This Month Cheese Club features 3 Quebec cheeses. Part of the club is a wonderfully crafted goat’S milk Chevrechon from La Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser of Noyan, a tasty semi-soft named le Guillaume Tell from la Fromagerie Le Domaine Féodal of Berthierville , and from Fromagerie La Station of Compton Québec great hard award winning cheese Alfred le Fermier. A real treat!
Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser, Noyan Québec
Fritz Kaiser in Noyan, Quebec, founded the Fritz Kaiser cheese factory in 1981 near the border with the state of New York. Mr. Fritz Kaiser began crafting his cheeses in 1981 according to traditions from his homeland, Switzerland.
Chevrochon
- Type of milk: Pasteurized goat’s milk
- Texture: soft
- Awards and Distinctions: World Cheese Award 2015-16 Bronze medal in it’s category
Chevrochon is the 100% goat’s milk version of Empereur. It has an off-white interior with a supple, flexible and creamy texture. Along with an earthy aroma, it offers a mild and pleasant goat’s milk flavour.
Tasting notes
This is a soft, natural rind cheese which has an aroma of turnip and the taste of salted butter. Le Chevrochon has a fruity sweetness to it and a slightly woody and mushroom aroma with nutty and creamy flavours.
Pairing opportunities
Le Chevrochon would pair well with a Chardonnay or a Pinot Grigio. You could also try a soft red such as a Merlot. When choosing a beer, try a light beer. You could also try sweet cider or port.
Fromagerie Domaine Féodal, Berthierville, Québec
Guy Dessureault and Lise Mercier run Le Domaine Féodal, a cheese dairy located in the Lanaudière region. The couple specializes in the creation of bloomy rind Camembert-type cheeses. Their cheeses feature qualities and characteristics unique to the Camembert variety and are crafted with artisanal skill.
Guillaume Tell
- Type of milk: Pasteurized cow’s milk
- Texture: Semi-Soft
- Awards and Distinction: 2010 World Cheese Awards bronze medal winner, 2010 American Cheese Awards bronze medal winner and 2009 Canadian Cheese Grand Prix finalist, in its category.
This cheese’s name comes from the story of the Swiss hero William Tell, who is said to have stood up to imperial authorities in the 14th century. For refusing to comply with the obligation to remove your hat in respect when passing a pole symbolizing the ruling forces, he was sentenced to shoot an arrow at an apple placed on his own son’s head. Fortunately, his aim proved true.
Tasting Notes
Given that we are now in apple season, we thought it fitting to have a cheese made incorporating ice cider. We think you will find Guillaume Tell to be a uniquely flavoured and textured cheese. It is macerated and washed in ice cider made by the Domaine Leduc-Piedmonte which gives it a beautiful orangey colour under a partially bloomy rind. This cheese has an aroma of fermented apple and melt-in-the-mouth flavours of cream and a taste of butter and green apple liquor.
Pairing opportunities:
This cheese pairs well with a Chardonnay or try a Chenin Blanc. As for a red, look for Pinot Noir . The St-Ambroise Apricot Wheat Ale would be a good choice of beer. This cheese would also pair with cider or port.
Fromagerie La Station, Compton, Québec
The fruit of the work of four generations of determined farmers, la Station de Compton fine cheese makers springs from the very heart of the generous countryside in the small town of Compton in the Eastern Townships region of Quebec. Their farm cheeses are made of raw milk from cows raised in an organic farming environment.
Alfred le Fermier
- Type of milk: raw cow’s milk
- Texture: Hard
- Awards and Distinction: 2019 SELECTION CASEUS Best raw milk cheese, INTERNATIONAL CHEESE COMPETITION – SIAL 2019 Grand Champion – Overall, 2018 World Cheese Award Gold – Best canadian cheese, Canadian Cheese Award Best Organic Cheese, to name a few.
Alfred Bolduc is the patriarch founder of the Bolduc farm, and the first to have settled in Compton. He left the Beauce region in the early 20th century in order to cultivate the rich and fertile agricultural lands of the Estrie, and he raised his family there. Chosen in his honour, the name Alfred Le Fermier cheese also underscores the quality of the cheese as a “farm cheese”; a cheese made with the milk from a single herd.
Tasting Notes
The orange-coloured rind has a forest and mushroom aroma. The cheese features a yellow straw colour, a scattering of small holes, a firm but supple texture and a complex fruit, hazelnut, honey and rustic, woody taste. It has a flowery, hazelnut flavour, and can be distinguished by its supple texture.
Pairing opportunities:
Alfred le Fermier pairs well with a sauvignon blanc. As for a red, look for a Cabernet sauvignon . Try to pair this cheese with a Innis & Gunn The Original Beer.
