After work, I went down to this butcher in Randwick to check out his Jamon, which looked alright. The thing is, in Australia, they’re so fussy about food safety and the Iberian hams are notorious for being “unsafe” such that they can only be imported here without the bone. Just so you know, raw foie gras isn’t available either. Its either the terrined stuff or the blanched stuff. What a waste.

So anyway, I promised I’d be back on friday because I’d be buying some to bring home and was assured when he said he’d let me sample a bit then decide what to get and then he’d cryo-vac it for me. Awesome. The butcher in question is Terry Wright Finest Premium Meats and they got featured in the Sydney Morning Herald before. Some of the meat aside from the jamon looked really good too, some rabbit and beef but anyway…

After that, I took the bus back to town and had to stop to changeover and my stomach growled so I popped into DJ’s and got tempted. The Fine Cheese Co. hails from the UK and its basically a store that sells everything cheese related. What caught my eye were their crackers. They come in delightful packaging and the ones that really got me were the Charcoal Crackers. I had to consume. But what with? So I asked the guy behind the counter to also cut me up some Rouzaire Brie de Meaux and Cropwell Bishop Stilton. Pretty sure although DJs labelled the Brie de Meaux as such, its probably Fromage de Meaux because the Brie is made of raw milk, which would warrant a death knell at Oz customs.

I’d been on a bit of a cheese kick as well, making up small platters at work and sandwiches and tasting this triple cream brie that was more akin to mayonnaise. But I wanted something real, something traditional and bankable. Basically, I wanted to know what a really good brie and a really good blue was supposed to be.

I’m pretty sure the carcinogens in the crackers will get to me one day but at least I can eat in steez. They taste really good too. I can’t seem to stop at the moment. Oh so’s the cheese. The Brie’s got this smell I can’t quite place. Its very mildly sweet smelling and almost veered towards pandan-ish. Almost. Although I think its meant to be mushroomy and earthy. I just get that slightly green/chlorophylly note somehow. It tastes nothing like the “Brie” I’ve tried thus far, full flavored, rich and creamy, kinda gray if it were a taste.

The Stilton, is surprisingly mild, to me at least. I suppose the only other time I had “Stilton”, it was torrid and just plain stank. This one smells good and actually tastes really good. The blue veins lend a really interestingly bright acidic bite that’s juxtaposed against the creaminess of the cheese overall. It doesn’t cut the back of your throat like some blues do. Just feels perfectly balanced. I’m also looking forward to having some bizarre dreams* tonight.

Does this remind anyone of Settlers?

*The link gets its info from a study done back in 2005 by the British Cheese Board.