Day 964 : Dreaming of Sunshine and Flowers and Warmth

Are you dreaming of days spent lounging around in Sheep's Meadow, drinking fabulous cocktails complete with that paper umbrella that just screams summertime, live concerts outdoors and more? On days like today when the temperature was 12 degrees while running, one's mind surely does wander to warmer and brighter times of year. A morsel of Hudson Flower and a glass of light Pinot Noir will transport you right through to Springtime months, if not all the way to Summer!

Hudson Flower is a new creation brought to you by Old Chatham Shepherding Company and Murray's Cheese. Hudson Flower starts with the base of Old Chatham's Kinderhook Creek, a pasteurized 100% sheep's milk soft ripened roundelle of soft, creamy, cheesy goodness. This fresh, honest cheese is then coated in a special blend of  rosemary, lemon thyme, elderberries, marjoram, and hop flowers, and consequently aged for approximately a month. Modeled on the fabulous Corsican cheese, Fleur du Maquis, Hudson Flower takes the infused, aromatic, herbaceous cheese to a whole new level. Rich and dense, yet light and creamy, rustic and alive, this cheese will just awaken your senses. I like to enjoy this with a light Pinot Noir, take for example McCall's Pinot Noir from the North Fork of Long Island.

Image courtesy of www.murrayscheese.com

Day 911 : American Cheese Celebrations - Part One - Grafton VIllage Cheese

Last night I hosted a fabulous tasting of American cheeses and over the course of the next few days - I thought we'd highlight each one of them and tell you all my dear Fromagical readers why they are so fabulous.

Let's start with Grafton Village Cheese's 3 year aged Cheddar. This my friends is a cheddar with roots -- Grafton's history dates back to the 1890s when a co-op of farmers got together to begin producing cheese with their excess milk. This was somewhat of a short lived operation as in 1912, a large fire destroyed their facilities. It was not until the 1960s, that the Windham Foundation came along and rebuilt the operation and restored a sense of cheesemaking life into Grafton which continues to this day. The Windham Foundation is centered around helping stimulate and promote agricultural, economic, societal and cultural growth in the rural communities of Vermont. A portion of your purchase of any cheese crafted by Grafton Village Cheese goes to benefit the Windham Foundation.

Fast forward to 2012 -- Grafton Village Cheese is a big deal operation making hundreds of pounds of cheese on a yearly basis. Experts in Cheddar -- Grafton crafts young and old cheddars, infused cheddars, and pretty much anything in between.

My absolute favorite of their Cheddars is their 3 year. It's fantastically biting and robust yet rustic, farmsteady and creamy. With hints of grassiness and a honest raw roundness -- it is a superstar of a Cheddar. Intensely crumbly in the most wonderful of ways -- those morsels manage to coat every crevice of your mouth. Great on its own or paired with dried apricots and roasted walnuts or sandwiched between two pieces of bread with sliced tomatos and toasted to make a grilled cheese -- it sure is a versatile cheese!

Best enjoyed either with McCall's 2010 Pinot Noir hailing from the North Fork if you're in the wine mood or Brooklyn Brewery's Pennant Ale if you're in a beer mood. McCall's Pinot Noir is all elegance -- full of dark cherry and red berry notes with hints of spice and notes of vanilla -- medium bodied and the perfect Fall local wine to bring out the flavors of the cheese. Not feeling wine -- then grab a Pennant Ale, Brooklyn Brewery's traditional English style pale ale. Bright honey colored with a toasty, crisp hoppy, maltiness and fruity smoothness. A great pairing partner for our Grafton 3 year aged Cheddar.

Here's to the beginning of our American Cheese Celebrations with the wonderful Grafton Village Cheese 3 year Cheddar!

Day 811 : McCall Wines

Our last and final vineyard stop on our North Fork weekend was McCall wines - a family owned and run winery growing Merlot and Pinot Noir grapes and raising beef cattle. Russ McCall has been in the food and wine business for his entire life starting out in retail and moving to wholesale and then to production and distribution, McCall made their first vintage in 2007 and it has just gone up from there.

What I love about their philosophy and their wines is it isn't about producing a huge range of wines and spreading themselves too thin -- this is about perfecting their craft in terms of their Pinot Noir and Merlot production. It sure does take some gumption to focus in such a directed manner especially with their emphasis on Pinot Noir production on the North Fork, not a challenge many of the North Fork winemakers tackle. So kudos to McCall! And well it sure does help their Pinot Noir is fantastic! Their 2009 Pinot Noir was luscious and velvety with nice dark cherry, red berry, and woodsy notes and a depth of flavor profile that left you with a  lovely finish -- a truly beautiful Pinot. However their 2007 Reserve Pinot totally hit it out of the ballpark, this was wine for a celebration! Elegant and smooth -- this wine balanced its earthy, floral, fruity and rustic notes in perfect harmony, what a treat!

In terms of their Merlot - they currently have a 2008, that's bright and round with dark berry and oak notes. Great for a summertime BBQ, this was an easy drinking approachable wine that would bring a smile to anyone's face. Their 2007 Merlot however is just smashingly fantastic -- plum and dark red fruit notes with a rustic earthy spicy roundness, this is a gorgeous Merlot that can tango with the best French Merlot.

Apart from their Pinot and Merlot, they make one Bordeaux Blend style red that is 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Petite Verdot. Named Ben's Blend in honor of their late winery manager this is a smooth and luscious red wine. They also craft an easy drinking beach summertime Pinot Noir Rose.

Overall, McCall Wines produces excellent wines with a warm and inviting barn tasting room. It was a treat for us to be able to sit down and talk to Russ McCall, unusual that one gets to chat with the winery's owner but that is in essence what McCall is about -- personal attention, small production, excelling at that production, keeping local and being proud of their product, whether it is their wines or their cattle.

McCall Wines
22600 Main Road, Cutchogue, NY

Starting tomorrow we will be going back to our normal format - I hope you have enjoyed Fromagical's North Fork focused week.