Tete de Moine

  Posted on March 31, 2010  by Leslie Blythe  1 comment

As promised, another cheese review.  What a chore!

Tete de Moine is an old monastery-style mountain cheese whose name translates to “monk’s head”. Traditionally it is sliced horizontally with a girolle to create ruffled, very thin rosettes. Once the top part of the rind is taken off, it resembles the bald top of a monk’s head. The firm, dense texture, though not dry, makes it perfect for paper-thin slices. The flavor can range from very fruity and rich to pungent and very sharp.  You don’t have to have a girolle to enjoy this cheese, just scrape a sharp knife across the top to make cheese curls.  My sister-in-law, Rhonda, gave us the girolle.

This is a nice cheese to serve as a cheese course after dinner.

Recommended wines: Big reds; Beer, ale, porter, stout.