Feelin' Cheesy

Some women like shopping for shoes, some for clothes… I like shopping for cheese. Any time. Any place. (Although don’t get my wrong, I still love my shoes and clothes.)

Before I walk you through my favourite fromageries in the area (French for “cheese shops”), we should get acquainted with the basics.

            There are three primary types of milk that cheese is made from: sheep, goat and cow. Rich sheep’s milk has the most fat and protein of the three and often has hints of sweetness and nuttiness. Goat’s milk is pure white, low in lactose and easily digested. It is naturally homogenized, thus, making it smoother. Cow’s milk has the most carotene and is the most commonly used of the three to produce cheese.

            There are also three types of rinds; bloomy, washed and natural. Bloomy Rind is sprayed with an edible mold (camemberti, glaucum or penicillium candidum for example), creating a cloudy white coating called a “bloom”. P. Camemberti, another type of mold, is responsible for the classic fuzzy-rind cheese called Camembert (which looks like Brie). Washed Rind is washed with wine, beer, a salty solution or brine and bacteria. Think “stinky cheese”. The aroma is stronger and the flavour of the cheese is usually saltier. This is because of the brine and alcohol. This damp process produces a bacteria called B. linens that gives these cheeses their flavor complexities (and the rinds their orangey, pink or reddish hues). Example: Epoisses. Natural Rind: Many cheeses are coated with natural, holey rinds, simply hardened by contact with air. These include the blues, most goat cheeses and cow’s milk cheeses. Examples: Asiago and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Next, is the difference between pasteurized vs. unpasteurized milk. Pasteurized milk is heated for a certain period of time and then cooled immediately – slowly the microbial growth in it. Unpasteurized milk is raw milk. In North America, cheese made with unpasteurized milk must be aged for 60 days before being eaten. After that time frame, the acids and salts in raw-milk cheese naturally prevent listeria, salmonella, and E. coli from growing.

Other Definitons:

Aged cheese: The process of waiting 6+ months before eating the cheese. Aging typically causes cheeses to develop a sharper, stronger flavor. (ie. aged = strong taste, young = mild taste).

Artisinal: Cheese made by hand (little to no machines) via the skilled craftsmanship of a cheesemaker. The cheeses are usually more complex in taste and ripened to achieve a certain visual look. Look out for some local options featured in this article.

Carotene: An orangey photosynthetic pigment important for photosynthesis (responsible for colour in carrots or yellow colour in cow’s cheese).

Homogenized milk: Milk with the fat particles broken up and dispersed uniformly so the cream will not rise.

Where To Get Your Cheese On:

Cheese Magic - 182 Baldwin Street, Toronto (Kensington)

Although small, this place does make magic. It has reasonable prices and the staff is quite friendly. They recommended a few of their specialty cheeses to try. Paillot de chevre (Quebec) goat cheese was my favourite - only $3.99/100g. It uses straws for support around the outside as it can be easily crumbled over a dish.

My recommendations:

-Comte (France) is made from raw cow’s milk, aged for 18 months, and tastes a bit like a Swiss cheese ($5.99/100g).

-St. Benoit Ermite Bleu (Quebec) is a blue cheese made from cow’s milk. It’s made at the only cheese dairy in North America that’s run by Benedictine monks ($4.49/100g).

-Beemster (Holland) is regarded as the signature Dutch cheese of The Netherlands made with artisanal techniques. It’s semi-firm, made from pasteurized cow’s milk, with a sweet flavour and caramel colour ($4.99/100g). If you’d like it to be extra-aged or made from goat’s milk, it’s a dollar more.

Note: Cheese Magic also features specialty jams like Bonne Maman if you’re feeling fruity!

Global Cheese - 76 Kensington Avenue, Toronto

When you first approach, you’ll be (visually) smacked with signs that advertise their daily discounted cheese. Hence, it can be a bit overwhelming to choose. During their peak time of year (November – January) they have 400+ options, featuring cheese from South America, Europe, North America and the Middle East.

My recommendations:

-Epoisses (France) is very creamy and liquidy, made from unpasteurized cow’s milk with a washed rind ($12.99/250 chunk).

-Bleu des Causses (France) is a blue cheese made from cow’s milk – nicknamed “blue for beginners” because of its mild taste. It’s aged for 3–6 months in Gorges du Tarn's natural limestone caves ($20/kilo).

-A Brul (Nova Scotia) is artisanal, unpasteurized raw sheep’s milk from our eastern shores. It’s solid, aged, hard and sharp-tasting ($5.40/100g).

