Follow this link to read the newest of our store travelogues, this time written by Tim and Julie on their February trip to Portugal.

http://www.formaggiokitchen.com/travelogues/portugal/Alentejo

Click here to view a pdf version of the summer issue of our new newsletter: The Cheese Paper. This issue includes articles on fresh cheeses, picnics, and some of our favorite summertime products. You'll also find a profile of Twig Farm, a Vermont goat
cheese producer making some of the best cheese in the country.

The Formaggio Cheese Blog is full of great food
info postings from staff members of all three stores. <CLICK HERE
TO VISIT OUR BLOG>

Formaggio Kitchen is now importing delicious artisanally made Manchegos from Villadiego, a producer located on the banks of the Guadiana River in the town of Ciudad-Real. the three Manchegos we are importing are made from milk of the estate's own sheep, the Manchegan breed. These sheep are raised sustainably, following some organic practices, and all feed for the sheep is grown on the farm as well including barley, wheat and alfalfa.
Our Villadiego Manchegos come in three ages:
Semi-Curado: a small-format cheese aged around 6 months. The softest and creamiest tasting of the three with notes of squash and nuts.
Curado: Aged around one year. Firmer and more complex with spicy-mustardy notes and an aroma reminiscent of sweet chestnuts.
Anejo: The oldest of the three, aged around 1 1/2 years. Very firm with a hazelnut aroma and a woodsey, herbal finish.
Ask for a taste of any or all three next time you're at the cheese counter. Also available at out Cambridge and New York stores.Click here to see our other delicious Spanish cheeses.

Click here to read our recent blog post on the new Manchegos! 

One of our favorite finds at this year's Salon Du Fromage in Paris was a host of new (to us) fermier cheeses from the Savoie. The Savoie produces a host of great cheeses, though the majority are large production and are more industrial in production. As a reminder, Fermier cheeses are those which have been produced on the farm, as opposed to cheeses made in a factory or in a large cheesemaking facility.  
The first batch of these tasty cheeses arrived yesterday, and includes a well-balanced Tomme de Savoie, a buttery Tomme de Pays, a sumptuous Tomme Crayeuse and a gorgeous Alpage Abondance.
The unifying factor in all of these beautiful cheeses is their complex but clean and clear flavors.Ask for a taste on your next visit to the store!

It's that time of year again, when the weather gets sunny and we are ready to sip pink wine on the roofdeck. Here are the rosés we have in-store now. We will be adding to this list with each new arrival:

09 Ameztoi Txakolina Rubentis - a dry and slightly spritzy blend of Hondarribi Zuri and Hondarribi Belt. $18.95

09 Hofer Zweigelt Rosé - a crisp and dry Austrian pink that smells of fresh strawberries. $18.95 

09 Domaine Richou Anjou Rosé - a savory and dry Cabernet Franc rosé. $12.95

09 Chateau d'Oupia Minervois Rosé - a fresh and fruity blend of Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault and a touch of Counoise. $14.95

09 Jamain Reuilly Rosé - an awesome pinot gris rosé - extra pale and nicely acidic. 

09 Mas Sainte Berthe Rosé - A lush and fruity Provencal rosé with strawberry aromas and a dry finish. 

08 Rosé de Diel - we like this German Pinot Noir rose with a little age on it. A little bit sweet, very delicious. Great with pates. 

The new Formaggio Kitchen blog is off to a good start with a variety of
posts about cheese, tea, apples and plenty of other food-related
subjects. This blog is intended to be a offer a more personal view
of our work here at Formaggio Kitchen and South End Formaggio and our connection to the food
world at large.  We are particularly excited to hear your feedback, so
we invite you to check out our blog on a regular basis or set up an RSS
feed to get updates delivered to your email or reader of choice.

And to all the South End Formaggio shoppers out there, keep in mind that anything you seen on the Formaggio Blog (except cinnamon bread!) can be sent over to the South End location for you to pick up, even if we don't normally keep it in stock. We get deliveries from Formaggio Kitchen every day! 

A big thanks to Oprah.com for choosing our store as one of the best online grocery shopping websites. Click on this link to see the list, and click on 'shop online' on our home page to start shopping now!
http://www.oprah.com/food/The-Best-Online-Grocery-Shopping-Websites/2

Back in stock! Domaine La Guintrandy's Cotes du Rhone in a box. All natural and all delicious for the equivalent of less than $8 a bottle.This box will last more than a month after opening, so it's great for a glass or a half a glass a night, or for a big party where people will be refilling their glasses often. No need to refrigerate, the box seals itself after every use like magic. A blend of Syrah and Grenache, this is a fantastic everyday sipper and versatile for pairing with meals and cheeses.
A staff favorite!! $29.95 for a 3 Liter box.

