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Cheese 2007 (Bra, Italie)
Cheese 2007 (21-24 September in Bra, Italy)Par George RouzeauAfter having showcased goat cheeses in 2005, Cheese 2007 brings together the world’s finest blue cheeses. Some of them, such as the UK’s Stichelton - which has lately been resurrected thanks to a new generation of dedicated cheesemakers and affineurs - are still made according to age-old methods. Others, like the Bleu d’Aoste, are more recent additions to the annals of gastronomy. Still others, like the Meredith Blue from Victoria, Australia, hail from the far reaches of the planet. The House of Blue Cheeses will present a total of 70 different kinds of blue cheese from the four corners of the world, ready to be sampled with the passito wines (made from dried grapes) and other sweet wines that accompany them perfectly.  ©DR The other main theme of the 2007 edition of the festival (the first one was held ten years ago) is cheese from Eastern European countries, with a focus on varieties produced in Bulgaria and Romania. Bulgaria is presenting a cheese made from the milk of the Rhodope short-horn cow, matured during four to five months in pine-wood casks in the upper valleys of the Arda River. Karakachan nomads who live in the mountains of the Bulgarian Balkans will also be coming to Bra to present their traditional cheese. Preserved in sheepskin, it is made from the milk of ewes belonging to the oldest race of sheep in south-eastern Europe. As for Romania, Cheese will make it possible to encounter farmers from the Brustoroasa region and producers of Brânza de Burduf from the east of the country. Their ancient sheep’s cheese recipe goes hand in hand with the transhumance customs of the southern Carpathians. These cheeses may be sampled with traditional preserves that have been concocted in seven different Transylvanian towns.  ©DR Cheese’s panoramic view of Eastern Europe includes other countries as well. Go to Bra and you will find the spindle-shaped Oscypek, a smoked cheese prepared in wood cabins by the shepherds of the Polish Tatra Mountains. Bosnia will present its ‘sack cheese’, made from the raw milk of native ewes and cows and preserved in a sheepskin sack. The Pozegaca plumslatko is another syrupy delicacy prepared by women from the upper Drina valley. Thanks to Slow Food’s initiatives, these plum preserves have become a welcome source of income in an area of ex-Yugoslavia that has been ravaged by the terrible conflicts of recent years. The festival is also the opportunity for Slow Food founding father Carlo Petrini and his organisation to discreetly celebrate the victory of raw milk products, a cause championed by Cheese since its beginnings. Naturally, cheese will be the guest of honour at all of the restaurants in Bra and the surrounding Langhe and Roero districts (see our article). The city of Bra, traditionally a trade centre for the cheeses of the alpine pastures of the Cuneo region, has lent its name to two cheeses, hard Bra and soft Bra.  ©DR France will be well-represented by such renowned cheeses as Abondance, Beaufort, Cantal, Comté, Crottin de Chavignol, Mont d’Or, Morbier, Reblochon, St. Nectaire, Salers, and Tome des Bauges. Italy, that other great cheese-producing nation, will bring along its Bitto, Fontina, Formai de Mut dell’Alta Valle Brembana, Montasio, Raschera d’Alpeggio… Swiss Sbrinz, goat cheese from Cape Verde’s Planalto de Bolona, yak cheese from the Tibetan plateaus, artisan cheddar from Somerset in the UK and smoked Metsovone from Greece round out the festival’s global cheese plate. Taste Workshops, conferences, Tasting Booths - where you can unwind while discovering different regions and provinces through their cuisine - round out the event, making Cheese 2007 as instructive as it is delectable. Practical InformationCheese, 21 to 24 September Bra is located 59 km (36.6 miles) south of Turin in the Piedmonts. |