Leslieville Cheese Market West - 541 Queen Street West, Toronto

(The original one is on Queen East and there’s one up north in Flesherton, Ontario, too)

Along with offering a variety of cheeses, this place creates delicious homemade dips, salsa, hummus and tapenades in their own production kitchen. 40 varieties! My personal favourite was the sundried tomato dip. You’ve got to try it.

In September, if you feel like going back to school for a day – you can take a $30 wine & cheese or beer & cheese class with Julia Rogers. In the winter, they also feature a whisky & cheese class.

My recommendations:

-Patte Blanche (Quebec) is a rarity – it’s hard to find a firm goat’s cheese. It’s also artisanal! With a slightly sweet after-taste, and similarities in texture to Gouda, it’s definitely worth $4/100g.

-Delice de Bourgogne (France) has a strong pungent aroma and tastes a bit salty. It’s made from cow’s milk in the Burgundy region of France - very soft and creamy because cream is added twice to the milk during the production process. Tip: try using this cheese instead of butter while making mashed potatoes ($6.36/100g).

-1608 (Quebec) is a semi-firm, sweet, washed rind cheese. It uses milk from resilient Canadienne cattle, whose ancestors were brought to Canada from France between 1608 and 1670. These cows, now endangered, produce milk that is almost floral in taste. This artisanal cheese works well with pastas or with fruit and honey ($5.99/100g).

About Cheese - 483 Church St., Toronto

This is my go-to place, and as such, it holds a warm spot in my heart. I lived just south of this area for four years when I attended Ryerson University. I remember the first time I went in: I had an entirely free afternoon and ended up spending 3+ hours in here, sampling everything in the store. The young guys that work here (ya ya, I know what you’re thinking) are personable, knowledgeable and are eager to show you their favourites.

My recommendations:

-Evanturel (North Bay) is an artisanal cheese – with a bloomy rind. It has a striking streak of vegetable ash running through the middle. The ash creates an earthy tone to this cheese’s beautifully rich, creamy, supple and mild finish. It’d be nice with a Chardonnay ($7/100g)

-Grey Owl (Quebec) has a smoky-coloured vegetable ash and mold rind. This creamy artisanal goat cheese has a chalky, peppery zip. Too strong to have alone with crackers; I’d have it with some smoked salmon, too ($6.40/100g).

-Blue Haze (Quebec) deserves its own category. This rockin’ artisanal blue cheese has a smoky edge and soft insides. It’s made of pasteurized cow’s milk and smoked with a harvest blend of applewood, cheerywood, plumwood and hickory (be careful – sometimes the term “smoked” is used loosely, referring to a synthetic paste instead of the actual process – but rest assured, About Cheese uses the real deal) ($8/100g).

-Provincial Smoke (PEI) is a raw, artisanal, cow’s milk cheddar with a natural rind (created by the smoking process). This sweet, tangy pungent cheese is caramel gold on the exterior, in tones ranging from light to dark ($5.75/100g).

– Brie de Meaux (France) is actually brie (note: it has to be produced in Meaux to be considered real brie). This unpasteurized cow’s milk has mushroomy, bold earthy tones and was the featured sale of the day… bonus! ($7.53/100g)  

Grande Cheese Factory Outlet - 468 Jevlan Dr., Woodbridge, ON

Amongst my friends, I’m known as the deal finder. This bargain-hunting force has lead me to Grande Cheese Factory Outlet. Talk about deals. This place is like cheese heaven. With Italian music playing in the background, you first walk through a selection of homemade thin-crust pizza, then through an extensive olive/salad/antipasto bar, to eventually find yourself surrounded with rows and rows of cheese.

My recommendations:

-Bocconcini (Italy) is a small, semi-soft, white round ball of cheese that originated in Napoli. It’s mild in taste and is made via a combination of buffalo and cow’s milk. The spongy texture allows it to easily absorb flavours, too. This one’s made by Grande Cheese, themselves! ($6.49/pound)

-Passiti (Italy) reminds me of mozzarella but is a bit saltier and tastier. It comes in an odd shape, but don’t let that deter you ($4 for $12 or $7.49/pound).

-Cacciocavallo (Italy) is made of sheep or cow’s milk and tastes similar to provolone. It’s firm in texture and has a hard, edible rind ($6.99/pound).

Across the street, you’ll find fresh, homemade pasta – from stuffed tortellini to cannelloni – at Only Pasta Inc. And beside that, the smells of warm baked bread ooze out of Cosenza Bakery. If shopping in this area doesn’t make you hungry, I don’t know what will.