Tis the season for holiday parties, and everyone loves an ample cheese board weather it's before a dinner party or for a cocktail and appetizer party. Our expert cheesemongers can walk you through the process of choosing your cheeses. Alternatively, for those in a hurry, we can simply choose your cheeses for you. Feel free to call ahead and have us prepare your cheeses for a quick and easy pick-up. 

• We suggest a selection of three to five cheeses, in a variety of milks and textures. One sheep's milk, one cow's milk, one goat's milk and one blue, make a nice well-rounded cheese board.
  
  We recommend around 3oz of cheese per person for an appetizer portion. 
• Cheese condiments like jams, honeys, membrillo, chutney or mostardas are a great addition. We can point out specific condiments that will pair well with your cheeses.
  
  
• Nuts and dried fruits are a good choice for cold-weather cheese boards, when there are few fresh fruits in season. Also consider serving olives, tapenades, artichokes and dates
  
  
• We are happy to recommend a cracker for your cheeses but we always prefer a crusty baguette.
  
  
• Ask your cheesemonger to recommend wines, beers or ciders that will pair well with your cheese selection. For parties remember that we offer a 10% discount on full cases of all wines and beers and the same discount on 6 or more selections for the $16 and under table.

Remember, we also have a selection of ready-made cheese and appetizer platters on our catering menu.

Back in stock for the holiday season, the exquisite confections of Romanengo Fu Stefano of Genova. Handmade items include intense fruit pastes in the shape of their respective fruits and dipped in sugar (the strawberry is mind-blowing!); fruit infused fondant cubes in amazingly pure flavors like pear, anise, apricot and banana; thick rose syrup made from cauldrons full of rose petals; and three types of pure chocolate in beautifully decorated labels.

The newest member of our Sherry family has arrived, a raisin-scented Pedro Ximenez from Maestro Sierra. This winery was founded in 1832 by Jose Antonio Sierra, who was a master
carpenter, and  one of the top
coopers in the area, and is now owned by Pilar Pla
Pechovierto, a widow whose husband was a
direct descendent of the Sierra family. Juan
Clavijo has been the Capataz of the winery for over fifty years, and is responsible for tasting all
the barrels and deciding when to rack the wines. He has been at Maestro
Sierra all his life, and does
everything by hand and in accordance to the old traditions. Maestro Sierra's Pedro Ximenez, comes from vines ranging from 10-60 years of age, and is aged for 15 years in the solera system. This a sweet sherry tastes like liquid raisins, and makes a lovely end to a meal when served with a bit of nice queso azul, or a simple dish of almonds. 

Domaine des Cotes de la Molière is a tiny operation run by
Isabelle and Bruno Perraud, the sixth generation of the family to farm
this estate. They are farming their vineyards organically, and
practicing non-interventionist winemaking, even to the point of adding
no sulfur to their wines. You've seen their Beaujolais-Villages on the
shelves at South End Formaggio, and now we're proud to be carrying their Moulin-à-Vent.This wine is not what most people imagine when they think of Beaujolais. The presence of wild yeasts and the lack of added sulfur make for a dark, funky and
meaty wine with a big rich black cherry flavor. This Gamay is almost
more like a wine from the Rhone valley, but with a classic, almost
floral Moulin-à-Vent nose. We're definitely thinking pork here, roasts
or rillettes, or even steak frites. Also, Moliere's Beaujolais Nouveau
is the only one we've been carrying in recent years, and this year's
no-sulfur-added gem will be in the week before Thanksgiving. With
reflections of everything we love in their Beaujolais-Villages, it will
make you question everything you thought you knew about Beaujolais
Nouveau!

