Crottin de Chavignol

Crottin de Chavignol (also known as simply Chavignol) is a very popular soft-ripened, raw goat-milk cheese produced in France's Loire Valley. Crottin de Chavignol received its name from the French commune Chavignol, where the cheese was first produced in the 16th century. Crottin de Chavignol received its AOC (Appellation d'Origine Controlée) designation in 1976.

Crottin de Chavignol is a very small goat-milk cheese that can be enjoyed at various stages of maturity. When it is young, 2-4 weeks old, it measures about 2.5 cm (1 inch) in height and 5 cm (2 inches) in diameter and weights 115 grams (4 oz). At this young stage of life, it has an ivory-coloured rind with a distinctive crinkly surface due to natural yeast and geotrichum bacteria. The white cream coloured, uncooked, unpressed paste is compact yet soft, with a lovely creamy, nutty taste. 

Crottin de Chavignol is an ideal cheese as it can be enjoyed during its various stages of maturity; from a couple of weeks to 4 or more months producing a range of very different flavors. As the cheese ripens, the paste becomes crumbly, then turns dryer and more brittle and as the rind becomes dryer and rougher it also changes in colour from golden to a bluish gray colour, it also shrinks down in size to 40 grams (1.5 oz). As Chavignol matures, it turns into a much richer cheese, with a more pronounced flavour that is more robust, but never sours.

Crottin de Chavignol cheese is produced with the raw milk of the Alpine goat.

Crottin de Chavignol is a nice addition to any cheese platter but it is perfect when warmed or grilled and served over a salad. Crottin de Chavignol pairs beautifully with a white wine from the Vallée de la Loire such as a Sancerre or a sparkling Chenin Blanc or a Pouilly Fumé.

http://www.crottindechavignol.fr/

Alpine Goat Photo Source: www.wikipedia.org

John Cabot Rose

(Hybrid Kordesii Rose - Rosa 'John Cabot'; Hybridized by Dr. Felicitas Svejda in 1978)

The John Cabot Rose is surely one of my favourite plants in the garden. It is a beautiful easy to grow winter-hardy climbing rose.

Today we can appreciate the John Cabot Rose thanks to Agriculture Canada, who began a rose breeding program in the 1960's. Their plan was to cross roses with new developed roses from Europe and create a series of roses that would be easy to grow, hardy, disease resistant, repeat blooming and easy to propagate from cuttings. The result of this program has forever changed our Canadian rose gardens. The roses that were developed from this program are known as the Explorer series.

The John Cabot Rose has large, semi-double blossoms that are soft-red in bud, opening to the deepest orchid pink. The flowers, borne in clusters of 3 to 10 blossoms have a slight fragrance. The rose bush is covered with blooms from June with repeat flowers through to fall.

The John Cabot climbing rose can attain a height of 10 feet (3 meter) tall and easily spread to 8 feet (2.5 meter) wide within a couple of years. It is ideal rose to grow on a trellis, fence and arbor or as a hedge. The John Cabot Rose needs full sun (minimum of 6hrs.) and well-drained soil. This rose has healthy glossy foliage that has good resistance to black-spot and powdery mildew and is very winter hardy. It can be grown in Zones 2B to 9.

The John Cabot Rose is an easy care rose that's great for all gardens.

Also check out the William Baffin Rose another hardy climbing rose from the Explorer series.

Frankie Knuckles - The Whistle Song

I was sad to hear that the Godfather of House Music, DJ Frankie Knuckles died this week. 

Born in the Bronx in 1955, Frankie Knuckles got his DJ start in NY City along with fellow DJ legend Lerry Levan. In the late 70's Frankie moved to Chicago and made his mark in the club scene when he began experimenting with music and mixing a new sound that became known as 'House Music'.

Throughout the 80's and 90's as well as being one of the most influential DJ, he was a prolific music producer and remixer. After more than 35 years in the scene, he still continued to remix, produce and frequently traveled the globe to DJ the club circuit.

Frankie Knuckles was a true dance music pioneer; his passing is a huge loss to the electronic music community.

Here is Frankie Knuckles' 1991 hit The Whistle Song. A true classic!

