Thursday evening when The Lady walked through the door, my heart sank.
Immediately I knew she had cheated on me; she smelled of cheeses, glorious cheeses that I have never eaten…visions of “the smoking incident” danced through my head…where had she been and who was with her? As she and The Man began to chat I realized he had known all along The Lady was attending a cheese show and he had kept it secret from me. I was devastated; his buddy who hangs with him every day while The Lady is away at the cheese mines; his buddy who gives up valuable nap time to sit in his lap and allow him to pet me.
One more time, this feline learned that humankinds, even The Man, are more loyal to their own than to their favorite felines… The disappointment in these two is beyond comprehension; not to mention how pissed The Brain is going to be that I missed the opportunity to observe humankinds that otherwise would escape my cat eye… and the cheeses I missed eating… this is one annoyed feline foodie.
The Lady is already paying. When forced (or not), getting even is always high on my list of priorities (I admit it; I hold grudges). My threshold is quite low when it comes to missing out on cheese nibbling.
Most nights, I wake up at 2am (remember cats are nocturnal by nature) and guess who I’ve been waking from her slumber each night since the DPI show? Not that it takes a rocket scientist to figure this out (even for humankind…); but…that would be The Lady… she’s lucky that’s the tactic I chose. Those of you who are owned by cats; know well that cats have far more aggressive ways to express displeasure…but I digress…
As it turned out, The Lady spent Thursday morning at the DPI Specialty Foods Product Show… now here’s the thing…she went to a CHEESE show and didn’t take me along…who is it that reviews the cheeses around here??? That would be, this feline foodie. And who around here loves cheese more than kitty pate??? That would be me as well…and yet, I sat (actually I napped but don’t tell The Lady) home while The Lady was out hob-nobbing with the elite of cheese and getting her picture taken with those Fabulous Beecher’s Cheese Ladies.
The Lady showered me with business cards and tales of cheeses she sampled. Did she bring me samples???…nada, nope, zipola…sheesh… Then to add insult to injury, she asked me to send a few shout outs to the terrific people she met and to tell you, my fans, about their cheeses.
Even though I am royally vexed, I just can’t say no to The Lady…
Of course, I must start with those Fabulous Beecher’s Handmade Cheeses Ladies, Jena and Mike, especially since my cheesy heart belongs to No Woman, the cheese…there is nothing else to read into that statement. Just because I lost my balls somewhere in the San Fernando Valley, I did not lose my love for the ladies…especially sweet Mathilda, who stole my heart…Waltzing Mathilda, Waltzing Mathilda…
Cheese aside, that Mike is quite the dresser…talk about style…this lady has got it going on…and Jena, ooh la la…so elegant…Were I not a cat and so enamored with Mathilda, these two could really turn my head…Of course, the fact that they make some of the best cheeses in the Northwest and according to the American Cheese Society, the best cheddar in America…well, there you go…
From Beechers, The Lady with her BCFF, Amy from DPI, moved up the alphabet just a bit and hung out with Michael of the Beemster Mice fame…oh that’s right, he also reps the best cheese to ever come out of Holland…that XO is to die for…and the mice are fun playmates…
(Hey Amy, what’s up? How come you didn’t send me the 411 on the cheese show? I thought we were friends…another one bites the dust…)
Did you know that Beemster is the official cheese to the Royal Family of The Netherlands? Did you know that the Beemster Cooperative provides all the cream to Ben and Jerry for their European production? And did you know that the Beemster polder was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999? Well, now you do and you, too, can wow your cheese head friends with these bits of cheese knowledge while serving any of the fine Beemster cheeses…
The Lady and Amy then visited with Conner from Kerrygold Butters and Cheese. It’s always a pleasure for The Lady to visit with Connor and fondly remember when The Man had red hair…actually when he had any hair is a distant fond memory…The Lady was especially taken with their Aged Cheddar with Irish Whiskey. It was reminiscent of Bushmills Whiskey, although Connor didn’t confirm what her tastebuds were telling her.
From there, The Lady stopped at Vermont Butter and Cheese Company to chat with Allison, one of the owners, who makes that “to-die-for” Mascarpone and Bijou and many other cheesy delectables. The Lady told me that Allison inquired into my welfare as did a few others she saw. Allison, right back atcha.
RJ of World Import Distributors was the next stop. You may recall that it was RJ and family who “vacationed” at the Estrella Family Creamery last August. And since they didn’t get enough abuse; they’re going back for more this summer…you can see why humankind observation is tedious…humankinds just never learn, do they??? It’s like when The Lady and The Man went to Thunder Ranch for handgun training… the first forty-hour course almost killed them; so what do they do? They went back the next year for twenty-four more hours of torture…The Lady and The Man send a shout out to Clint Smith for operating the premiere gun training school in the country…as The Lady says, “If you’re going to own a gun; you sure as hell better know how to use it.” Hmm…I wandered way off the cheese reservation with that one, didn’t I???
Now this stop is the one I especially wish I had been with The Lady and Amy…Fromi USA…Agathe loves the cheeses she sells and “insisted” The Lady taste quite a few. Some that caught The Lady’s eye included Petite Sapin, Le Picandou, Bouchettes, Briebirousse d’Argental, Gres des Vosges. I’ll review these when I get the opportunity to sample them…Agathe also imports that most divine of all cheeses, Epoisses.
At Lactalis, she met Naomi and Pascal. Naomi also sent out a hello to this feline foodie. Again, right back atcha, Naomi. Lactalis provides many of the President Bries that The Lady sells on her BH-adjacent Cheese Island.
She also met the good folks at Mt. Townsend Creamery and fell in love with their Cirrus and Seastack cheeses made on the Olympic Peninsula in Northern Washington State. And also from New York State, she sampled goat cheese (I know…) made by Coach Farm. She enjoyed a cup of coffee with Chris at Vail Mountain Coffee and Tea and a scone at FatCat Scones.
Later in the day, Jim Lowes of Lowes Sales and Marketing and Howard Nep from Marcel Henri stopped by the Cheese Kiosk to introduce themselves. Jim reps a line of salsas (among other food items) and Marcel Henri makes this feline foodie’s favorite pate.
(Sigh)…this is one adventure I wish I had been able to go along on with The Lady…but she continues to pay… and pay… and pay…
Marcella The Cheesemonger ACS CCP
It's All About Cheese, Baking, Binge TV, Poker and Anything Else That Captures My Fancy… In Other Words "It's All About Me"