We have finagled the
delivery of not one but two excellent,
farmer-made yogurts made from the milk of
grass-fed animals. And the way they get to
the store is a classic example of "local
logistics." Side Hill Farm's Certified
Organic Cow's
Milk Yogurt (in maple, whole-fat plain
and low-fat plain) is made in Ashland, MA.
It is delivered to our Cambridge store by a
woman who lives near the farm and happens to
work near Formaggio Kitchen a few days a
month. She'll swing by Side Hill Farm on her
way in to Cambridge and put a few cases in
the trunk of her car.
The new prodigy of the cheese counter,
however, is Carolyn Hillman's Greek-Style
Goat's Milk Yogurt. We asked Carolyn if she might make us
a tub of yogurt for the store, and she agreed
to try straining the yogurt she makes for her
family to see if she could get it thicker and
more retail-friendly. It worked perfectly,
and so now this yogurt is delivered to us
every couple of weeks by none other than
Judith Maloney of Westcounty Ciders.
Judith and Carolyn are neighbors, so when
Judith drives in to Boston to deliver her
hard cider all over town, she stops by here
to unload a cooler full of Hillman goat
cheese (and now yogurt too!) along with a few
cases of Roxbury Russet cider.
So that's
how it works - a lot of coincidence and
neighborly spirit. As these yogurts show,
though, it's a puzzle worth solving!

Our new gift cards have just arrived- a more convenient replacement for our gift certificate. Like our gift certificates, these gift cards are available in any amount, and can be refilled with credit if needed. They aslo can be used at any of our three locations, in Boston, Cambridge, or New York, or in our on-line store at www.formaggiokitchen.com.

Sign up to receive an email each Monday morning of our weekly menu, to help you plan your dinners for the week. As always our menu items are available after 2pm, but please feel free to call ahead in the morning to reserve the amounts you need.
Email me at julie@southendformaggio.com to have your name added to the list of Weekly Menu recipients.

Nitrate-free free-range hams "in limited numbers".

The Newsom family of Princeton, Kentucky has been making amazing hams since the 1700s. Their Prosciutto Ham is cured with salt and brown sugar, and is ever-so-slightly smoked. The resulting ham is sweet and rich and slices beautifully.
We're also proud to be stocking Newsom's "Preacher Ham" or Smoked BBQ Ham (pictured here). This unaged ham is milder and less salty than country ham, and is moist, smokey and sweet after a sugar cure and overnight simmering over an open hickory pit. They call it the Preacher Ham because it's "the best meal you can find to serve the preacher for Sunday dinner."We slice this ham by hand so the slices are thick - perfect for a sandwich or to serve as a main course. I'm having it for dinner tonight cold with potato salad, corn on the cob and sliced tomatoes. 

Just in case any folks are still operating under the assumption that Muscadet is a sweet
wine, we're here to set things straight. Many people confuse Muscadet,
a wine named for the region of Muscadet, with the grape
Muscat, a grape often used in sweeter wines. Interestingly enough, Muscadet is not made from Muscat, but instead from a noble little grape
named Melon de Bourgogne. We love Muscadet for its lightness and bright tangy acidity. Traditionally a perfect foil for shellfish and other seafood, we also serve it with fresh goats cheeses, crudite, salads and hors d'oeuvres. The newest member of our Muscadet family is from a small winery called Domaine de la Bregeonette, run by Stéphane Orieux. The Melon de Bourgogne grapes are grown organically and fermented with natural wild yeasts and the resulting wine is crisp and dry with a minerally, almost salty quality. Dee-licious and only $13.95 a bottle. 

One of our new favorite cheeses is now in stock from one of our new favorite cheesemakers- Mark Robie of  Robie Farm. Mark has 60 cows and he takes extreme measures to ensure that only the very best milk is used for his tiny production of cheese. Every month he sends his milk off to get tested for fat and protein content, and for content of impurities, and he then isolates the top 20 cows with the cleanest milk and uses only their milk for cheese. This group of 20 top performers changes each month, mostly depending on where the cow is in it's lactation cycle. This care in farming is evident in the extremely pure and clean milky flavors in  Help us support Mark by making his cheese as famous as it deserves to be! We currently stock three of Mark's cheeses: Piermont, Smoked Toma, and Swaledale. Ask for a taste next time you're in the store. 

Visit the South End Formaggio page on Facebook to see photos of the store and to see updates on new products and ripe cheeses. Become a fan to receive updates about tastings and events.
Click here to see our page.

Our new Chef Jason Lord, has just come to us from The East Coast Grill in Cambridge, MA. Jason has been treating us to a variety of new dishes like homemade Chicken Curry with Scallion Jasmine Rice, Orange-Pomegranate Salmon, Old Bay Fried Chicken with Collard Greens and Carnitas with Red-Onion Agave Salsa. Stop by the store for a taste of today's menu items- available after 2pm every day. 

A brief look at a few of our most uplifting red wines for cold weather, and a suggestion of foods to eat with them.

