyer's Habanero & Jalapeno Cheddar Cheese. It was presented cold with Ritz, sliced with apples, shredded and warmed over nachos, and melted over sourdough bread.

Opinions:

Moobs- It's cheddar cheese, which is delicious. I didn't taste the habanero right away, but the heat kicked in after a moment. With the cracker it was, of course, delicious. The apple changed the flavor of the cheese for me, I could taste the peppers more. My favorite was with the bread. It melted and toasted together very well. The nachos were excellent. I really enjoyed it, the peppers added something to it. Nice change on an old classic.

Scott- I liked it. It was a very mild cheddar and that helped balance the spiciness. The heat lingered, it didn't go away very quickly. I can still feel it a bit. I liked it by itself best. The apple was good, but the sweetness conflicted with the cheese. The nachos were decent, better than last time. The cheese bread was alright too, it would probably make a good grilled cheese. My only complaint is that it had almost a sweet processed cheese taste, but I would eat it again.

Jesse- I like the novelty idea of the two peppers in the cheese. Regarding the quality of the cheddar is that it was too creamy and sour. I thought with the apples it amplified the low quality of the cheddar. The nachos were naturally a good fit, even still it was ridiculously spicy. I would not eat this cheese again. The jalapeno flavor was a joke, it added to the sourness.

Tony- I loved this cheese. Super spicy and super tasty. By itself, it was incredible. Add Ritz to that equation and you got an awesome combo. The apples enhanced the spiciness and texture, which was nice and firm. Nachos were why this cheese was made, so they were delicious too. The best, though, was melted on the sourdough. I'm eager to try this as a grilled cheese. My favorite cheese we've done so far.

Brennan- Definitely my favorite cheese I've tried so far. I think my favorite was on the nachos. It tasted awesome and I would serve those at a party. The apples were a good snack, not something I would go out of my way to do again. I've had better cheeses on bread, nothing special. The Ritz added a lot of flavor, it was really good.

Susie the Cat- Didn't like it

The ICC will meet in a week. Scott will be providing the cheese.

02/06/2011 - BelGioioso Fontina

The fourth meeting of the International Cheese Club commenced on February 6, 2011 at 8:40 in the evening. Present members included Moobs, Scott, Jesse, and Tony with special guest Old Greg attending and providing the cheese.

The cheese sampled was a BelGioioso fontina cheese. It was served in 4 different options: cold with Ritz, cold with apples, melted on nachos, and melted on sourdough bread.

Reactions:

Moobs- Reminded me of mozzarella, which I love. Good by itself and with the cracker. The apple enhanced the saltiness. Not as strong as our previous cheese, very subdued, which I enjoyed. The sourdough complimented it very well. The nachos were good, but the flavor wasn't as strong.

Scott- It was good. A very mild cheese, kind of reminded of creamed Havarti. I liked it best with the apples, which brought out the flavor very well. All the other options masked the flavor. Okay on the bread and nachos. Subtle creamy and saltiness to it.

Jesse- This is a good cheese. Would go great with fresh mozzarella and basil on a pizza. Liked it most with the apples. The sweetness really brought out the flavor of the cheese. On the chips, you might as just went with a cheddar. I do recommend this cheese. Very bland in the world of cheese, but for the price would go great with other applications.

Old Greg- I agree with the other assessments. The apple really brought out the flavor of the cheese the best. I wished we tried a warm version of it by itself. I thought it was great with the sourdough, the combination was better than the parts alone. The nachos was really about the texture, not a lot of flavor. Traditionally it's used in Italian cheese sauces, so having it in mixed in as a texture and an undertone taste, makes this cheese work.

Tony- A tasty cheese, very reminiscent of mozzarella. Great on the Ritz and with the apples. The nachos weren't my favorite, but the cheese seemed redundant on it. The application of it on the sourdough was alright, but once again the flavor of the bread overpowered it. Yummy stuff.

Susie the Cat- Liked it.

Upon completion of cheese sampling and assessment and after a unanimous vote, Old Greg was made an official member tonight. He's already skipped out of the next meeting, but plans to attend regularly after next Sunday.