It
would appear that the Martine & Patrice are planning to jam as much
Switzerland culture as possible into our four-day sojourn in Neuchatel. Look,
maybe I just want to relax, you know? Swim in the lake…read…do some intensive
lounging… That is, unless, you could offer me something…better? And really, the
only thing I can think of that would be better is eating cheese and chocolate
all day.
Excuse
me? That is what you’re offering?
Of course it is.
You
win again, Switzerland.
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Whose
life is this? Could you remind me?
Oh…mine?
Right. Of course. Silly of me to ask.
Let’s see if I can get
through this without lapsing irrevocably into reverie.
Gruyere cheese is a
kingpin. It’s a sensei. It’s the grandfather cheese that slowly shakes his head as he looks upon the infantile, pre-sliced supermarket “Swiss” cheeses with a blend of bitter, crinkly-eyed
amusement and overwhelming pity. History records its existence as far back as
an entire millennium, but it was first titled Gruyere in the 17th
century. This is a cheese that was made to last.
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To carry the title of
a certified A.O.C.
Gruyere, the milk must come from cows fed only mountain grasses (summer) or hay
(winter), and coming from within about 12 miles of the fromagerie, or cheese-making facility. The milk stays unpasteurized, and once molded, it's aged atop spruce shelves in huge rooms made as similar in
temperature as possible to natural caves. If you want an in-depth description
of the process (you cheese lover, you), click here.
It is the most popular
cheese to use in fondue, and back when I was the cheese
girl, it would fly off the
shelves during Christmas for this very reason. Gruyere insanity. It is, in
fact, the cheese that forced me to quite disdaining the Swiss varieties.
Indeed, before trying Gruyere, I had never actually had a real Swiss cheese. Is this a love song?
Real Swiss cheese is something
you should try, and there is a good chance that you haven’t yet,
especially if
you’re from America. The stuff you get in delis is plastic compared to
this. Look for Gruyere, Appenzeller, Comté (France), or Tête de
Moine (my personal favorite, also from France).
As for our Gruyere
tour, it was a nice self-guided affair with mobile “phones” to hold up to your
ear so that each step of the process could be explained. I was most excited to
see the brilliant method of using small "scent boxes” to explain terroir
and cheese. Terrior is certainly not a term that should be applied only
to
wines; an artisan cheese is screaming with its own terrior tale. Experts
cite that there over 75 identifiable scents in Gruyere, and you won’t be
surprised to find the source of many of those scents growing in the
alpine meadows in which the cows graze. Slowly savoring Gruyere while
sniffing the various sample scents, it is easy to make the connection
between
source and end product. Flavorful diet=flavorful milk=flavorful cheese,
ya dig? Besides the undeniable taste of Alpine herbs, Gruyere has a
unique taste of toasted hazlenuts—something I don't find in other Swiss
cheeses. Of course, the flavor changes subtly depending on the cows' diets.
The molds/fresh wheels of Gruyere are wheeled in this room on carts (the 9-level ones you see in the background), then lowered into these beautiful saltwater brine baths for 24 hours, infusing the cheese with additional flavor |
This picture has been included because it is very important that I own a cart like this, and it's up to you to make it happen |
If you like all this talk of Swiss cheese, be sure to check out this authentic fondue recipe. But I'm warning you, it's dangerous.
Luckily, La Maison du Gruyere did not provide enough samples for me to go regrettably overboard
on cheese, and I had plenty of space for our visit to the Cailler chocolate factory. After
waiting in the swarming gift shop filled with excitable, chocolate-mouthed children
and women who felt fat and ravenous, our tour began. It was pretty cheesy, but
an informative brief history of chocolate and the Cailler brand.
I think I need help. Like, rehab help.
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disgusting |
Chocolate poops getting doused in more chocolate |
The best part about the tour was that at the end, you emerge into a room full of chocolate samples. Like, 25 different kinds of samples. We entered this room and I promptly blacked out. Upon regaining consciousness, I deduced that I had probably eaten more than half of the proffered sample varieties. I am admittedly a chocolate snob, but a room full of treats reminiscent of my childhood sent me mildly over the edge. I’m not sure what I love so much about milk chocolate when I know that I neither like the flavor nor the physical repercussions of its consumption, but if you put a plate of free chocolate in from of me, I am going to show it who’s boss.
And when I’m finished, I’ll realize that it’s the
chocolate, actually, who's boss.
Fail.
Apparently I become insane when my mouth is full of chocolate... |
A picture of beauty |
And can
you guess what we did next?
Swiss Gruyere, Camembert, a few from Le Ferme de l'Anneau d'Or, walnut and cumin-spiced varities |
Yup, more cheese. What.
A. Day.
(Click here to receive updates on all of my adventures involving [way too much] food!)
(Click here to receive updates on all of my adventures involving [way too much] food!)
HOLY crap what a great day that must've been, the room of aging cheeses looks awesome! :)
ReplyDeleteit was absurd. cheese heaven!
ReplyDelete