Cantina Sociale Cooperativa Copertino Riserva 2001- Consistently our best selling red wine-even in warmer months, this intense red wine from southern Italy will warm you to your toes. This old-school co-op makes this value-priced wine from mostly Negroamaro grapes, the same way it has since the 1930s. Delicious with cold-weather Italian foods like Polenta with Bolognese Sauce, rich Lasagne, roasted meats or Mushroom Risotto. Excellent with a variety of salami and prosciutto and firm cheeses like Calcagno or Parmigiano. $13.95

Gobelsberger Zweigelt 2006- One of our favorite wine finds of the year- from our friends at Schloss Gobelsburg a juicy, plummy and warm red wine made from the Zweigelt grape, a cross of the Austrian red grapes Blaufrankish and St. Laurent. It is the most widely grown red grape variety in Austria- but a well kept secret here in the States. This is our cheese buyer's newest favorite wine. Lovely with a variety of our Austrian cheeses like Langenegg Rasskase. $17.95

Domaine Berthoumieu Madiran 2005- 90% Tannat and 10% Cabernet make up this king of polyphenolic wines famous for its health-giving properties. Big, dark, powerful and delicious. Drink with intense roasts and stews. A traditional regional pairing for Brebis d'Ossau and others in the family of the Pyranees Brebis. $24.95

On November 10, Formaggio Kitchen owner Ihsan Gurdal will receive the title of Chevalier of the
Ordre du Mérite Agricole from the French government.  This title is
being given to Ihsan for his tireless work in supporting French
agricultural artisans by introducing his stateside customers to their
hand-crafted products.

During his education at the French school in
Istanbul, Ihsan developed a fondness for French culture at an early
age.  Sicne then he has travelled extensively throughout France and
over his career he has sought producers who represent the
traditions of their region.  "This is an incredible honor and I am
proud to be granted the title of Chevalier because it reflects our
dedication to working with producers who are the agricultural roots of
France." said Ihsan on hearing the good news.
Other
American recipients of this prestigous title include Julia Child,
Jacques Pépin, Paul Prudhomme, Alice Waters and Kermit Lynch.

The
Ordre du Mérite Agricole was established 1883 by Jules Méline, Minister
of Agriculture as an adjunct title of the French Legion of Honor to
recognize those individuals who have made significant contributions to
the development and progress of agriculture in France. 

At a cheese show in Italy last fall we met a group of Belgian cheesemongers promoting their country's farmhouse cheeses. It was fascinating to discover this hitherto untapped resource for excellent cheeses, and to see the how the country's melange of cultures is reflected in the breadth of its cheese varieties. A Formaggio contingent has just returned from a tasting mission to Belgium where they met the cheesemakers (and the goats and sheep!) and visited 5 fantastic breweries.

These new cheeses have arrived at the Formaggio stores, imported exclusively by us and in the U.S. for the first time ever- visit our Belgian cheese page on our Formaggio Kitchen website for more information, and ask at the cheese counter for a taste of any of the new cheeses!

Just in- an inexpensive pleasure from the Basque country- Sagardo Natura, aka natural cider. This barely fizzy cider is made from apples ground and pressed in the fall and fermented in large casks until spring when it is bottled unfiltered. Basque cider bars traditionally pour this treat from a great height to "fizz" the cider against the edge of the glass, and the customer downs the cider quickly as it is said to be at its best when just poured. Try it with spicy chorizos, garlicky seafood dishes, and cheese plates with membrillo. $10.95 per bottle available at both South End Formaggio and Formaggio Kitchen

After months of heady anticipation Jean David's 2005 Vin de Pays organic wine in a box to Boston. This Rhone blend is our staff's favorite summer wine, we take it to parties, we take it camping, we give it as gifts, and we keep the boxes on our counters at home in case of emergency. Tastes great with burgers, pasta, meatloaf, roasted chicken, BBQ, grilled sausages, and a huge variety of cheeses, pates and rillettes.

The euro to dollar exchange has bumped the price up a bit for this vintage but still, $39.95 divided by 5 liters equals $7.99 per LITER. That's $5 less than our favorite gruner veltliner liters, and those are a steal.

Jean David Organic Box $39.95/ 5 liter box

Our wine buyers Julie from South End Formaggio and David from Formaggio Kitchen just got back from a week long wine tasting extravaganza in Verona, Italy at the annual VinItaly wine fair.

See photos of some of our favorite winemakers like Severino from Erbaluna, Jean-Baptiste Geoffroy and Francoise and Phillipe from Chateau Tour Grise.

Click here to view their slideshow on the Formaggio Kitchen website.