Cheese Man, can I eat the rind?

One question. Two answers! My cheese inquisitor gets bang for the buck, since this is actually 2 questions. So hot shot:

Part Une: Is it edible?
Part Deux: Would I want to eat it, just 'cos I can?

Before we go there, let's go HERE: what are rinds? They're the protective coating around the cheese. Put more accurately, "What goes around becomes a rind!" Sometimes the rind (protective coating) is simply there as a containment vessel - a holding tank, if you will. More often (thankfully), the rind adds greatly to the discernment of the cheese - aesthetics, or taste experience.

Some cheeses are matinee idols because of their rinds, while others are the harbingers of good taste, being exceedingly well-dressed. Mr Blackwell would approve.

There are many ways to classify cheese, and rind-type is one. I classify rind types as, "Holding Tank Rinds" (plastic and wax shells (paraffin or natural such as beeswax), "Surface-ripened Rinds," and lastly, "Inside-out Ripened Rinds." I'll take each in turn and answer Part Une, et Part Deux!

"Holding Tank Rinds"
Think shrink-wrapped cryovac (you put the cry in the vac!) plastic wrap. Then, quite rightly, shudder at the thought! Plastic can have its uses - it can seal in moisture, but it can also seal in other nasty things such as air if the seal is not a vaccum, and then your cheese breaks down. It moves itself. Some moist cheddars behave well in cryovacs, but it's not my favorite way to experience cheese. It's a trade-off: convenience over experience.

Another holding tank gives us some of our prettiest labeled cheeses: wax. Think Goudas (cow such as the Vintage Goudas, or goat such as Midnight Moon). The wax in these cases is a paraffin wax, dipped, or brushed onto the cheese. Often beeswax is used; we can hold onto the straetgic oil reserve, but the function is the same - the cheese is sealed for aging. Anaerobic (work without oxygen) bacteria are sealed inside to work their aging magic. While this type of rind gives us some of our sweetest, complex cheeses, they're the bane of cheesemongers and the cause of many a bandaged finger! Do not eat these rinds, nor eat the bandage should you find it when you get home!

"Surface-ripened Rinds"
These cheeses are mostly your flat, or disc-shaped wheels as opposed to your rectangular block, circular, or cylinder ("Truckle") shapes. The flat/disc-shape gives a larger surface area allowing the cheese an easier time of ripening toward the center. These are your, "Outside-in" ripening cheeses. Common to all three types of surface-ripened cheese is their soft texture, and thin skin-like rind. The rind is due to the activity of bacteria, yeast, mold, or all three, depending on type. This category of rinds breaks down into three types:

1. Washed Rind: This technique was created by Medieval Monks in Northern France. The meaty flavor was deliberately created for fasting periods when meat was forbidden. Washing the rind kept the texture of the cheese moist and supple as it ripened. Balance the pH, moisture, and salt in fresh cheese, store in the right aging environment (95% humidity and 54 degrees Farenheit), give the cheese a frequent wash in a 3-5% salt solution and you get stinky, colorful, washed rinds. Brevibacterium linens bacteria thrive in such environments, ripening the cheese from the outside in. Often the salt solution is mixed with wine, brandy, or local spirits to further characterize the rind. Examples are the colorful orange washed rind Italian Taleggio, or the super stinky English "Stinking Bishop" - washed with fermented pear juice. The rind part of a washed rind is typically the most stinky (and completely edible) part of the washed rind cheese. The pastes are more subtle.

2. Bloomy Rind: Lower the temperature and humidity a tad in your aging environment ("Cave"), forgo the wash, and you'll get a nice, thin fuzzy layer of mold develop on the surface of your cheese. A particular strain of yeast, Penicillium Candidum, is responsible for this mold - the cheese is sprayed with this yeast before being aged. When partially aged, Bloomy Rind cheeses have a squidgy creamy-yellow layer just inside the rind where the cheese is more aged, with a drier, chalky, younger center. When fully aged, the squidgy creamy-yellow layer extends to the center of the cheese. Such aged cheeses are best enjoyed with the top sliced off and dipped into as opposed to sliced. Examples of bloomy rind cheeses are the white bloomy rind Brie style Kunik.

