FRIDAY 12/16:  (4:30-7:30)

*Truffle Truffle – an artisan chocolates & confections company
based in Chicago, with a passion for personalization!  They are offering you tastes of their
delicious truffles – perfect for holiday gifts!

*Tenzing Wine & Spirits – is a Chicago-based wholesale wine,
spirits and sake distributor, inspired by the Sherpa guide and the Nepalese
word for balance, or equilibrium.
They’ll be offering tastes of Combier Orange Liqueur, Fair Trade
spirits, Vodka and coffee liqueur

*Lagnaippe Beverage – works with
environmentally conscientious people who use ecologically responsible practices
to create products that express their region and culture. Offering Leopold
Brothers Orange, Leo Bros Cherry, Leo Bros Gin, Leo Bros Peach Whiskey, and the
NEW Chinato (fortified Nebbiolo) from Oregon state!

SATURDAY 12/16 : (1-4)

Colby from Distillery Geeks – Smith & Cross Jamaican Pot Stilled Navy Strength rum, Niesson Agricole Rhum, 2 bottles of BEAUTIFUL scotch, 2 bourbons!

**featuring** multiple cheesemakers, fine wine, craft beer & artisanl spirits! 10 different savor, sweet and singularly exquisite edibles!

$30 per person – buy tickets on line or in store  http://marionstreetcheesemarket.com/shop/cow-town-november-16th-2011-event/

PLUS – get 10% off all your purchases that night, and an MSCM tasting glass! Over 21 event!  AND at 9pm, join us for a screening of Living on the Wedge!
Start Time: 18:00
Date: 2011-11-16

Mt Tam 20% off – a triple cream cheese at the ladies from Cowgirl Creamery.  Soft, rich, buttery and all organic.

Roquefort 20% off – the only handmade Roquefort still left in existence.  The real deal French Roquefort.  Due to some tiffs over tariffs Rouquefort has been a true luxury over the past few months but the price has finally come down.  Yippee!

Langres 30% off – A lovely little French softie made in the high plains of Champagne. Langres cheese traced back from the 18th century and has a depression at the top of the cheese in order to pour champagne over the cheese before serving.  Great for a special occasion or a decadent evening in front of the TV.

Cheese is an anomaly within the world of food. Unlike other consumable products, cheese rarely comes with an exact “expiration date”. Like all living things, cheeses have a life cycle of their own. In their youth they are firm, fresh, fluffy, moist. As they age, the flavors often become more robust, they may begin to “puff”, as is the case for surface ripened cheeses like Camembert. As cheese continues to age, flavors can become more piquant, softer cheeses may become runnier, cheddar’s lose their moisture and become drier, and the life cycle draws to a close. However, there is no exact time-line to follow. For some cheeses like Parmesan, a cut piece of cheese can last for a year, while a fresh chevre is best consumed as soon as possible.

Molds are another perplexity for many. How can you figure a good mold from a bad mold? The “good” molds are the molds that help to develop and protect cheese, and often lend integral characteristics to a cheeses look and flavor. The fluffy white camembert’s wouldn’t exist without penicillium candidum – the mold that lends camembert its snowy appearance. Blue cheese wouldn’t be blue cheese without adding penicillium roqueforti. The “bad” molds are molds that were not an intended addition to the cheese. Blue molds, for instance, can “jump” on to other cheeses – not a desirable trait for every cheese. (There are, however, exceptions – such as British Cheddars that often develop a natural bluing with age – or cheeses that use a geotricum candidum mold, like piper’s pyramid, bijou, or crottin di Chavignol).

Are raw cheeses safe? I would answer that with a resounding Yes! Not only are they safe, they are often the most flavorful cheeses you’ll find. Delicious Alpine styles, blues, farmhouse cheddars, all become more powerful, more pronounced when made with raw milk. It is currently illegal to sell any cheese aged less than 60 days that has been made with raw milk – so you can be sure that your bries’ and fresh chevres’ and mozzarellas’ have all been pasteurized.

