The Secrets of Stinky Cheese

I always considered myself a cheese lover. Mmm…Chocolate & Cheese...(drool)! I could NEVER be a vegan. I love stinky cheese like Gorgonzola, Blue cheese, etc…well, at least I THOUGHT they were stinky cheese!

Last summer, while Joe was staying with me in New York, I revealed to him my love of cheese, specifically stinky cheese. Side note: NEVER tell a Frenchman you like stinky cheese. One afternoon, we decided to have a wine and cheese party…well, really just Joe & I. So we made our way to my local gourmet grocer to pick out some cheese. I let Joe pick out the cheese since he obviously knows more about it than me. Turns out, the gentleman in the cheese & meats area was French as well. So he and Joe spoke rapidly in their native tongue and before I knew it we were handed to nicely wrapped blocks of cheese. As we waited in the check out line, Joe had a mischievous look on his face and started giggling. He commented that these were some of his FAVORITE cheeses.

When we got home, Joe carefully opened the wrapping on the cheese and placed them neatly on plates while I uncorked the wine. As soon as he placed the plate in front of me, I got this whiff of the most pungent odor. “Oh...My...God!”, were the only words I could speak. My eyes started tearing about and I couldn’t believe that this smell belonged to something I had to pay for let alone was going to eat! I can only compare the smell to that of a stinky, dirty garbage can. All the while, Joe was laughing at my dramatic reaction. Regardless, I decided to try it. I cut a small slice of cheese, placed it on a nice size piece of French bread & brought it to my lips to eat. All the while, Joe would eat equal portions cheese to bread. The cheese was so pungent that I had to hold my breath before biting down. Joe found this all quite entertaining. The texture was enjoyable and the flavor even fine in small doses. However, after a few more pieces I gave up. Eventually, we wrapped up the remaining cheese and put it in the fridge. Not long after, my roommate and I discovered that the aroma of the cheese was permeating through the entire fridge and slowly making it’s way out. Needless to say we quickly threw it out tightly wrapped in a couple of bags.

I later revealed this story to Joe’s family on one of my visits to Paris. Since then, they have promised to reintroduce me to French cheese variety with care and caution. Then at dinner the other night we were eating with Joe’s family when I noticed two beautiful blocks of cheese sitting on a counter not far from the dinner table. They looked like small cakes. After dinner, Joe’s mom brought them to the table and explained that these were very fresh, very special cheese from a local cheese store. Apparently, it was time for my reintroduction to the French cheese experience. I was a little skeptical. Fortunately, Joe’s mom warned me that the first will be sweet and mild, but the second will be a very strong cheese. She then explained how each cheese is like a wine with distinct flavors from the area it is cultivated and what they feed the animals. The first cheese was a crisp, delicious goat cheese that smelled of clean, sweet grass. Deeelish! Then it was time for the second cheese. I cut into the block and immediately let out a “Whoo!” I was suddenly struck by a familiar aroma…seriously stinky cheese!! I was reminded of the pungent smell of a dirty garbage can. Joe’s mother encouraged me to give it a chance while she chuckled at my distorted face, (nose scrunched with an over all look of disgust). She said to smell the complexity of the cheese. I tried my best given it’s overwhelming odor. And wouldn’t you know it, I could pick up the complexities of flavor she mentioned. I ate a few small pieces (again while Joe ate large chunks), but that was all. There is only so much stinky French cheese an American girl can take!

Afterwards, Joe’s mom tightly wrapped the remaining cheese and put it on the balcony. I was struck by the rationale of all this. It makes sense, it’s cold enough outside to keep AND you avoid it smelling up the apartment! Oh, the things you can learn from the French…