Sleeping Beauty from Cascadia Creamery

Happy weekend loyal readers!

I hope your weekend has been treating you well. Today I wanted to talk about a newcomer to my cheese counter - the Sleeping Beauty.

Cheese: Sleeping Beauty
Producer: Cascadia Creamery
Cheesemaker: John Shuman
Location: Trout Lake, WA
Milk: Organic raw cow's milk
Rennet: Traditional (animal)

Cascadia Creamery is a family run operation and they have revived a long tradition of artisan cheesemaking in the Trout Lake Valley that started almost 125 years ago. The Trout Lake Valley is an ideal location for cheesemaking because of the rich volcanic soil, lush grazing fields and temperate weather. All of the cheeses they make are 100% organic and raw!

The Sleeping Beauty is a natural rind cheese that is wonderfully smooth and elegant. I particularly loved the texture of the paste - it looked like it would be crumbly and dry, when in fact it was smooth and creamy. The natural rind lends some earthiness to the paste and I imagine this cheese would change depending on the season.

I would recommend eating this cheese with some crisp apples or pears and maybe a yummy cider. I could even see a nice light pilsner or pale ale playing nicely with this cheese. I also found a very decadent recipe for Sleeping Beauty Mac n Cheese on my friend Marcella's blog... check it out! http://www.marcellathecheesemonger.com/2014/03/29/sleeping-beauty-mac-n-cheese/

I hope you all get the chance to try this delicious cheese. Be sure to ask for it (and for a sample) at your local cheese counter! Until next time, eat, drink and be happy!