Cheesy Fun Playing With Slow Food at the Baricelli Inn, Cleveland Ohio

On Saturday, December 19, Chef Paul Minillo and his Baricelli Inn hosted the Third Annual Slow Food Cheese Tasting, (links to my accounts of the first and second) which benefited the Northern Ohio Slow Food Convivium. Over forty people gathered to hear Chef Paul discuss and serve six artisanal cheeses (all available for retail sale at the Baricelli, as are many other hard-to-find cheese varietals). 

Our afternoon began with a choice of red or white wine:

I actually tasted both, and both (available for retail sale at very modest prices) paired wonderfully with the cheeses.

Chef Paul began by noting that we would be tasting fewer cheeses this year than in the past, because, as with wine tasting, too many varieties in a short period overwhelms the palate. The first four cheeses were, as last year, set out for sampling on cutting boards, with walnuts and sliced pears, and crackers and fresh On the Rise bread were in baskets to accompany the goodness.

Returning to Board 1, we tasted the cheeses in pairs (as Chef Paul had suggested):

And then, board #2:

Chef Paul explained that the last two cheeses would be brought out after we'd sampled the first four, because they were both "runny" cheeses, and one was so young that it would "turn to soup" if allowed to remain too long at room temperature. The first four tastes follow:

Jaquin Pointe de Bique & Isigny Camembert

 

Amazingly (since I'm not a big lover of Bleu cheeses), the Jaquin turned out to be my favorite of the day - especially when paired with pear.

Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam & Pleasant Ridge Reserve Raw Cow's Milk

As the only non-creamy cheese, the Pleasant Ridge was, well, very pleasant. Mild yet distinctive, it was a nice taste and textural break from the soft, rinded, stronger flavored cheeses. The Mt. Tam was especially tasty paired with the walnuts.

About a half hour into the tasting, the last two cheeses were brought out on individual plates:

Left to right, they were:

While some people felt the Grayson was too strong (some used the term "ammonia" to describe the sensation) - I liked it, provided it had an accompaniment (and the red wine - white didn't stand up to either of these last two cheeses). I liked the Epoisse even better than the Grayson. Despite the Epoisse's assertive flavor, I really enjoyed it.

As Chef Paul predicted - it was easier to enjoy and distinguish the cheeses with a smaller number of tastes. And I enjoyed every one, right down to the rinds (which again are not usually my favorite part of the cheese course). Once again, Slow Food and the Baricelli Inn combined to provide an educational and tasty two hours of playing with our food.

As we did last year, a bunch of us continued the festivities at the nearby L'Albatros Brasserie after we finished the cheese tasting. Unfortunately, the light and brickwork at that venue did not co-operate with my camera very well, so I cannot share the food we played with there - but I can tell you that it was a wonderful end to a tasty day full of food, drink and friends.

More Fun Playing Slowly with Baricelli Cheese

Saturday December 13, the Northern Ohio Convivium of Slow Food hosted its Second Annual Wine and Cheese Tasting at The Baricelli Inn in Cleveland's Little Italy. Chef Paul Minillo treated us to an amazing buffet of 18 cheeses!

We began with a choice of red or white wine; I actually preferred the white with the cheeses.





I went through and photographed the cheeses before we started, which is why several of them are still whole.

We began with an introduction from one of our Slow Food directors, Kari Moore.



Then, Chef Paul explained the delights we were about to sample, and offered some tasting suggestions.




Crackers and Breads from On The Rise Bakery

Our first two cheeses were sourced from Lake Erie Creamery.



Unfortunately, the Goat Cheese sign is obscuring the rounds of Blooma. The goat cheese is creamy and delicious.





The Burrata is a rare and special cheese - Chef Paul kept it under wraps until the very moment of service, then plated it himself. Burrata - which means "buttered" in Italian - can be thought of as mozzerella on steroids (steroids made of cream).


Chef Extracts the Burrata From the Packaging


Chef Was Not Expecting a Leafy Wrapping - is it a Leek? Asphodel?




Chef begins to portion out the Burrata




Condiments for the Burrata Plate

A cheese this special deserves some special treatment!











Oh yes, there were several other USA-made cheeses on the right side of the room for us to taste!






Meadow Creek Dairy Appalachian

I know the sign says Greyson - but the next photo is the Greyson. These were our two favorites after the Burrata; we took home some of the Appalachian.


Meadow Creek Dairy Greyson








Accompaniments Galore!


My USA Cheese Tasting Plate

The Lake Erie Blooma is at 11 o'clock.

The left side of the room featured two tables of cheeses. First, four Italian cheeses, then six French cheeses.


The Italians











Next came the French cheeses - most of which were just too strong for my palate (my loss). But those among us who love French cheeses confirmed that they were top notch.





I was really surprised that I couldn't get myself to like the muenster - but it was just too strong for me.







We hit the Camembert at the perfect moment of ripeness. I enjoyed the creamy center on the beautiful On the Rise bread.







I really liked the flesh of the Brin D'Amour - which had an herbaceous nose and taste. I even liked the moldy rind - a very small dab of it.

Chef Paul really outdid himself this year - I don't know how he could possibly top this tasting! Still - he's got a lot of great cheesy secrets in his cheese cooler! Baricelli sells these fantastic cheeses at retail all week long. So - if you want to have some fun playing with "slow" cheeses that are lovingly procured and cared for - Baricelli Inn is your place.