Day Two Fifty One - Green Tea Marriage Mondays

Why Green Tea this week? Well that's because I've given up alcohol till after the New York marathon and have been drinking a lot of green tea. I got to thinking, how many people write about tea and cheese pairings? Very few that's for sure! I can't actually think of any, can you?

So before we get to our cheese contestants this week, let me give you an idea of  some of the fabulous health benefits of green tea:

It contains a high amount of polyphenols, carotenoids, tocopherols, vitamin C, and plenty of minerals like chromium, manganese, zinc and more! All of these help reduce the risk of heart disease, infection, arthritis, high cholesterol levels, cancer cells and more! To boot it is a proven antioxidant along with aiding weight loss. It even helps tooth health! All around a really healthy beverage.

So lets get to our contestants this week, right? This week, I wanted to suggest three different aromatic and infused cheeses to go with our tea, so here goes:

Contestant Number # 1 : Valley Shepherd's Nettlesome - Sheep and cow's milk combine to make this fabulous tomme. Hailing from our neighboring state of New Jersey, this semi-firm cheese is infused with stinging nettles lending itself to an aromatic, grassy, herbal mouthful! Creamy yet vegetal, a great marriage of two such opposing flavors! Will it be the right marriage for our green tea?

Contestant Number # 2: Coach Farm's Green Peppercorn Cone - Returning to the great state of New York, this aged goat's milk cheese is crafted just two hours away from New York City, in the Hudson Valley. A small bloomy rind cone dotted with piquant green peppercorns, it is fresh and lactic with that nice tang of an aged goat's milk cheese but with the added spice of the peppercorns which cut the creaminess of the cheese. A change up from many pepper infused cheeses that are made with black peppercorns, this is made with green -- allowing it to stand out from the crowd! Does it have what it takes to stand out enough for this week's pairing?

Contestant Number # 3: Cypress Grove's Purple Haze - Moving west to California, our final contestant shares a similarity with our second -- it is made out of goat's milk. Younger than contestant number two is our final contestant, it is that perfect coat the roof of your mouth sort of cheese...infused with lavender and fennel pollen. It has a fantastic floral herbal richness to it while maintaining a nice balance between sweet, savory, aromatic and tangy. Does it have what it takes?

Find out tomorrow...meanwhile go grab a cup of green tea.