La Fête du Fromage - January Round Up

This month offered a fantastic mélange of cheeses for la Fête du Fromage International Cheese Tasting Event. A huge merci to all of you who joined in!


Poor Nathalie had to forgo cheese during the entire month of December due to a diet her husband was on (which she said almost led to divorce). She's joined us again this month with this scrumptious Caprino di Fattoria, a fresh, Italian goat's cheese that she credits with saving her marriage! Have a look at her blog, Spaced Out Rambling for a few more mouth watering photos of this creamy, tangy little cheese.
Welcome back Nathalie!

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La Couronne Lochoise, a chèvre from the Loire, is this month's entry from la petitie parisienne Camille of Croque-Camille. She chose this particular cheese at her local Fromagerie because she liked its doughnut shape, which she later learned represented a crown, not a doughnut! Camille describes this cheese as "smooth and buttery" on the inside and "sharp" and "zippy" on the outside. I concur.

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New to la Fête du Fromage is Susan of Savoring Time in the Kitchen. She tasted a wedge of Pleasant Ridge Reserve from Wisconsin which she describes as a "combination of an aged white cheddar and a fine French Gruyère." Sounds wonderful! And don't those spicy chili crackers look delicious?

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Shira of Petit Pois started the new year off in the right direction with a resolution to taste more cheese. I love that! Almost immediately however, she found herself being lured back to one of her favorite French cheeses, Fourme d'Ambert. Its flavor, "round and nutty...neither insipid nor one-dimensional" and its reasonable price were too enticing to pass up.
"Resolution be damned," she says. And I agree. She plans on trying some new cheeses this year, but Fourme d'Ambert will always be on her short list!

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A trio of Normandy's best known cheeses were written up by Maggie of Normandy Life. Pont l'Evêque, Camembert and Livarot are three French cheeses that she says make up the perfect Normandy cheese board. I have to agree! I also like Maggie's suggestion of tasting them with a glass of Calvados, the famous apple brandy from the region.

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My entry of this month's Fête is Etorki, an unassuming ewe's milk cheese from the Basque region of southwest France. It is velvety and rich with hazelnut and caramel-like flavors that are a true delight!

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That's a wrap! Thanks for making January's round up a great one!


The next Fête du Fromage International Cheese Tasting will take place in March as I'll be in New Orleans joining in the Mardi Gras festivities in February.
Please have your entries to me by March 13. The entire round-up will be posted on March 15.

There is an amazing world of cheese out there to discover and there are many small farmers and artisan cheese makers who appreciate our support. I look forward to reading about your tastings in March!

Tell us why you chose this particular cheese. Tell us how it tasted. Tell us about its texture and aroma. Did you eat it on its own? Or with something? Did you drink anything special with your cheese? Would you recommend it or not? Is there something unusual or interesting about it?

• Photos are wonderful, but not necessary
• Entries must contain the words La Fête du Fromage and contain a link to Chez Loulou
• Posts should be written specifically for La Fête du Fromage and not entered in any other food blog event
• Please send the link to your post to louloufrance (at) gmail (dot) com with the words Fête du Fromage in the subject line