3. Natural Rind: Not as common as the prior two categories, but worth the hunt! The precise mix of bacteria, yeast, and mold is much more diverse and allowed to develop at will, resulting in cheeses that are earthy, musty, and complex. Such rinds are left to develop 'naturally' in the specific micro-environments of each cheese type's cave, instead of having a very particular strain of microorganism applied. These are rinds that while edible, you mostly do not want to eat either due to texture, or due to the odd flavor of the bacteria, yeast, or mold. Because most natural rind cheeses are aged for many months, they are made from raw milk. Examples of natural rind cheeses are Garroxta, Colston Basset Stilton, and Mimolette.

"Inside-out Ripened Rinds"
These cheeses are generally longer aged, drier cheeses with a crustier, less-palatable rind that is much slower to develop. The rind is there to protect the cheese from drying out, and from contamination as it matures. Ripening enzymes are still doing their magic - breaking down proteins in the cheese to make flavor, only they are working anaerobically (without oxygen), deep within the paste. Such cheeses are the big Mommas of the cheese world, with a greater ratio of paste to rind. The rinds are edible, sometimes you want to eat them, sometimes you most definitely do not! I break them into four types:


1. Clothbound: think huge wheels (actually cylinders called, "Truckles") of English Cheddars. The wheels are wrapped with a layer of cheesecloth (linen), then rubbed with lard to seal the cloth. Such cheddars are much drier than "Holding Tank Rind" cheddars since more moisture can get through the cloth/lard border crossing. A great example is Beecher's Flagship Reserve - an American cheddar made in the traditional English style. I don't know about you, but I don't find a combo of lard and cloth to be particularly edible, nor tempting, so I say pass on eating this rind, just listen to the tearing sound as the Cheesemonger slices into it, and look at the satisfaction on his face!

2. Washed Alpine: again - huge wheels, huge! This cheese style was invented by the creative herdsmen of Alpine pastures and one such famous type: Gruyere gives the name of origin for this category of cheeses. You see Alpine cheeses were traditionally made in remote regions of the mountains in eastern France, where large collective herds were moved to the alpage (mountain pastures) in May/June and remained through the middle of September each year. The cheeses needed to be large enough to accommodate the large amount of milk produced in remote areas, as well as sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of travel to the valley markets. Each region developed it's own unique style due to herd sizes, remoteness and local preferences. The cheeses were designed to keep for long months in mountainous regions. Also when such cheeses are transported down valley, is it not easier to transport fewer, large wheels, than many more little wheels? The naturally-developing rinds are washed periodically with brine to inhibit as opposed to promote the development of mold. Brevibacterium linens bacteria thrive on the washed surface of the cheese contributing to the rind. The cheeses were collectively referred to as Gruyere. The Gruyere of old being the assigned person who monitored the grazing activity and assessed the taxes for these Alpage areas. Other examples of Washed Alpine cheeses are Comte, Morbier, and Fontina. Such cheeses are fruity, sweet, grassy, earthy, and floral all at once. These complex flavors are due to specific  flora and fauna of high Alpine pastures. These are also your fondue cheeses - sweet and easily melted. These rinds, while edible are not advisable to eat!

3. Brushed Rinds: Parmesan Reggiano is the classic example of this type of rinded cheese: naked and straw-colored. The cheeses are frequently washed and brushed during the long aging process in order to eliminate all types of surface culture development. This causes a casing (the rind) of dehydrated cheese to develop on the surface, thickening over time. At the two year aging, the rind of Parmesan Reggiano is about 3/4 inch thick! Such rinds are edible and yes you want to eat them. Save the rinds of Reggiano for use in broths, soups, stocks, and casseroles. They add much umami flavor. Who's umami now?

