Four times a year I choose one region at the peak of its season and bring it to your table. You do not need a plane ticket for this trip. You need an evening, a little time, and the people you would travel with.
This fall the region is Burgundy. The harvest is in, the evenings are cool, and the washed-rind cheeses are at their best. Époisses is washed in marc de Bourgogne. It smells stronger than it tastes, and at perfect ripeness it is one of my favorite cheeses in the store. Brillat-Savarin is a triple-cream, mild and buttery, named for Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, who wrote The Physiology of Taste.
Spring sold out. Summer sold out. Every box is built from small producers who make only what their milk, their cellars and the season allow, so when their cheese is gone, the box is gone with it.
Take it slowly. Let the Époisses come to room temperature, pour a glass, and press play on the private tasting I record for members each season. I walk you through every item: what it is, how to serve it, and what to pair it with.
Con affetto,
Dominick DiBartolomeo
Owner, The Cheese Store of Beverly Hills