I remember the very first time I heard this track. It was an instant hit. The kind of track you have to play over and over again, because you just can’t get it out of your head.

CLICK HERE for a great article on Frankie Knuckles written by Michaelangelo Matos for Rolling Stone Magazine. 

Photo Source: www.mojo4music.com

Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule located in Notre-Dame-De-Lourdes in Quebec's Lanaudière region. Magali, one of my co-workers, who happens to be the niece of Martin Guilbault owner of the Fromagerie, had organised for a few of us from work to visit their premises. Although it was a very early morning departure from Montreal, it was necessary for us to arrive early at the fromagerie, to view all the various processes involved in their cheese-making.

On the day of our visit we had the good fortune of witnessing the fabrication of three of Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule's cheeses; Laracam, a soft washed rind cheese, les Métayères, a semi-soft washed-rind cheese and Le Joliette a raclette type cheese.

Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule has recently undergone some major equipment upgrading to facilitate various cheese-making tasks and to allow them to increase the production of their cheeses as they are now selling their products across Canada.

Fresh raw cow milk from neighbouring farms is delivered first thing in the morning. Then, 3000 litres of milk is pumped into a huge vat where the milk undergoes thermisation. This process is similar to pasteurisation but uses lower temperatures allowing the milk to keep more of its original taste. For thermisation; the milk is heated at temperatures of around 57–65 °C (145–149 °F) for 15 seconds. For pasteurisation; the milk is heated at 72 °C (160 °F) for 15 seconds.

Starter culture and milk-clotting enzymes are then added to the milk in order to be able to coagulate the milk to form a more custard-like mass. The cutting process is done in the large vat as it is equipped with blades; this cuts the milk mass into small pieces to begin the process of separating the liquid (whey) from the solid (curds). This cheese-making process solidifies the milk proteins and fat into a solid curd.

Once the desired temperature and firmness of the curd is achieved, the whey is then drained off; leaving a tightly formed curd that is then cut and transferred into their appropriate forms. These forms or cheese molds are designed with holes to allow the whey to drain from the curd.

For the pressed cheeses (Les Métayères & Le Joliette), the cheese molds are aligned on a belt and this allows them to press several molds at once.  A light pressing is done at first to allow the remaining whey to escape and then the forms are pressed more severely to solidify the cheese.

The cheese is then left to continue draining overnight and then removed from their forms to be brined by immersing them in a saturated salt solution which will help the rind of the cheese to be formed. The rind’s function is to protect the interior of the cheese and allow it to ripen simultaneously.

The cheese wheels are then left to dry and mature in a controlled environment where the temperature and humidity play an important part in the affinage stage.  The length of time the cheeses are aged varies from the different types and will also determine the quality and flavour of the cheese being produced.

If you are ever in the Lanaudière area, I suggest you stop by to visit the Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule and stock-up on some great cheese.

Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule

3601 rue Principale, Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes, Qc J0K1K0

Tel. (450) 753-9217

http://ourcheeses.com/directory/cheese-shops/fromagerie-du-champ-a-la-meule

Read more on Les Métayères  

Read more on Victor et Berthold 

Victor et Berthold Fondue

It might be officially spring time, but this lingering cold winter weather makes me want to stay-in and enjoy a nice cheese fondue.

Victor et Berthold Fondue is a delicious cheese fondue produced by Quebec's Fromagerie Du Champ à La Meule. Located in Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes in the Lanaudière region, this cheese maker has been making artisanal cheeses since 1995.

This cheese fondue is made with one of Quebec's most popular semi-soft, washed-rind, thermised cow-milk cheese; Victor et Berthold. Victor et Berthold cheese has the perfect smooth and creamy texture for a cheese fondue and a pleasant bouquet of cream, butter and herbs. Aged for a minimum of 60 days, it has a somewhat strong taste with zesty fruity flavours.

The recipe for this fine ready to serve cheese fondue is made with a local micro-brewery beer; Claire de L’Alchimiste which is a clear golden coloured premium lager produced by L'Alchimiste in nearby Joliette.  The sweet malt flavour and the tangy seasoning of hops of this beer is a perfect match for Victor et Berthold cheese fondue.

