I Want to North Fork on the Table

It’s always nice to get away from reality for the night, especially when dozens of vineyards and a quaint and charming cheese shop are involved. This weekend we went to the North Fork of Long Island to have a private tour of Lenz Winery and see how their production of wine has been progressing. First we needed to fill our bellies before we started the day of drinking and stopped off at The Village Cheese Shop in Mattituck. Appropriately, this cheese shop/ café is located on Love Lane. And it was true love when I first walked in and saw the large selection of cheeses they had and found out they were serving wine in the café. Their featured cheese was Hooligan which I’ve had before and remembered loving. Hooligan is a raw cow’s cheese that is aged in underground caves for over sixty days. It is left with a semisoft pate, and has an easy start with a very long finish. We then sat down for smoked salmon, charcutterie, fondue and a glass of their local white wine.

I surveyed the selection of cheeses in order to know what I wanted to pick up on our way out of town the following morning. The Stinky Bishop, which I have read is one cheese to use to impress your friends, was there. By the next morning they were sold out of it. That didn’t stop me from buying some other cheeses. I picked up Lamb Chopper, Langres and the Drunk Monk.
Lamb Chopper is made from sheep’s milk. Adverstised as coming from Cypress Grove in California, this cheese is actually made in the Netherlands and imported to Cypress Grove. It’s mild, custardy and buttery flavor lingers in your mouth for the perfect amount of time, giving off an almost sweet taste. This cheese is recommended as using for cooking. I’ll keep it on the table, thank you. Langres is a French cow’s milk that is produced in the Champagne- Ardenne region. It manages to be a soft and creamy but still have a crumbly texture to it. The yellowish rind is made with penicillium candidum. I don’t know what the hell that is, but sounds as bad as the ingredients listed on a can old diet coke. Good thing I can easily ignore this when I am schmearing it on a flax seed and honey flatbread. Yum!
The third cheese is the Drunk Monk hailing from Connecticut. Always falling for those witty names of cheeses and pretty wine labels, I decided to try it. I found out later that Drunk Monk was Hooligan after it’s been given a rub down in brown ale from the Willmantic CT Brewing Co. No wonder it tastes so good. I know some people who need this treatment. The cheese is very pungent with a hint of peanut butter.

A fun and relaxing time had by all, we are planning another trip for the fall.