Hello everyone! This week, I’ve got a massive cheese board to share with you! Normally, I am not the greatest fan of cheeses with added flavors, but Sartori is one company that does it very well, and with so many options! Today, I’ve got five delectable Sartori fromages, each of them perfect in their own way.
Parmesan Sarvecchio
This is the Sartori take on traditional Parmigiano-Reggiano, and what a delightful surprise it was! As soon as I opened its packaging, a familiar heady aroma filled my nostrils, very much like for Parmigiano-Reggiano. Tasting it, I noticed it was a bit softer than a traditional Parm, but still rather granular. The taste was full and brothy, again, very similar to traditional Parm. If I weren’t tasting it on the plate like this, I would be grating it over the pasta I was preparing in my mind. If I was looking for a domestic alternative to Parmigiano-Reggiano, this makes the top of my list!
Rosemary and Olive Oil Asiago
Sartori cheeses, I have learned, are all very photogenic. This one’s herb-encrusted rind is gorgeous on the plate. Tastewise, the rosemary and olive oil flavors here married beautifully with the buttery, front-leaning flavors of the cheese. I felt transported to my days in Aix-en-Provence, where the air was filled with the scent of rosemary. If I had some fresh bread with me, I would have made a meal of it.
Citrus Ginger BellaVitano
This is Sartori’s newest flavor for its buttery, nutty BellaVitano cheese, and it reminded me of home. It’s all thanks to the citrus and the ginger, both key ingredients in a lot of Vietnamese cooking! Biting into this one, I thought immediately of the ginger chicken that my grandmother often makes, one of my favorite dishes. For most people, though, this cheese won’t taste like home. It will probably taste like a bright, summery flavor boost!
Merlot BellaVitano
I don’t know what my expectations were for this, but this cheese exceeded them. The thing I have consistently noticed with Sartori cheeses is the fine balanced flavors. I have yet to taste a cheese where the added flavor overpowers the base cheese, and I certainly saw that here! The merlot was very subtle, coming in at the end of the comforting, nutty base cheese.
Espresso BellaVitano
When espresso is added to cheese, for me, I think “dessert.” Maybe that’s because of the lingering sweetness that swells up after the initial espresso and cheese flavors have begun to fade. This is one I would be happy to have on hand for a post-meal bite.
Over all, I was delighted by all of these cheeses! I cannot mention enough how well-balanced and artfully crafted all of these added flavors are! There is always just enough flavor to complement the base cheese, and they are delicious enough that maybe folks who say they aren’t really “into cheese” have an excellent gateway into the American cheese scene.
If this post has your mouth watering, check out this blog post about a French cheese tasting.
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The cheeses in today’s blog post were provided by Sartori. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