So there – you’ve had a little sample bit of cheese information. If these questions and more have been eating you up inside, join myself and my fellow cheese mongers next Monday, January 25th, for Cheese 101. We’ll cover cheese topics ranging from history to styles of cheese to helping you navigate the cheese counter with confidence and ease. Plus, there will be cheese samples. Lot’s of cheese samples. Need I say more? Call the shop at 708-725-7200 to reserve your space today – or sign up in person with one of our retail associates – Looking forward to seeing lot’s of cheese loving folks there!

-Norine, cheesemonger

Pete Crowley of Rock Bottom Brewery in Chicago is at it again.  Five courses, five great beers. Executive Chef, Leonard Hollander, has written a menu that will pair perfectly with some amazing beer from some incredible Illinois breweries.  Brewmasters from Goose Island, Gordon Biersch, America’s Brewing, Flossmoor Station and Rock Bottom Brewery will be participating. Cost: $55, which includes a beer flight but not tax or gratuity.  Call 708.725.7200 to reserve your spot!

Welcome!  America’s Brewing Pilsner

First

Stuffed Peppers

piquillo peppers + whitefish brandade + marcona almond romesco

Beer: Flossmoor Station’s Panama Red

Second

Soup & Salad

chestnut bisque + crispy parmesan + mushroom salad

Beer:  Goose Island Brewpub’s Alt

Third

American artisan cheese course

Beer:  Stilton with Rock Bottom’s Imperial Red, Cheddar with Flossmoor Station’s Pullman Brown

Fourth

Duck Pasta

duck leg confit + white truffle ricotta + local butternut squash

Beer: Gordon Biersch’s Marzen

Fifth

Kumquat Duo

dark chocolate truffle

+

 Tiramisu

Beer:  Rock Bottom’s Bourbon Imperial Stout

If you are one of those last minute planners, we still have some room at our 5:30pm seating for New Year’s Eve dinner this evening. It is a five-course prix-fixe menu with complimentary glass of Champagne. Our seven- course dinner at 9:00pm is almost sold out. call 708.725.7200 to make a reservation.

Our retail department will be open until 9pm this evening for all your last minute wine, beer and cheese needs.

Holiday Hours
We will be closed on New Year’s Day to give staff a day of rest.
We will be open on Saturday, January 2 and Sunday January 3 for brunch and dinner as usual.
We will be closed on Monday, Janury 4 and Tuesday, January 5 to work on staff training, cleaning and maintanence, and to have a staff holiday party.
We will resume normal business hours on Wednesday, January 6.

Thanks for all of your support in 2009. We’re looking forward to a healthy, prosperous and delicious 2010!

Tis the Season for cheese platters – Let’s admit it, the holiday’s can be stressful – presents to buy, family to see, not to mention the food.  Often the cheese can be an after thought. But with so many delicious cheeses to choose from, it can often be overwhelming to stand before the cheese counter and attempt to select four cheeses from the 70 or so in the case. To ease the burden of choosing, here’s a few suggestions based on how we put together our platters at the shop:

A selection of milks: Generally, we put on at least one goat and one sheep’s milk cheese per platter. A great, crowd-friendly goat’s milk cheese is Bucheron, which is a log-shaped goat cheese with a creamy texture toward the rind becoming more crumbly toward the interior. It’s mild but tangy, and a great goat cheese for a crowd. We also have fantastic, local goat cheeses from Prairie Fruits Farm (Illinois) Reichert’s Dairy (Iowa) and Capriole (Indiana). For sheep, ombra is a fantastic sweet and nutty Spanish cheese similar to Manchego but with a little bit more oomph. Try it with a little membrillo jelly to really delight your guests.

