Cheese-a-Topia favorites: soft-ripened

Ok, it’s been a couple of weeks and I’m still reviewing the ACS. It’s all good, right? I mean, what else do we have to write about in cheese land?

I’m going to first review a bunch of cheeses that I liked a lot but did not vote for in the Best of Show. Then I’ll discuss which ones I voted for and which ones won. You with me?

Ok, in the soft-ripened categories I had two favorites. I’m always so happy when I’m into a cheese that I’ve never tasted or seen before. It makes it so obvious that there are so many good cheeses in the country (and world) that I still have yet to try. It kinda gives you hope about everything, ya know? I had tasted neither of these before last month.

The first was in my judging category of “flavor-added, soft-ripened”.

Here’s the Appleton Creamery Camella from Maine:

Isn’t it pretty? I wish I had known about them when I visited Maine a few years ago, I would have loved to visit.

The other soft-ripened cheese I’d like to mention was the Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser Soeur Angele which won for “sheep and mixed milk”:

The Soeur Angele is a mix of goat and cow with added cream. Not a strong cheese, but a perfectly ripened and tasty wheel. Makes me hope I can go to Montreal for next year’s ACS and try all those Canadian cheeses we never get here.