The Cheese Course

My friend, Sara Vivenzio, who moved to San Francisco several years ago, is one of the most intuitive cooks I’ve ever met. She talks about food like a raconteur spins a tale: Sara is constantly concocting meals and flavors in her mind in ways I never imagined.

When Sara moved to San Francisco, she left the ad biz to go into the cheese biz. Now, she owns and runs The Cheese School of San Francisco (www.cheeseschoolsf.com).

Sara started me on my “cheese course” obsession. For the past four years, I have served a cheese course at every pseudo-fancy meal I make. Naturally, I IMed Sara to get some suggestions for our dinner party.

First, here is Sara's advice on serving cheese:

1. Serve approximately ½ oz. of each cheese per person
2. Serve at room temperature – you can cut and plate each cheese with their accompaniments, cover plates with saran wrap, and keep to the side until ready to serve
3. Put a basket of bread on the table for those that want bread
4. Plate (and preferably consume) cheeses in the above order

Now here are Sara’s cheese recommendations:

Cheese #1: Robiola Tre Latte
(Substitution options: Two-milk Robiola, La Tur, Bonrus)
Type: Surface Ripened, Mixed Milk
Milk: Cow, Goat & Sheep
Region: Piedmont, Italy
Serve with cherry compote 


Cheese #2: Pyrénées Brebis
(Substitution options: Abbaye de Belloc, Ossau Iraty)
Type: Semi-Hard
Milk: Sheep
Region: Pyrénées, France
Serve with marcona almonds 


Cheese #3: Cato Corner Farm, Hooligan
(substitution options: Meadowcreek Dairy Grayson, Twig Farm Washed Rind, Cowgirl Creamery Red Hawk)
Type: Washed Rind
Milk: Cow (Twig Farm Washed Rind is goat’s milk)
Region: Colchester, Connecticut*
Serve with stewed prunes or plum jam

*Grayson is from Galax, Virginia
Twig Farm Washed Wheel is from West Cornwall, Vermont
Cowgirl Creamery Red Hawk is from Pt. Reyes, California