A Cheesy Essay

A Cheesy Essay

            Cheese is something that we all tend to take for granted in modern American society. It is not really considered food in and of itself, but more as a condiment. It is perceived as something that goes “on” food in order to enhance it, rather than its own dish. There certainly exists the knowledge that this is not true everywhere, and that cheese making has a rich history, but these are things that many people would ascribe more to the past or to distant places, like Europe (and especially France). Yet cheese making is still alive and well, even in America, and even in its traditional, artisanal, hand-made form.

            The idea that American-made cheese is tasteless, bland, and inherently less worthy of consideration than other varieties stems largely from the widespread industrialization of its production since mass production became viable. (Paxton) Many people envision something more akin to Kraft singles than a personalized, artfully made product worthy of connoisseurship when it comes to American cheese, and for the most part, they are correct. Cheese is a form of food that does not accommodate well to one-size-fits-all manufacturing techniques: decisions as to how long each phase of the process should take for each individual batch have no set standard. The development of good cheese requires not exacting specification, but the delicate touch of an experienced cheese maker. Many would say that the practice exceeds that of craftsmanship and is closer to an art. (Paxton) Understandably, this does not mesh well with the emergent method of food production in America, which focuses above all on the efficient production of a reliable product in as large amounts as is possible. This mentality gives rises to the plastic-like, shrink-wrapped types of cheese that we more readily associate with America.

            In contrast, European cheeses have the rightful connotation of being gourmet creations, never quite the same from producer to producer. Cheese-makers in Europe often have the luxury of direct access to dairy farms that have surrounded their workshops for centuries, allowing them to create cheese from unpasteurized, grass-fed cattle milk before it begins to spoil. (Haas) In Switzerland, for example, while the government dictates and provides the strains of bacteria that cheese makers must use in order to ensure the safety of the resultant product, many techniques that might be used to preserve the shelf life of the milk before it is used are not allowed, forcing the cheese to be made from local milk. (Haas) The cheese maker is given the freedom to decide with each individual batch how long to soak the curds, how long to age each cheese, how many holes he allows to form as a result of residual bacteria, and so forth. This has the effect of keeping the cheese of each operation distinct from others, each having its own local flavor without compromising the safety of the cheese. In addition, the bacteria provided by the government for each cheese has a particular genetic marker, which allows for the detection of copycat cheeses and imitations upon testing. Only genuine, certified cheeses make the grade in the exacting European market.

            While this specific style of production may not be an option in American cheeses, with dairy farms being far enough removed from cheese makers to require pasteurization, the idea of artisan craftsmanship is still not as foreign to America as the current market might suggest. Many cheeses have in fact been developed here, cheese making techniques having been passed down and adapted from the original European techniques of settlers and immigrants. Original American cheeses include Jack cheese, Colby cheese, Colby-jack cheese, Monterey jack cheese, Pepper jack cheese, and yes, American cheese. While this innovation in cheese making may have died down following the industrialization of the market, artisan cheese makers have rediscovered older means of production via associations with European cheese makers in an increasingly global economy. While the techniques used in traditional European cheese making provide a starting point, American cheese makers are less restricted by the onus of exactly recreating the traditional cheeses of their forefathers. As such, they have much more room in which to experiment and innovate with new flavors and new types of cheeses. Traditions may provide helpful pointers, but they are not the objective in and of themselves, as is the case in many European operations. With the rising backlash against factory produced food in America, in favor of “green”, “sustainable”, or “organic” methods, and the vast difference in quality from mass-produced cheeses, there may be room in the coming generation for large growth in the American demand for artisan cheese. I certainly intend to sample some.

Works Cited

 BIBLIOGRAPHY Haas, Scott. "The Cultural Diversity of Cheese." Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture (2011): 112-115.

Paxton, Heather. "Cheese Cultures: Transforming American Tastes and Traditions." Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture (2010): 35-47.