Tag Archives: sheep cheese

Shepherd’s Harvest

Posted by Canadian Cheese ...a journal of modern traditions. in Ontario Cheese and tagged with , , ,
DSCF2157

Photo by canadiancheese

Shepherd’s Harvest has a rind that smells like soil after a long winter. The aroma of rotten leaves and earth assure us that spring is here and it’s time to lighten up.  The mottled, washed rind looks like a tiger’s backside, while the paste is smooth, golden and sweet as honey.
Hope Artisan Dairy Co-op “grows” their cheese. It is hand made and hand washed in a little cheese house before being released into the wild. Their sheep are raised on a diet of blue chickory flowers, red cover blossoms, the purple veteh, yellow of alsike, plantain and herbs. They are allowed to feed on this luxurious diet from early spring into late fall as weather permits. Availabilty is limited and I have yet to find a shop that carries this cheese. As they say,”good things grow slowly”.

Advertisement

Le Jupon Frivole

Posted by Canadian Cheese ...a journal of modern traditions. in Ontario Cheese and tagged with ,

Photo by canadiancheese

I had the pleasure of meeting Maggie from Les Folies Bergéres when we purchased this cheese. Her and her husband, Christian, decided to start creating farmstead cheese after the Listeriosis breakout in 2008.  The idea seemed crazy, and the name Les Folies Bergéres, meaning “crazy shepherds” fit the bill. They believed that small scale, meticulous farming practices would help to create safe, local cheese that people could trust.

The couple continue to make artisinal cheese from their farm…sometimes using only sheep, and sometimes blending the milk with cow to create different flavour profiles. This is some of the best sheep cheese I have ever tasted. The balance of sweet to salty is an art form they have mastered. Le Jupon Frivole is chalky yet creamy, chewy yet silky, sweet yet yeasty and earthy…all without being too much of either. I served this cheese as an afternoon snack with a baguette but fresh green grapes would have been perfect for cleansing the palate after each bite.