Sometimes things that we think are bad turn out to be good and I think that I have found one of those things. The Departments of Health, both federal and provincial, would like nothing better than to outlaw raw milk cheeses. So, in the 1990's when the federal government took a run at doing this, the Federation des Proucteurs de lait du Québec fought this ban on the grounds that Québec was a distinct region with a history of raw milk cheeses. What has occurred is an increasing number of small farmstead frommageries have been engaged in producing cheeses - an estimated 70 artisanal factories with an output of over 500 varieties of cheese have emerged in the last 20 years! The area of the Eastern Townships has become known as the Cheese Trail and in 2005, the sales of cheese amounted to an amazing $670 million!
So today, I would like to introduce you to yet another wonderful cheese-maker from La Belle Province, La Station de Compton, a small producer of three cheeses including the above pictured, Alfred le Fermier named for the great grandfather who founded the family farm in Compton, Québec. That is Alfred pressed onto his namesake cheese - and what a cheese it is! The farm is certified organic, the herd of cows are Holstein and they graze on meadows full of clover, alfalfa and asparagus trefoil. This is a wash-rind cheese that is aged for six to eight months on spruce boards harvested from the wood on the farm. What results is a beautiful wheel, orangy-red in colour on the outside, straw-coloured on the inside with small pinholes, buttery, nutty with a finish of sweet grassy notes. Albert le Fermier needs nothing to enhance it other than a medium-bodied syrah or cabernet, not too heavily fruited to take away from the flavours of the cheese. If you are a white fan, perhaps try it with a Riesling.
Albert le Fermier was a finalist in the 2006 Canadian Cheese Grand Prix as well as a finalist in the Caseus (Québec Fine Cheese Competition) in 2008. Simon-Pierre Bolduc, owner of the farm also produces two other cheeses, Raclette de Compton and Comtomme.
The success of the Québec cheese boom has created a challenge for us - so many cheeses and a low per capital consumption. In Europe, the average person consumes 20 kilos of cheese a year while in Canada, that is only 12 kilos and much of that is the mozzarella that is found on our pizzas! So come on Canadians! Come on in to C'est Cheese Please! and sample some of the wonderful delights awaiting your discerning palate!
Bon Appétit!
