My name is Michael and I am a functioning cheese addict.
I am also a student of International Relations and German, a musician, a traveler, a big fan of 19th century Russian fiction, and an aspiring semi-professional adult. Those blogs will have to wait.
In hopes of finding the source of my cheese addiction, no doubt with the intention of "curing" me, friends often ask if I was raised on an all cheese diet from birth. In fact, mine was a fairly normal suburban childhood. I did enjoy my share of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, but if that were the spring from which cheese addiction flows there would be quite a few more addicts among us. I made Easy-Cheese and saltine cracker towers and the occasional Christmas cheeseball, but as far as I know every kid who watched the Goofy Movie wanted to make a "leaning tower of cheeza". That should put my age into perspective. Needless to say 10 year old Michael was not campaigning for artisan cheeses at the dinner table, nor was he writing his senator about the devastating effects of harsh pasteurization laws, but sometime later a light turned on.
In early 2008 I was looking for a destination for a date with that special someone and happened to spot the grand opening of The Cheese Plate in Warren, RI, a mere 45 minutes away. Intrigued, we dined there one weekend and were blown away. The menu was as simple and elegant as the name implied: you could order cheese plates, cured meat plates, and wine, beer, or soft drinks to wash it all down. The variety of the cheeses, the range of flavors and textures, the combinations possible with the assorted dried fruits and nuts, and the excellent service brought us back a couple of weeks later with friends, and and then again with more friends, until piling into cars and making the hour and a half round trip became a sacred ritual. Before long we all went our separate ways for college and I ended up at the University of Colorado at Boulder, considerably more than 45 minutes away from Warren, RI. I'm still not sure if those friends have forgiven me for running away, but in any case the tradition lived on whenever we were all on break; a ragtag group of college students crashing a classy wine and cheese establishment, ordering cheese and soda, and staying pretty much until were thrown out, ever eager to savor each cheese and on occasion chat with the owner.
Boulder has many things, but one thing it lacks is a Cheese Plate substitute. So, starting about a year and a half ago, I decided to continue my cheese education independently. Beginning with a slice of unassuming and thoroughly underrated Leyden (Leiden), I have photographed and documented every noteworthy cheese since. As I write this the current count is just over 170. As much relevant information about the cheese as I could find is recorded along with a tasting opinion and, while not every cheese turned out to be a keeper, the range does cover every animal type and cheese classification that I've yet heard of. Ever tried Mongolian yak cheese curds? They're delicious.
The plot thickens, as while living and studying in Boulder I've had the opportunity to work both at Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy and the Longmont Cheese Importers, literally helping to make the cheese at one job that I was selling at the other. Both were very educational and convinced me that cheese was in my future, while simultaneously convincing my friends that I was truly a head case.
Furthering my education, in more ways than one, I am currently on a year abroad in Germany as part of my degree program. Yes, Germany is a lovely country full of good reasons to live and study here. No, Germany is not exactly a hotbed of fine cheeses. Turns out proximity and travel are compelling substitutes, though, and all those unpasteurized cheeses we can't get in the States are still here, if perhaps a little harder to find than they'd be Italy or France. As they say; Carpe Casei!
This list that I've compiled is not by any means perfect, but it has served me well in looking for cheese addiction-enabling employment. In light of that, and for fear of being left in the technological dust even further than is already the case, I am setting about making the extent of my addiction known to every last internet out there.
Every single one.
I am also a student of International Relations and German, a musician, a traveler, a big fan of 19th century Russian fiction, and an aspiring semi-professional adult. Those blogs will have to wait.
In hopes of finding the source of my cheese addiction, no doubt with the intention of "curing" me, friends often ask if I was raised on an all cheese diet from birth. In fact, mine was a fairly normal suburban childhood. I did enjoy my share of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, but if that were the spring from which cheese addiction flows there would be quite a few more addicts among us. I made Easy-Cheese and saltine cracker towers and the occasional Christmas cheeseball, but as far as I know every kid who watched the Goofy Movie wanted to make a "leaning tower of cheeza". That should put my age into perspective. Needless to say 10 year old Michael was not campaigning for artisan cheeses at the dinner table, nor was he writing his senator about the devastating effects of harsh pasteurization laws, but sometime later a light turned on.In early 2008 I was looking for a destination for a date with that special someone and happened to spot the grand opening of The Cheese Plate in Warren, RI, a mere 45 minutes away. Intrigued, we dined there one weekend and were blown away. The menu was as simple and elegant as the name implied: you could order cheese plates, cured meat plates, and wine, beer, or soft drinks to wash it all down. The variety of the cheeses, the range of flavors and textures, the combinations possible with the assorted dried fruits and nuts, and the excellent service brought us back a couple of weeks later with friends, and and then again with more friends, until piling into cars and making the hour and a half round trip became a sacred ritual. Before long we all went our separate ways for college and I ended up at the University of Colorado at Boulder, considerably more than 45 minutes away from Warren, RI. I'm still not sure if those friends have forgiven me for running away, but in any case the tradition lived on whenever we were all on break; a ragtag group of college students crashing a classy wine and cheese establishment, ordering cheese and soda, and staying pretty much until were thrown out, ever eager to savor each cheese and on occasion chat with the owner.
Boulder has many things, but one thing it lacks is a Cheese Plate substitute. So, starting about a year and a half ago, I decided to continue my cheese education independently. Beginning with a slice of unassuming and thoroughly underrated Leyden (Leiden), I have photographed and documented every noteworthy cheese since. As I write this the current count is just over 170. As much relevant information about the cheese as I could find is recorded along with a tasting opinion and, while not every cheese turned out to be a keeper, the range does cover every animal type and cheese classification that I've yet heard of. Ever tried Mongolian yak cheese curds? They're delicious.
The plot thickens, as while living and studying in Boulder I've had the opportunity to work both at Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy and the Longmont Cheese Importers, literally helping to make the cheese at one job that I was selling at the other. Both were very educational and convinced me that cheese was in my future, while simultaneously convincing my friends that I was truly a head case. Furthering my education, in more ways than one, I am currently on a year abroad in Germany as part of my degree program. Yes, Germany is a lovely country full of good reasons to live and study here. No, Germany is not exactly a hotbed of fine cheeses. Turns out proximity and travel are compelling substitutes, though, and all those unpasteurized cheeses we can't get in the States are still here, if perhaps a little harder to find than they'd be Italy or France. As they say; Carpe Casei!
This list that I've compiled is not by any means perfect, but it has served me well in looking for cheese addiction-enabling employment. In light of that, and for fear of being left in the technological dust even further than is already the case, I am setting about making the extent of my addiction known to every last internet out there.
Every single one.
You are misremembering your own origin story and I will not stand for it! My mom definitely clipped out the newspaper article about the Cheese Plate with the intention of showing it to my brother. You and I ended up going there first. Your cheese addiction is a direct result of my brother's. (Although your addiction has far surpassed his.)
ReplyDeleteAnd I know you're going to deny that this is the case, but I urge you to look into your heart of hearts and see that I deserve more credit in the creation of Michael Hewitt: the man, the myth, the legend.