Martin Guilbault founder/owner of Fromagerie Du Champ à La Meule named this cheese after his grand-father 'Victor' and his uncle 'Berthold', who once ran the family farm where the fromagerie is located. An honorable tribute to them is prominently displayed on the fondue's packaging in the vintage 1930's black and white photo of Victor and Berthold milking cows on the Guilbault family farm. In the early years of the fromagerie's cheese making, their cheese was made from the milk of their own herd. Today, due to the volume of cheese they produce the cheeses are made with the milk from neighbouring herds.

As well as making Victor et Berthold cheese and fondue the Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule also produce; L'Amateur, Le Fêtard, Joliette, Laracam and Les Métayères.

http://ourcheeses.com/directory/cheese-shops/fromagerie-du-champ-a-la-meule

https://www.facebook.com/Champalameule

The recipe for the Victor et Berthold Fondue was created by la Fabrique de Fondues.

Read on my visit at the Fromagerie du Champ à la Meule

Danakil - Non, je ne regrette rien

Danakil is a reggae band from France. The band was formed in 2000 by a group of music students who attended the same university in a western suburb of Paris. The band developed a fervid fan base in their early years by performing in many small bars and concerts in France. Danakil has since released several successful albums and DVDs of live concerts.

Here below is Danakil featuring U-Roy with their fantastic reggae cover of Edith Piaf's hit "Non, je ne regrette rien".

Danakil released "Non, je ne regrette rien" as a single in 2010. A live version of the song previously appeared on their 2009 album "Live au Cabaret Sauvage". 

In 2012, Danakil released a dub album entitled "Échos du Dub" featuring an excellent dub version of this hit. " CHECK IT OUT

This week, on February 24, Danakil has just released a brand new, double vinyl album "Entre Les Lignes" on Baco Records. The music, the catchy melodies and poetic lyrics of this ensemble are very captivating. On first listen, the track that got my attention was "Poupées Russes" featuring Natty Jean. I found it a perfect fit to commemorate the Winter Olympics that have just taken place in Russia. I just loved those large colourful babushka dolls that were featured at the various Sochi events. J

http://www.danakil.fr

Photo source: http://www.reggaefrance.com

Le Tournevent

Le Tournevent is a fresh, soft, unripened, pasteurized goat-milk cheese produced by Fromagerie Tournevent operated by Damafro located in Saint-Damase in the Montérégie region of Quebec.

Le Tournevent has a gentle, sweet smell of goat's milk, a smooth texture and a mild tart flavour characteristic of goat's milk cheese.

Le Tournevent is a wonderful chèvre frais with only 20% fat content. It is ideal to add to salads as it is crumbly when cold. If you prefer a creamy, spreadable, goat cheese then let it air at room temperature for a smooth texture. Le Tournevent is also available as an ash-covered goat cheese. Le Tournevent is a versatile cheese, you can crumble it on salads, steamed veggies or pizzas or you can simply spread it on bread or bagels or mix it into omelets, quiches or soufflés.

Le Tournevent pairs well with a Pino Grigio or a Pouilly Fumé. 

Fromagerie Tournevent specializes in goat milk products. They also produce Feta cheese, Les Médaillons, Le Biquet and the award winning Chèvre Noir which is an excellent aged goat-milk cheddar.

http://www.damafro.ca/prod_tournevent.html

Pacific Rock

Pacific Rock is a firm, washed rind, pasteurised cow-milk cheese from La Maison Alexis de Portneuf located in Saint Raymond de Portneuf near Quebec City.

                                                                                                                            

Pacific Rock is a firm, aged, farm-style, pressed cheese similar to Red Leicester cheese from England.

Pacific Rock has an orange coloured washed-rind sprinkled with a white powdery dusting. The paste has an eye-catching rich deep-orange hue and a firm texture very similar to cheddar cheese but more moist and crumbly. Pacific Rock has a slightly nutty, caramel, mellow flavour with a citrus tangy finish.

