Cheese, and the Happiness it Brings

There's a lot of heavy shtuff going down at FIVE. I am briefly changing the subject to cheese. I found a wondrous website put together by Wisconsin Cheese (GO AMERICAn manufactured cheeses!!!), touting 30 really intriguing sandwiches. I didn't really look at any of the actual recipes, but I found all of the pictures to be deeply inspiring. See below:

Mmmmm. These made me think of these, then this, and then of cheese in general. Which brings me to my point -- a list of FIVE's top five favorite cheeses (at the moment). Here they are, listed in a vaguely particular order:

4. Etorki 

A newly discovered favorite, this Basque sheep's cheese was born after a forbidden night of passion between tangy Spanish exuberance and smooth French polish. The result is tangy and smooth and yummy. Go get some. Now.

5. Rosey Goat

A firm goat cheese snuggled underneath an herbaceous rosemary blanket, Rosey Goat tastes like a flower. . . a cheesy, cheesy flower. It goes superbly with a nice cherry jam. Or nothing at all.

3. Buratta

A shell of mozzarella cheese containing a blessed amalgamation of cream and creamy cream, these little balls of wonder make for wild explosions of milky ecstasy. Spoon it onto salt sprinkled tomato-steaks, or broil it with pesto and tiny tomatoes on crusty bread.

2. Humboldt Fog

Coyly referencing the haze of pot-smoke that seems to perpetually linger over its home of Humboldt County, California, this cheese. . . well, just look at the picture. It tastes like that. I've *heard* that eating this cheese is almost as enjoyable as another popular pastime in Humboldt -- namely, kayaking.

1. Cougar Gold

An annual gift from our wonderful Aunt M, Cougar Gold is good cheese, plain and simple. I suppose it could fall into the categories of 'nutty' and 'crumbly', but it mostly falls into the categories of 'delicious' and 'makes Five very happy'.