This month we are featuring cheeses from La fromagerie FUOCO, La fromagerie RANG 9, and la fromagerie L’ILE-AUX-GRUES.
La fromagerie FUOCO, St-Lin-Laurentides , Québec
A true rarity, the Fuoco is the only soft paste, washed rind cheese in Québec that is made from water buffalo milk. The exceptional quality of this rich and fatty milk reveals itself in the delicate creamy taste of this unique ripened cheese.
This round cheese is covered with a wonderful orange rind. The paste is cream-coloured and looks
like shining, melting butter. The Fuoco is a soft cheese with a salty lingering note of hazelnut, smooth creamy paste, and a buttery finish.
Its creamy interior and the mild and delicate milky sweetness will virtually ooze on your plate and melt in your mouth.
From la fromagerie RANG 9, Plessiville , Québec
Le Mamirolle
- Type of milk: Pasteurized Cow’s milk
- Texture: Semi-soft
- Awards and distinctions: Finalist in 2015 and first-place winner in the Best Semi-Soft and Washed-Rind Cheese category of the Canadian Cheese Awards 2013.
The Mamirolle originates in France and was created in 1935. In 1996, the Dubois family applied to obtain an exclusive Canadian license allowing them to replicate Mamirolle and use its name. Similar to the French version, the Canadian Mamirolle has a square body and is made in loaf shaped moulds. The rind has a strong, earthy pungency. The paste has a milder, fresher flavour, its texture rich and supple. Sweet, salty, full flavours fill the mouth and the finish is rich and slightly buttery. This cheese offers milk and fruity flavours when young, and rich, grassy and aromatic flavours when mature in 80-90 days. Its refined taste is simply unforgettable.
From la fromagerie L’ILE-AUX-GRUES Ile-aux-Grues, Québec
Le Canotier de l’Isle
- Type of milk: non-pasteurized thermalized cow’s milk
- Texture: Firm
- Awards and distinctions: finalist at the 2014 Royal Agricultural Winter Fair and the 2014 British Empire Cheese Show, in the surface-ripened cheese category.
Le Canotier de l’Isle is a firm paste cheese ripened on the surface. The island’s first cheese makers in the early 20th century have perfected the ancient recipe and the artisanal method used for making this wonderful cheese. The label is a painting by Robert Gagné of L’Isle-aux-Grues. It depicts the transport of supplies and mail by ice canoe, the only way to cross the river during the winter in the era of the original cheese makers. Under the delicate rind of ochre shades, the ivory paste reveals the very typical taste of hazelnut, with a pleasant fruity note, and cream. This firm yet creamy cheese has slight notes of nuttiness. Beautifully paired with a white wine and fruit, or enjoyed simply on fresh baguette or on its own.