Pacific Rock is a versatile cheese; it can be added to salads and sauces, it melts beautifully and is a colourful addition to any cheese plate. Pacific Rock pairs well with a brown ale or a full-bodied white like Muscadet or Chenin Blanc.

Pacific Rock gets its name from Canada's beautiful West Coast, which is bordered by steep cliffs that drop into the Pacific Ocean. La Maison Alexis de Portneuf's founding ancestor, Alexis Cayer had traveled to the west coast on the Canadian Pacific train and was captivated by the breathtaking landscape.

La Maison Alexis de Portneuf is committed to preserve the quality and authentic character of every specialty cheese they produce. The World Champion Le Cendrillon, La Sauvagine, Saint-Honoré, La Roche Noire are but a few, among the vast selection of cheese they produce.

http://www.alexisdeportneuf.com

Petit Pavé Le Mellois

Petit Pavé Le Mellois is a delightful, small, soft, handmade goat-milk cheese from Poitou-Charentes, an area of France known for its butter and goat cheeses.

Petit Pavé Le Mellois is shaped into a small 5 cm (2") square, hence the name Pavé which represents a small paving stone. Le Petit Pavé weights 110 g (3.8 oz) and is made of raw goat milk. Le Petit Pavé has a fresh aroma of goat milk with accompanied notes of hay. The ivory coloured outside rind is dotted with small blue spots and the bright white paste is smooth and lusciously soft.

Le Petit Pavé can be appreciated at various stages of ripeness; when it is young, soft and fresh, when it is half dry and starts to develop slightly acidic notes and when it has ripened into a dryer, nuttier, more complex, sharper bite.

Le Petit Pavé is produced by Hélène Servant at Fromagerie Des Gors located in Melle, a commune in the department of Deux-Sèvres. The craftsmanship of the Fromagerie which has been established since the 1980’s is firmly anchored in the tradition of the region. Fromagerie des Gors uses the milk from goats that are grazing in Exoudun and in Sepvretin in Deux-Sèvres. 

As well as producing this Petit Pavé the Fromagerie des Gors produce other chèvres such as; the Chabichou du Poitou AOC/AOP, Briquette, Mothais sur Feuille and they also produce an organic Mothais sur Feuille.

Petit Pavé Le Mellois pairs wonderfully with a French white wine such as Sancerre or Pouilly-Fumé or a red Haut-Poitou Gamay.

In some regions of France you have wine routes, Poitou-Charentes have a 'Route du Chabichou et des fromages de chèvre'; a 200 km route intended to discover the land of goat cheeses and their history with stops at dairies, cheesemakers, ranchers and farmers. Visit: Route du Chabichou

Photo source:

http://routeduchabichou.fr/les-haltes-de-la-route/les-artisans-fromagers/article/fromagerie-des-gors

Treme

Treme is a four season (36 episodes) American television drama series created by David Simon and Eric Overmyer writers/producers of Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets and The Wire.

Treme is about the life of residents of New Orleans who are rebuilding their lives, their homes and their culture after the disaster of the 2005 Hurricane Katrina. The series focuses on an eclectic group of New Orleanians among them; a trombone player, a civil rights lawyer, a disc jockey, a chef, a Mardi Gras Indian Chief but mostly the series focuses on music and its musicians who provide the soundtrack for the city.

Treme might seem slow-moving at the beginning of the series but there is a lot going on, many different little stories and different characters and how some of these lives inter-connect. If you love music, especially Jazz, you will love this smart, moving, funny, charming series.

Cast members include; Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Waiting to Exhale), Steve Zahn (Forces of Nature, Riding in Cars with Boys), Melissa Leo (Homicide, The Fighter), John Goodman (Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, Argo), Clarke Peters (The Wire, Person of Interest), Kim Dickens (Deadwood, Friday Night Lights), Khandi Alexander (The Corner, CSI: Miami) among many others.

Treme also features well-known musicians throughout the series among them; Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, Kermit Ruffins, Elvis Costello, The Soul Rebels, Spider Stacy, Steve Earle and John Boutté who wrote the infectious "Treme Theme Song". CHECK OUT THE VIDEO

http://www.hbo.com/treme