4. Dressed Rinds: My name for a group of cheeses, fresh, and aged, that have a natural rind which has been wrapped with leaves (think Valdeon), rubbed with herbs (think Manchego Anejo with Rosemary), or rubbed with seasonings (think Barely Buzzed rubbed with Espresso and Lavender). Voila - instant protective rind, that adds a pretty designer coat and a lovely flavor enhancement to boot! Sometimes edible and you should eat them. Sometimes inedible and don't eat them.


So, to sum up and to return to your question, Part Une, et Part Deux:

• Sum rinds are inedible and I don't know about you, but I don't want to eat them. 
• Sum rinds are edible but you don't want to eat them.
• Sum rinds are edible and you want to eat them.

If in any doubt, find a good cheese store who know their stuff (online or on your street), ask, taste, ask, don't taste!

See you arind town cowboys...

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In celebration of strawberry season, here's a re-print of an article I had published a few years back.

Straw-berries are neither grown on straw, nor are a berry. Discuss!

Etymology is a fascinating obsession. Sort of like looking at an atlas (remember them?) – time passes, many pages get turned and you realize you’re continents away from finding the capital of Malawi. You just wander away and fall down the rabbit hole.

Often, when I’m stressed, or absorbed in some mindless task like cleaning the wheatgrass out of the juicer, my racing mind needs something to occupy it. This is when a word, or phrase, will lodge itself in my mind and soon its perspective gets warped! Try this experiment and you’ll get my point. If you put your pants on before your socks, do it the other way around and embrace the weird feeling. That’s the way I got this week. Strawberries – ever wonder why they’re called, “Strawberries” and not the more feasible, and lovely word that the Italians use, “Fragola?”

Now to me, Fragola sounds like something teenage boys would yell out of a car! However, its meaning is quite innocent. Strawberries belong to the genus, Fragaria – part of the rose family (get out of here!), along with well, roses (duh!), apples (shut up!), and plums (no way!). Way. Fragaria is derived from the Latin word for fragrant. The modern Italian word for strawberry is Fragola. Phew!

Incidentally, be very careful with spellcheck. I once wrote an article on polenta. Spellcheck is no foodie, choosing the word placenta instead. That’s a whole different article.

It’s an exciting time of year to be a Produce Manager. We’re on the cusp of changing seasons in the produce world. Out with the old, in with the new. Right now we’re just coming into strawberry season for the cooler growing zones of the east coast of the USA. Strawberries are at their best between late April through June. Why then have the price and availability of strawberries suddenly become so erratic at markets? It’s all about the change of seasons. You see through the winter our east coast market strawberries have been coming consistently, and in high volume from sources not so close to the east coast: Northern California, Arizona, Mexico, and a little from Florida. We’re currently at a lull in availability just as the east coast is about to go into overdrive. Strawberries are on our produce order lists every time we order. However, in these shoulder ‘turnover’ seasons, just as one zone and set of growers is ramping down, another is just starting to come online, and availability (hence pricing) becomes erratic. If that frustrates you, try being the Produce Manager with the Store Manager breathing down your neck asking why you can’t plan out a strawberry festival at the store? Oops, did I say that out loud? Hang in there sparky, east coast growers are frantically talking to their plants and are poised to pick! 

Nutritionally strawberries are a stellar food – considered to offer a high concentration of nutrients for the calories they contain. They’re high in Vitamin C, Manganese, Dietary Fiber, Iodine, Potassium, Folate, B vitamins, Omega 3s, Vitamin K, Magnesium, and Copper. The phenols so beloved by Alton Brown are in high numbers in strawberries, which makes them high in antioxidants, and a good anti-inflammatory (seasonal allergies anyone?). Strawberries are great for eye health, and are thought to help protect against Rheumatoid Arthritis. Strawberries have also been used to cool a fever. Strawberries are low in fat and calories. With their lovely bright color, and delicate, sweet flavor, there’s a reason strawberries are the most popular berry fruit in the world.

Speaking of berries, this reminds me. Strawberries are technically not a berry, nor even a fruit! