{"id":10643,"date":"2011-09-23T17:06:12","date_gmt":"2011-09-23T21:06:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=10643"},"modified":"2014-06-23T17:13:30","modified_gmt":"2014-06-23T21:13:30","slug":"funny-business-diy-cheese-cards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/funny-business-diy-cheese-cards\/","title":{"rendered":"Funny Business: DIY Cheese Cards"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cheese descriptions generally don\u2019t make for exciting reading: nutty, buttery, creamy, stinky, yawn. But there are signs, quite literally, that cheesemongers are shaking up such ho-hum cheese talk with clever, offbeat tasting notes that reference everything from pop culture to proposals.<\/p>\n

\"bayley-hazen-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Sheri LaVigne, owner of the Calf & Kid<\/a> in Seattle\u2019s new Melrose Market, is one of several retailers gaining a reputation for often-hilarious tasting descriptions of the cheeses in their case. LaVigne was inspired to be creative with not-soserious cheese notes by the wordplay she\u2019d seen in Bedford Cheese Shop<\/a> in Brooklyn. The shop\u2019s tasting cards were engaging and funny, often irreverent, too.<\/p>\n

\"caveman-blue-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI was a total cheese novice at the time,\u201d she recalls. \u201cTheir notes reflected the friendly, jovial nature of the employees, and made the shop feel less intimidating. But they also kept me entertained while I was waiting to be helped.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"blauschimmel-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

When LaVigne opened her Seattle shop in April 2010, she wanted to duplicate that experience for her customers.<\/p>\n

\"gubbeen-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cEven if [the description] is not very specific in terms of flavor or texture, people will remember a cheese if a note makes them laugh. Humor is a common denominator and a great icebreaker that leaves cheesemongers room to talk about the product in real detail once a note has drawn people in,\u201d she explains. And the joke can also help them remember a cheese. \u201cOur Domaine du Vallage note just says, \u2018This is a cheese you\u2019d leave your boyfriend for,\u2019\u201d LaVigne adds, \u201cand customers are always asking for the \u2018boyfriend cheese.\u2019\u201d (It\u2019s Les Fromagers de Chevillon, from France, by the way.)<\/p>\n

\"calcagno-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Of course, not all cheesemongers believe notes should be nontraditional. Formal descriptions can provide pertinent information, such as how long a cheese has been aged and its origin, milk, or producer (for the record, LaVigne does include that information, as well). Other cheesemongers prefer to limit notes to name of cheese and price and communicate additional information to customers through conversation. Says LaVigne, \u201cI see merits to all of these methods, but it\u2019s my prerogative to keep everything about my shop accessible, down-to-earth, and fun.\u201d Case in point: for Pondhopper, a semihard goat\u2019s milk cheese from Tumalo Farms in Bend, Oregon (tumalofarms. com), LaVigne\u2019s description says the cheese is \u201csweet, floral, and bathed in beer, like a prom date you\u2019ll never forget.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"blue-mix-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

If her customers miss the familiarity of standard cheese descriptions, they don\u2019t show it. Says LaVigne, \u201cAlmost daily, I\u2019ll get someone who says they\u2019re just looking. But once they peruse the case, they\u2019ll ask if they can \u2018taste that cheese that makes you want to get down on one knee and propose to it.\u2019 Even if they don\u2019t buy, I\u2019ve hopefully given them a memorable experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"grayson-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Curd Word Games at Home<\/h3>\n

Liven up your next cheese party by creating playful tasting notes of your own, or have guests suggest ideas\u2014a glass or two of wine or beer might help, as well as some oddball prizes for the cleverest characterizations.<\/p>\n

\"fromage-meaux-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Give each guest a list of your cheese selections with all of the pertinent information, a stack of blank cards (hit a stationery store that sells individual sheets of stock), and a small notebook, so they can record their favorite tastes and brainstorm fun metaphors that relate to those experiences.<\/p>\n

\"forsterkase-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

When it comes to tapping into your creativity, LaVigne suggests going for adjectives and concepts that are \u201csassy, concise, and convey an emotional and sensory response.\u201d Her description of Valentine cheese from Ancient Heritage Dairy in Scio, Oregon (ancientheritagedairy.com), is a perfect example: \u201cRich, buttery, with a texture like satin: If Barry White had a cheese baby, this would be it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"tommette-chevre-sign\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Take a cue from creative retailers, and create your own homemade cheese cards so you can serve your cheese with some playful prose<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10654,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,13],"tags":[],"coauthors":[191,102],"class_list":["post-10643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diy","category-photo-essay"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFunny Business: DIY Cheese Cards - culture: the word on cheese<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Take a cue from creative retailers, and create your own homemade cheese cards so you can serve your cheese with some playful prose\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, 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