The Winter Fancy Food Show [1] gathers some of the best cheese makers in the world, making it the best place to find what's new, weird, and notable in the dairy world. These five examples manage to strike a lovely chord between innovative and swoon-worthy. Do kimchi-laden, raspberry-ale-soaked, and lavendar-specked cheeses instigate a tummy grumble?
— Additional reporting by Nicole Perry
LaClare Farms Ziege Zacke Blue
This one's a mouthful, so take a deep breath before reading on. LaClare Farms Ziege Zacke Blue [2] ($8 for one-fourth pound) is a cave-aged, cow/goat milk blend made in a dry jack style and inoculated with a blue cheese mold. The cheesemakers say it's a "great introductory blue cheese" for those who sway toward nutty, firm, parmesan-like cheeses rather than funky ones, and (exhale) we can fully back that statement.
Rogue Creamery La-Di-Da Lavender
We'd love to dress up a turkey and cheese sandwich with this Rogue Creamery La-Di-Da Lavender [3] ($11 for eight ounces), a cheddar with an earthy, lavender finish.
Beechwood Kimchi Cheese
We're already huge fans of grilled kimcheese [4], or a grilled cheese sandwich with kimchi, but we've never seen this: Beechwood Kimchi Cheese [5], a kimchi-infused monterey jack cheese. Though some complained that the cheese did not bring enough heat, we loved the bits of crunchy cabbage and and Korean gochujang zing.
Sartori Raspberry BellaVitano
After tasting our way through much of Sartori's line, we've learned that some of its most bizarre-sounding creations — chai-rubbed cheese [6] for example — are often the best. This year, we developed a particular fondess for Sartori Raspberry BellaVitano [7] ($6 per one-fourth pound), a rich and crumbly cheese that's washed in tart raspberry ale for a subtle twang.
Woolwich Dairy Pumpkin Chevri
Whether you are lactose intolerant or just prefer the taste of goat cheese, Woolwich Dairy Pumpkin Chevri [8] a soft, unripened goat cheese, tastes almost identical to pumpkin spice cream cheese. The fluffy, spreadable consistency and warming flavors have us longing for Fall again.