Chicagoist's Cheese Of The Month: Jeffs' Select Gouda
By Erika Kubick in Food on Jun 11, 2015 5:00PM
Photo by Erika Kubick
As the weather warms to that perfectly pleasant midpoint between spring’s bitter chills and summer’s paralyzing humidity, the time to enjoy a picnic at the park is now. We all know that no meal is complete without a little cheese, so you need something that travels well and can please all the palates at your picnic or BBQ. Don’t worry, we’ve got the perfect cheese for you. Pack up some toasted nuts, a can of wine and a wedge of our June Cheese of the Month: Jeffs’ Select Gouda.
This Midwest original cheese is a collaboration between two cheese experts, both named Jeff. Master cheese maker Jeff Wideman makes the cheese at Maple Leaf Cheese in Wisconsin, while expert affineur (someone who ages cheese professionally) Jeff Jirik ages and finishes the Gouda in the sprawling sandstone caves of Faribault Dairy Company in Minnesota.
After falling in love with Gouda while traveling in the Netherlands, Wideman built special production and brining facilities at Maple Leaf for making his own Gouda cheese. While most Goudas are coated in wax, Jeffs' Select Gouda has a natural, edible rind that’s rubbed with annatto, a seed-based dye used to color cheddar cheeses. It’s then sent off to Faribault Dairy, where Jirik ages the cheese. The curing process is the result of successful experimentation: while most Goudas are cured at colder temperatures, Jeffs’ Gouda is aged in a warm, humid cave carved from the geologically rare St Peter sandstone. The cheese spends nine months in these caves, developing its rind and tangy flavor.
Photo by Erika Kubick
Together, the Jeffs have created a wonderful cheese that is perfect for bringing to the park for a pop-up cheese plate. It smells musky and sweet, like stone fruits and soured cream. The flavor is mild and extremely approachable, with toffee notes and a texture that melts in your mouth with the consistency of nut butter. It’s a great cheese for both the novice palate and the expert cheese lover alike. Try it in both sweet and savory applications: we like it with a drizzle of slightly bitter chestnut honey, a couple toasted seeds and a cup of medium body coffee, but also try it on a warm baguette with herbed mustard. We also suggest enjoying a perfect portable picnic with the addition of wine in a can.
You can find Jeffs' Select Gouda at Potash Market (multiple locations).