Swiss Miss

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Naomi emailed me yesterday to ask if I had tried the Hendricks Farm Gruyere.  As it happens, I purchased a bit of it a few days ago and promptly forgot that it was in my refrigerator! 

The Gruyere from Hendricks (available at the Fair Food Farmstand) is a raw milk cheese that they describe as “a classic example of a European Swiss that is aged for over a year”.  While I would not be comfortable saying the Hendricks is a “classic example”, I would say that it’s good in its own right.  It does have a very strong Swiss flavor, vaguely nutty, a little salty. 

Hendricks also describes this cheese as “creamy”, which it definitely is not.  It has more of a crumbly texture that makes it more ideal for snacking.  It may or may not melt well, but the texture does not immediately scream ‘fondue’ to me.

There is a real issue with a few local cheesemakers naming their cheeses using place names.  Gruyere, in particular, is problematic.  In Switzerland, Gruyere cheese has earned Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée status.  If the cheese is made in France, let’s say, you can call it a ‘Gruyere-style’ cheese but you cannot call it ‘Gruyere’.  While I know the U.S. doesn’t follow EU law regarding this kind of stuff, I kind of feel like we should to cut down the confusion.  I know that Otterbein Acres recently renamed their ‘Romano’ to ‘Ewe’s Dream’, although I’m not sure whether it was for that particular reason.

Speaking of Swiss cheese, I recently tried another local variety - the Hope Springs Farm Baby Swiss (purchased from one the vendors at Clark Park Farm Market).  It’s another raw milk Swiss.  Unlike the Hendricks Gruyere, this really could be described as ‘creamy’, but the flavor is much more generic.  It’s not bad, mind you - it’s just not particularly outstanding.  It seems like it would melt really nicely, which is important if you’re looking for a fondue cheese or something like that.