Don’t be afraid to add a blue: Many shy away from blue cheeses on a platter – yes, they’re stronger, and yes, there will probably be people wary of trying your most obviously moldy cheese. However, we have a broad selection of blues at the shop to satisfy a huge array of cheese tastes. Buttermilk blue, from Roth Kase, WI or Hook’s Blue Paradise, from Mineral Point, WI are wonderful “starter” blues -a lovely balance between the lactic qualities of the milk and the stronger, saltier blue. If you want to be bold, try Rogue River Blue from Oregon on your platter. Rogue River Blue won best in show at ACS this year, and for good reason – wrapped in grape leaves and soaked in brandy, this blue is addictive; sweet, salty, creamy, tangy – a simply beautiful blue.

Do a theme – A fan of British cheese? We have a wonderful selection direct from Neal’s Yard Dairy, not to mention liver pate, cornichons, and branston pickle relish. A hankering for Spanish cheeses? Try pairing your favorites with spicy chorizo, membrillo jelly, and marcona almonds. Or, my personal favorite, focus on the local farms – we have many cheeses from Illinois to Wisconsin, Iowa to Minnesota – all that can easily be paired with meats from Iowa or Wisconsin, preserves from Illinois or Michigan, and crackers from Wisconsin. We’ll be happy to find your perfect pairing behind the cheese counter.

Or, to really take the edge off holiday planning, let us do the work for you and make your Holiday platter for you. Prices range from 40-90 dollars and serve anywhere from 8 to 30 people.  Our platters are made with recyclable and renewable resources and range from 12 to 18 inches.

Whatever you decide, come talk to a cheese monger behind the counter and we’ll be happy to help with any questions and suggestions!

-Norine, cheesemonger

Allow me to introduce myself: I’m Norine, your friendly neighborhood cheesemonger, and you’ll probably see me blogging on here pretty regularly. I wanted to jump-start the cheese blog with an invitation to a cheese tasting and book signing on November 22nd to celebrate the release of authors’ James Norton and Becca Dilley’s The Master Cheesemakers of Wisconsin.

I was fortunate enough to take a sneak peek at the book. I had the mistaken notion that a book devoted entirely to Master Cheesemakers would read like a textbook – all the intricacies of cheese making with little for the layman to take away from the material. I was pleasantly surprised to find the book both organized (dividing Wisconsin – and the master cheesemakers – geographically) and also punctuated with stories. I love a good story – and Norton and Dilley include personal anecdotes collected during their travels, such as where to find the intense – and delicious – limburger sandwich (at Baumgartner’s Cheese Store and Tavern, if you’re ever in Monroe), the personal histories of 43 of the 44 Master Cheese makers currently making cheese in Wisconsin, and many other amusing and informative side notes, such as a history of Wisconsin cheese making, the “legend” of the cheese underground blog (giving a much deserved shout out to the cheese writer/researcher Jeanne Carpenter), cheese tasting notes and a glossary of cheesemaking terms. So perhaps you’re wondering what becoming a certified Master Cheesemaker entails – I certainly did. The process is arduous, and for most takes between 13 and 15 years, requiring cheese makers to hold a Wisconsin cheesemaking license for at least 10 years, pass repeated oral and written exams, and have experience making the cheese variety for which they certification for at least 5 years. As Norton and Dilley write, “…they are accustomed to hard work, bred to share credit and shy away from the limelight, prone to handling problems by grabbing them head-on and wrestling them to the ground…Those who put up with the absurd hours, the heavy lifting, the economic pressure, and the smell of milk on their clothes and hair are the kind of people who think nothing of going a little bit out of their way to help another person deal with a problem” – a welcome reminder of the hard work and dedication of the devoted men and women out there making cheese.

This Sunday, November 22nd, between 2-4pm join James Norton and Becca Dilley for a cheese tasting and book signing to celebrate the hard-working men and women who have devoted so much time to perfecting their craft. We will be sampling a variety of cheeses made by the masters from Carr Valley, Cedar Grove, Edelweiss, Widmer, and Sartori, as well as featuring these cheeses on our dinner menu for the night.

Do yourself a favor and eat a little cheese today.

-Norine, cheesemonger