Artisan Cheeses
A Rhody Shopper’s Guide
By Jackie Lantry Photo by Thad Russell

I have high cholesterol. Genes are partly to blame but so are my eating habits—and this is where the cheese comes in. When it comes to cheese, I follow Miss Piggy’s diet plan: “Never eat more than you can lift.”

J’adore le fromage.

The making of cheese is pretty basic. Acid and rennet (an enzyme produced in the stomachs of young mammals) are added to milk, causing it to separate into curds (solid) and whey (liquid). The curds are then drained, pressed, put into a mold and weighted.  In the world of artisan cheese, when the basics end, the magic begins.  An artisan, of course, is a person who is highly skilled at an applied craft. When the artisan’s craft is cheese it seems the entire universe adds to the assemblage.

Terroir, a term usually associated with the effect climate and soil have on the taste of wine, is increasingly being used to explain the complex flavors of artisan cheese. Artisan cheese is affected by even more elements than wine.

Consider the type of milk used—is it cow, sheep or goat? How about the fat content of the milk and what the animal ate before giving milk? (Writer Kate Zimmerman relays a story about a shop owner who complained about the “foul” taste of a batch of goat cheese: “… The cheese maker was philosophical. ‘Oh, you got that batch,’ she said. ‘The goats got into the garlic…‘“)

Aging or ripening time and location, molds and bacteria (naturally occurring or inoculated), temperature and even humidity can affect the flavor of cheese—as do processing techniques and the seasons. Many cheese artisans use only milk from grass-fed milch animals—alas, no cheese in winter! The beauty of artisan cheese is it allows us to experience the limitless and wondrous ways in which milk can be transformed by human hand.

Little Rhody is rife with options when it comes to sampling, savoring and consuming artisan cheese. Half the fun is gaining a good education.

Farmstead & La Laiterie

Matt Jennings—Cholesterol: Good. Favorite cheese: All selections from Twig Farm, followed by Jasper Hill’sWinnemere (both Vermont). Local favorite: “Everything from Narragansett Creamery.” At this time of year he likes to sweeten their Angelito (a whipped cream cheese) with maple syrup and use it on pumpkin pie.

Liam Mahoney—Cholesterol: On the high side. Favorite cheese:

“Right now it’s Coolea from Ireland.” Local favorite: Berkshire Blue from Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

Matt Jennings opened Farmstead in Wayland Square in 2003. His formal food education began at the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, where he did his bachelor’s thesis on the “Symbiosis of Craft Beer and Artisan Cheese.” After meeting with him I think I can say that fancy sounding thesis was just a smidge self-serving…can you imagine the research he was obliged to do? As in, “I think I’ll need another beer and a couple more plates of cheese to complete this research…” He’s all about living well and his research is serving to Rhode Island’s benefit.  A big guy covered with colorful tattoos, he looks like just a kid—and just about as happy as one in his new cheese room, filled with natural, bloomy and washed rind cheeses. He is a fount of experience and knowledge that belies his mere 33 years. Jennings feels cheese in America is where wine was 20 years ago, people are just now realizing the exquisite possibilities of cheese, and New England is on the forefront of the artisan cheese movement.

Liam Mahoney, Farmstead’s other expert cheesemonger, has been working alongsideMatt since 2006. He is also very knowledgeable and can be a great help in navigating Farmstead’s well-thought array of artisan cheeses, many of them from New England’s finest cheese artisans.

With their knowledge of and passion for artisan cheese it is no wonder Farmstead has gained a reputation well beyond Rhode Island’s borders. President of the American Cheese Society and Rogue Creamery cheese maker, David Gremmels, says Jennings is among the top five cheesemongers in the country.

Grapes & Gourmet

Frank LaPere—Cholesterol: Very good. Favorite cheese: Tallegio. Local favorite: Narragansett Creamery’s Divine Providence.  Paula LaBarre—Cholesterol: Excellent. Favorite cheese: Red Dragon, an English cheddar with mustard seeds that “pop” when you bite into them. Local favorite: Same as Frank.

LaPere and LaBarre are a brother-sister team who own and operate Grapes & Gourmet in Jamestown. They have a “stinky” chart above the cheese case that uses tiny clothespins to rate cheese—one clothespin is “not too stinky” while three is “real stinky.” Interestingly, real stinky does not mean real strong. I sampled a tallegio that had three clothespins but was mild in taste. Both LaPere and LaBarre are self-taught cheesemongers. Although they keep a close eye on what’s popular in the market, they also go with their instincts when choosing what to carry.

Grapes & Gourmet is the only one of our cheesemongers that can sell wine in the same shop, thanks to an arcane Rhode Island law that limits liquor stores to only nuts and chips if the populace of the store’s location is more than 10,000. (Jamestown fits the bill.) They can help you pair your wine and cheese and send you home with both.

Milk & Honey Bazaar

Tom Jansen—Cholesterol: Hasn’t checked recently. Favorite cheese: Piave Vecchio or Roaring 40s Blue. Local favorite: A tie between Hannahbells and Narragansett Creamery’s Atwell’s Gold.

Jennifer Jansen—Cholesterol: Great. Favorite cheese: Fleur Verte or Gruyere Reserve. Local favorite: Hannahbells.

Milk & Honey Bazaar is tucked into a little building as charming as its name.To boot, if you’re lucky, you’ll see the couple’s adorable baby boys with strawberry blonde curls bouncing as they clamber around the shop. Very much a family business, Tom Jansen grew up right around the corner from the Tiverton shop.

He and wife Jennifer are lifelong “foodies” and originally thought about being cheese makers rather than mongers. When the option of opening a shop in the Tiverton location came up, they knew it was the right thing for them. They are self-taught cheesemongers and their recommendation to consumers runs in the same vein, “Trust your palate.” If you do that, the Jansens promise, you’ll taste the “facts of the cheese, its history, its life… “ In other words, you’ll taste the garlic the goats ate … or the grass the cows fed upon.

Customers atMilk & Honey tend to be well-traveled and they regularly make suggestions—which the store expands upon. They have a bustling summer business and ship to many of those customers throughout the winter.

Venda Ravioli

Tonie LaPierre—Cholesterol: Excellent. Favorite cheese: “Anything Italian.”

Local favorite: Narragansett Creamery’s Atwell’s Gold.  Tonie LaPierre is the resident cheesemonger at Venda Ravioli. She had worked at Venda for years when the chance to become “head cheese” presented itself. With no formal training, she has picked up information and developed a palate by working closely with suppliers and taking classes in exotic locales (like Italy, of course). She stocks cheeses from all over the world but specializes in Italian cheeses.  Venda is not devoted solely to cheese and so the cheese case is small, but Tonie’s enthusiasm keeps the stock ever-replenished and always evolving.

The Cooked Goose

Jen Gibson—Cholesterol: “I think it’s OK, I haven’t checked lately.” Favorite cheese: Epoisse (a gooey, runny, semi-stinky French cheese). Local favorite: Hannahbells fromWestport.

Jen and her husband own and operate The Cooked Goose in Watch Hill. Although she’s had no formal training, Jen is an enthusiastic cheese student/eater. Most of her cheese knowledge came from time working at Sid Wainer Specialty Foods in New Bedford, Massachusetts.  She decided to carry cheese in her restaurant’s shop because not only did she love the stuff, it was easier to get a good selection and variety of specialty cheeses as a purveyor than a restaurateur. Hence The Cooked Goose’s cheese case was born. Although small, they carry a good variety of artisan cheeses. eR

Jackie Lantry is a freelance writer based in New England. Her work has been featured on National Public Radio and in Yankee Magazine and the Providence Journal.