I love a nice wedge of Morbier. When I was at Lexington Co-op the other day, this little beauty called to me from their well-stocked and more than adequate cheese department, and I’m so glad she did.
Morbier hails from the village of Morbier in the Comté region of France, also the home of delicious Gruyère de Comté. It is a semi-soft raw cow’s milk cheese with a full (yet not overpowering) flavor, slightly bitter aftertaste and fantastically stinky aroma. Morbier is most easily discerned by the thin layer of ash that runs through its center.
Yes, ash. Don’t let it unnerve you. The use of ash in cheese making is an ancient technique, a natural way in which farmers were able to not only preserve their product from pesky insects but to also inhibit the development of a hard rind.
In the case of Morbier, the layer covers not only the outside of the cheese, but also dissects the wheel horizontally because the cheese was traditionally made from two milkings. The evening’s curds would fill the cheese mold only half way, so the ash was added to protect the cheese until it could be completed after the next morning’s milking. Today, Morbier is not made in the same conditions, but the technique prevails. The ash is perfectly edible and utterly flavorless. In the past, the soot used was derived from an assortment of trees and vegetables, but now almost every cheese that contains ash is made with one that is sold as “food safe”.
Important to mention is that most cheeses that have an ash rind are made from goat’s milk, such as the highly acclaimed American cheese maker Cypress Groves’ Humboldt Fog. It is also a fantastic stinky cheese, but we’ll talk about it another day.
As with most good cheese, a piece of fresh fruit, some crusty bread and a glass of wine can make a few thin slices of Morbier a divine experience. With this cheese, I would suggest a nice Beaujolais (you just don’t drink enough French wine, Buffalo!), and I’m sure that Jim Pepe of Hodge Wine & Liquor would be happy to help you pick one out.
Lexington Co-op
807 Elmwood Ave, 14222
716.886.COOP
Hodge Wine & Liquor
463 Elmwood Ave, 14222
716.884.6669
“Good, Stinky Cheese” is a regular column on YUM. If there’s a cheese that you’re particularly interested in, email us and let us know.