La Folie

After much begging and pleading, La Folie has arrived. " Resting in French Oak barrels between one and three years before being hand bottled, for your enjoyment. Brewmaster, Peter Bouckaert, came to us from Rodenbach. Our La Folie emulates the spontaneous fermentation beers of Peter’s beloved Flanders with sour apple notes, a dry effervescence, and earthy undertones". Thanks to all that helped get it here.

Well the weather outside . . .

So it may not be quite frightful yet, but is sure is darn cold. Wasn't it just summer a few weeks ago? What gives? Well its warm and toasty here in Salumiere Cesario. A perfect 70 F all year long. But for those of you that need a little boost to get through this cold snap we have our very own French Onion Soup on the special list this week. Walla Walla sweets, rich broth, crusty bread and topped with a nice bit of melty, toasty cheese. MMMMM, cheeese (read like Homer Simpson). We also have a hot ham and cheese this week to. Combine that with our corned beef and we've got a serious bit of lunch happenin' here.
We'll be featuring a different soup each week until spring tells us its time to switch back to salads, so stay tuned here for details. Or you can just call us and find out what the special of the week is. Cheers.

The latest from the closet. . .

We just received a new shipment on Thursday, needless to say that we have been busy, so busy that I am just now posting what we received. With out further ado;

Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, always a favorite. Traditionally made cheddar from Vermont.

Manchego, I continue to believe that this is one of the best Manchegos available in the US, 8mo old and raw milk, mmmm.

Midnight Moon, this continues to be a favorite around here even with those who say they do not like goat cheese.

Fleur du Maquis, A sheeps milk cheese from Corsica covered with herbs, amazing.

Garroxta, an under appreciated goat's milk cheese from Spain, sublte but wonderful.

Fleur Vert, fresh goat's milk covered with tarragon and pink pepper corns.

We also have Cave aged Gruyere and Emmenthal, Wensleydale and of course, D'Affinois.
New items will be arriving regularly so check the store or our Facebook page for updates. Cheers.

New wines

Just received in a few new French wines. All are fabulous and two of the three scored 92pt from Wine Spectator.
Yann Chave Crozes Hermitage 2006 "le rouvre" "Sweet and ripe, with lots of mocha, dark licorice, plum sauce and fruitcake flavors backed by a fine-grained structure and a long, mineral-tinged finish. Shows nice weight for the appellation.92pts WS"

Domaine ALary 2007 "La Grange Daniel", "a combination of Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, Counoise, and Cabernet Sauvignon, all planted just outside the domain’s home of Cairanne. Spicy cherries intermixed with saddle leather, resiny pine forest notes, and pepper are present in this full-bodied, chunky, but surprisingly flavorful and well-made wine. RP"

Domaine Georges Vernay Condrieu 2007 "Really bright and superracy, with a tightly coiled core of orange blossom, honeysuckle, green fig, yellow apple and chamomile notes waiting to gush forth. Taut acidity holds this back for now, so cellar to let it round into form. Best from 2009 through 2012.92pts WS"

All of these are great wines at really great prices. If you love Rhone wines, like we do you need to try these. Quantities are limited and I do not expect these to last long, so get here soon. Cheers.

Rogue River Blue and some other stuff too.

We just received our first THREE, yes three there will be FIVE total this season, wheels of Rogue River Blue cheese. For those of you who have not tried this before I warn you it is a terrible addiction. To make matters worse it is an addiction you can only feed one time of the year. Luckily that time is now. A bit about the Rogue River Blue before we go any further:

This hand crafted raw cow’s milk blue veined cheese develops a beautiful natural rind as a result of hand turning and tending the cheese several times a week. The wheels are aged for up to a year in our special rooms which were constructed to simulate the ancient caves in Roquefort, France.

This aging process imparts into the cheese naturally occurring molds that we consider to be our signature Rogue River Valley Terroir. The flavors of our terroir include hints of sweet woodsy pine, wild ripened berries, hazelnuts, morels and pears.

To preserve this cheese we hand wrap each wheel in Syrah grape leaves harvested from Carpenter Hill Vineyards in the Rogue River Valley. These leaves have been macerated in Clear Creek’s Pear Brandy and tied with raffia. The grape leaves add additional complexity to the terroir driven flavors of the cheese and preserve its moist creamy texture. Rogue Creamery

To top it off the milk comes from a special herd that grazes ONLY in high pastures about 1600 ft. This is serious cheese people. I urge you to try this while it is available but I will take no responsibilty for those of you who find this cheese habit forming. Although I have heard of a twelve step program that someone is trying to put together. . . Cheers.

