brunobaby

Last night I attended a cheese course at Murray's, which recently moved into a newer and larger store complete with classroom.

Each of the 20 or so attendees were seated in front of a plate of six cheeses ranging from a wet and curd-intensive Burrata to a hard, gold-nuggety Dutch Roomano. We also enjoyed two wines from Astor Wines & Spirits: a sparkling white and a robust red, plus a canoe-shaped dish of fruits and nuts and a platter of crusty baguette slices with which to experiment.

Owner Rob Kaufelt took us through the history of each cheese, how and where it's made, and why it looks, smells and tastes the way it does. Also answered that all-important question, "Do you eat the rind?" (Answer: It depends.)

He also told us that when you match the right cheese and the right wine, you get a third flavor. This reminded me of a documentary I saw on The Mamas and the Papas--PBS runs it ad infinitum during Pledge Week--where Denny Doherty said that when all four members were singing together, it sometimes created a fifth voice they called "Harvey."

So I'm going to get some wines and some cheese and go looking for Harvey.