Gorgonzola Piccante, Dolce's Scary Big Brother

In the world of cheese families, you know the one, the general rule of thumb is that the older brother is always the jerk. While little brother is sweet and non-confrontational, older brother is fiery and rude. Little brother bakes cookies. Big brother eats them and replaces them with coal. Little brother buys a puppy. Big brother puts one of those collar-biscuit contraptions on it so it runs away but can never quite reach the biscuit. Little brother is aged 3-5 months, big brother is aged around 6 months and is a jerk. A tasty tasty jerk. 

And.... hold on.

Sorry, I got lost in there somewhere, today's cheese is Gorgonzola Piccante. 

Origin: Lombardy, Italy

Milk: Cow, pasteurized

Rennet: Animal

Affinage: 6-8 months

Notes: All the same lovely stats as the more easily palatable "dolce" version, but aged to a prickly sharpness. Also known as Gorgonzola "naturale" depending on who is labeling it.

Thoughts: Usually a very fine, almost gritty, texture and very sharp flavor would be very dissagreable but this Gorgonzola breaks the rule. Even in the thick of the sharpness it remains smooth enough to be not just palatable but delicious. The strong aftertaste makes for a good complete package, but on the whole I still prefer the "dolce" version. The piccante certainly has a more intense flavor, but I find that the dolce is much more rounded and generally more decadent. Unfortunately it's no Roquefort nor Stilton, and the sharpness comes across as lacking some of the soul of the dolce. Check it out to get that perspective on how cheeses age, but for me dolce will always be the best. 

Just To Set The Record Straight 

The middle child/cheese is always way cool and everyone likes him. Or her. Or it, in the case of cheese.  

Gorgonzola Dolce, As Great an Italian Masterpiece as Ever There Was

In posts past I've made quite a fuss about the glory that is real-deal Gorgonzola, and finally today I will fill you in, dear reader, on just how delicious it is. 

This is the cheese your grandparents told you about, the one from the old country that is filled with both a magical presence and yet a completely approachable humble honesty. It is not as brash nor as pretentious as the self-proclaimed Kings of blue from England or France, it simply packs a lifetime of incredible flavor, centuries of hard work and refinement, into an accessible and delicious paste. 

From the region of Lombardy, this cheese and it's close cousin Stracchino are both made from milk gathered during the cows' seasonal migrations during spring and fall. This tired, or "stracca" milk creates two major varieties of cheese, both Gorgonzola Dolce and it's older brother Gorgonzola Piccante (or Naturale, etc). The older version is a markedly different cheese, and I'll get to it soon enough. For now, the masterpiece that is Gorgonzola Dolce:

Origin: Lombardy, Italy

Milk: Cow, pasteurized

Rennet: Animal

Affinage: 3-5 Months

Notes: Pierced with needles to allow the Penicillium Roqueforti to flourish, rind washed in brine during curing process. Made with two milkings one after another, high butterfat content. These are all good things, these are all things we like. 

Thoughts:  To start out there are very few cheeses that smell this good. When allowed to come to room temperature the sweet and tingly smell of cheese, spices, and even fruit fills the air with an aroma that by itself is mouthwatering. The flavor is no letdown. Sweet and lush with a present but unobtrusive kick weaving in and out, it is a thing of beauty. The paste, thanks to the young age and the rind washing, is so soft it begs to be spread and protests any other methods by sticking onto whatever you throw at it. The salty tones beneath the whole experience only heighten your awareness of just how full the creaminess is and give the spice of the mold a chance to shine as well. The thin rind along with the already decadent texture round out an experience that is so good you should be careful how much you bring to room temperature at a time; you will eat every last bit in one sitting. It is, for all intents and purposes, a different cheese category altogether than Roquefort or Stilton, any comparison would be for nothing because Gorgonzola just hits a different part of the palate. Good grief that’s delicious.  

Random Thought to Burden You Further With

I hope to fix the regularity of these posts and at the very least keep overall quota of posts met, but there is nothing like being in country for the first time in a year to make you forget what free time looks like. There's my story and I'm sticking to it. And now back to your regular programming

>>Silly cheese-related joke<<