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Sommersnø – new Norwegian chèvre style cheese

Sommersnø, new Norwegian cheese from Lofoten ysteri

Been looking for this one for a short wile, without being able to track it down. I salute more chèvre style cheeses are being made in Norway, so Sommernø is most welcome. As far as I know this is the latest addition to the family coming from Vestvågøy in the oh so exotic Lofoten islands up north. The farm is right before the narrow road ends by Unstad beach. The North Atlantic next.

I am not saying we have a lot of chèvre style cheeses in Norway, but we’re slowly getting there.

Sommersnø, fine rind with blue rosettes.

Sommersnø

The cheese has a fine off-white Geotrichum rind, easily detected by the wrinkles. Furthermore, the paste is slightly runny just underneath the rind. You find out when you cut the cheese. It is rather common for this type of cheese, especially if thew Geotricum is running kind of wild. It is charming in my opinion. I got hold of two cheeses and I notice a few blue rosettes on the rind of one of them. If you think that is scary, I cab assure you not to worry. French affineures will work hard to make them grow, buy the way. The paste is white, typical for goat milk cheeses.The name Sommersnø means “summer snow” by the way. A very appropriate name, but give me some chills as I am not that fond of winter and snow.

Tasting and pairing

Mild and gentle flavour, milk, fine acidity as often is the case for these rathe fresh goat milk cheeses. Pleasantly salted, it is there but it does not dominate. This is a typical Sauvignon blanc cheese if you’re in for a glass of wine. it is a Dutch family running the farm and dairy, so perhaps Genever is a suitable accompaniment?

Small production?

I do not know exactly, but I believe the production of this cheese is rather small, so it’s rather exclusive. After all they have other cheeses to make as well and not hoards of goats. Consequently it might be hard to get, or it was just me having a hard time getting hold of it. Worth looking for, though.

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Caciocavallo – South Italian Horse Cheese?

Caciocavallo belongs to a group of cheeses not readily available outside Italy. To formally put it into place; this is a pasta filata cheese, just like the very available mozzarella and provolone. But that’s about all similarities there are. Like the other cheeses within this family, it hails from south Italy, particularly along the Apennine mountain range. It has to be said that most of these cheeses are pasteurised, but a few honorable exceptions can be found. Naturally, I will write about these, each special in their own right.

A bit about the name caciocavallo

As it is, it actually means horse cheese. At least it is one of the interpretations, not insinuating the cheese has anything to do with horses. Normally made from cow’s milk, but varieties made from both ewe, goat and in rare cases buffalo milk, do occur. All these special varieties are pasteurised, though. Since we have touched on the etymology, it seems like the name derives from the fact that two cheeses were tied to a rope and hung over a pole for maturing. Just like saddling up a horse. Of course it could be they hung cheeses over the horseback as well when they were out riding – for picnic or something.

CACIOCAVALLO PODOLICO

A very special cheese this since it is only made from milk from the Podolica cow. This is a south Italy indigenous cattle race, not to be found anywhere else. A very hardy cattle living outside all year round grazing with no additional feed. bring it inside during the harsh winter months is of no use, it is too warm, so they’ll escape outside. Te cheese is made from raw milk from this race in the areas of Calabria, Basilicata, Campania and Puglia.

The Caciocavallo Podolico are kept in limestone caves for maturation. After three months you have a fine cheese with a golde rind tasting nice, but are mostly for the impatient consumers, or if you wish to use it for cooking. The cheese is actually frequently used for cooking in that area. If you care to wait, you will be in for quite an other experience. After two to three years we’re talking. Colour is ochre. Texture is firm and you break loose small pieces of the cheese with the handy parmesan knife pictured above. Flavour is savoury, herbs and barn. Just wonderful the flavour. This is a cheese rarely sold outside of the area where it is made. So if you want to dig into this one, you probably have to go there. Probably well worth the tour. By the way, the cheese has status as a Slow Food Presidium in Basilicata.

CACIOCAVALLO PALERMITANO

As the name indicates we have moved further south, to Sicily. A lot of fine cheese here, Caciocavallo included. The cheese comes from the many small hillside farms in the south to southwestern part of the island. Made of raw cow’s milk this as well, but otherwise very different from the mainland varieties when it comes to shape and size. The Sicilian variety is rectangular like a huge bar weighing from eight to fifteen kilos. Shorter maturing time as quite a few are eaten fresh, while others get anything from two to twelve months in the maturing room.

For both there cheeses there are a couple of things that unite them, apart from the first part of their names.

Traditional Cheese making

They are both made using traditional cheese making equipment, meaning wood. being it vats or ladles. In Sicily they use wooden moulds, tavuleri, in the local language to give it the rectangular shape. Being made the way they are gives the cheeses some special features like the Caciocavallo Podolico is known for containing high amounts of Omega 3. That’s about the cattle breed and the pastures they feed on and of course the cheese making keeping all the good stuff unspoiled. As far as Caciocavallo Palermitano is concerned that also means no starter culture is added. Mother Nature and wooden vats take care of that. Perhaps slightly technical this, but this is how it was done during the old days, and we have survived. Really strange that is, don’t you think?

A note of caution. When in Sicily you need to ask your way to the real cheese. It is a popular cheese and some have taken the liberty to create a few short cuts. That means using ultra modern cheese making methods, aka all steel and high producing milking cattle hardly seeing any sunlight at all. You won’t get the same tasting experience.

To drink

These are both cheeses that require red wines with body. Generally it can be said that reds made from Nero d’Avola or Aglianico will pair very well.

Valuable sourceNyttig kunnskapskilde: The Oxford Companion to Cheese. (Oxford University Press – 2016)

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Gamle Oslo Delikatesse – a gem in Oslo

This has got to be the smallest deli in Oslo, even the smallest shop altogether. Above the entrance there is a sign telling GOD, which you may interpret the way you want, in Norwegian god means good. The explanation is however clearly outlined right beneath. There is something WYSIWYG over this shop. Or rather what you see is what there is. No backroom, no basement. A cooler, shelves, a work bench with some cupboards underneath and a sink. That’s it.

Gamle oslo delikatesse, a small but very good deli
Gamle Oslo Delikatesse – small but excellent.

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Trolltind from Derinngarden farmstead dairy

As it happens i cross the mountains from east to the west of Norway. Sort of in the middle there is a roadside small grocery specializing in all local and edible. A usual stop, as it was about a week ago when I passed. I bought a couple of Norwegian farmstead cheeses, one of which was Trolltind from Derinngarden dairy on the north west coast of Norway. This is an area where they are clever making cheese, and where also Kraftkar comes from. Quite a while since I tasted this as it is not well distributed, at least not in the Oslo area where I live. Derinngarden dairy makes cheese from organic raw cow’s milk provided by the 10 to 14 cows they have on the farm.

Derinngarden
Trolltind from Derinngarden dairy, Eide på Nordmøre, Norway.

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