What is QUALITY?

This seems to be a common question in my life so I thought I would muse a bit over it here, please feel free to add your comments.

What is quality? Is it good value? Is it dependent on the observer? Is it something quantifiable? Is it important? It is my belief that perceived quality is very dependent on the person asking the question, but that TRUE QUALITY is an absolute.

You and I might perceive quality differently. You might think that a light beer in a silver can is quality beer, I will most insistently disagree. Why is that? Because we will have a different definition of the meaning of the word QUALITY. To me, quality is something inherent, something universal. Is said silver can beer brewed with "real" ingredients? Or, is it produced with mass produced ingredients to keep costs low? Is a beer better just because it is produced with better ingredients? No, what makes something a quality product is quality ingredients AND the quality that the maker puts into it, the care, the love.

If a good product is produced with care and attention to detail and not just "thrown" together, then it becomes a quality product. Just because it says Extra Virgin Olive Oil, does not make it quality. Just because it says Italian, does not make it quality. When selecting products, true quality products should be easily identifiable.

Wine and beer are a great example and something that most people are familiar with. A true quality wine or beer should have a beginning, a middle and an end. It should be balanced. The flavours, harmonious and not incongruent. If the mid palate is lacking, or the finish is flat or one flavor is more pronounced than the rest (to the detriment of others) then the quality would be suffering. With Olive oil it becomes a bit more obvious once you have these ideas in your head. Again there should be a beginning, a middle, and a finish, the longer the finish the better. The flavours pronounced but not overbearing. If you take two olive oils side by side and you compare, it should be very obvious which is the higher quality oil. This is also true for any food product you buy. Quality will be something that is easy to identify if you scrutinize.

What about with service? Is there a noticeable difference between quality service and not? Where you shop are people friendly? Do they look you in the eye when they talk to you? Do they look you in the eye when they hand you your purchase? Do they hand you your purchase? If the answer to any of these questions is NO, then why do you shop there? Is it the price? Do you reward superior service and product, or savings? Isn't better service worth a few dollars? If not then I would ask why? What if that savings came at someone else's expense, would you care? Should you care?

Here, we seek out quality products. We strive for quality service. Things might sometimes seem more expensive, but sometimes you get what you pay for. And let's face it, if your paying a lot less you have to ask the question, WHAT am I paying for? You can get a hamburger at the "arches" for 99cents, but a another place will charge $12. A hamburger is meat, bread, possibly cheese and maybe some condiments. Is there that much difference in what goes into a burger, yes, yes there is. And you should be asking yourself what IS and what IS NOT in your 99 cent burger. We, will never cut corners or add fillers to anything we do. Do not let yourself be fooled by "FLUFF". Just because something LOOKS pretty does not mean it is pretty. My father always said be mindful of women who wear too much perfume, or men with too much cologne. More is not better.

If, in this global economy and economic downturn (this is a fancy word for recession, so that you won't freak out), we reward poor quality products and service, the real quality products and real quality service will begin to disappear. You may not notice it at first, but it will happen and when it is gone, it will be too late. If you are willing to really scrutinize your purchases and where you purchase the TRUE QUALITY will begin to make itself obvious, and it should make you feel better. Because, when did your parents ever tell you that half assed was OK?

What's new? Lots.

We just received in a shipment of Salumi minus Agrumi and Mole. Agrumi is going to be out for a while kids, so don't ask. Trust me, YOU"LL know when we get it in. The important thing here is that Hot Sopressata and Finnochiona are back in stock. For those of you that remember their Oregano salame, it is back too, but only for the season. Get it while you can. . .
On other fronts we have a whole bunch of cheese that just arrived. The last of the buffalo mozzarella for the season kids, so get it while you still have tomatoes. Sottocenere with truffles is a perfect cheese for fall. Studded with back truffles the aroma alone is intoxicating. Bra Duro is a hard cow's milk cheese from Bra, Italy (hence the name). Garroxta is a small Spanish goat's milk cheese that is too often over looked by people once they see the Manchego. It really is worth tasting, trust me. Roquefort is back, Gorgonzola too. Fleur vert is just beautiful this time of year and we have already cut that bad boy open. We have some Camembert with calvados that is perfect for a small fall gathering, maybe a Cider Party? And most importantly, we have the first Raclette wheel of the season just in.
We just received some fresh local arugula that is fantastic, but won't last long.
There are many new items in the store and to many to talk about. Just come in and check it out for your self. Cheers.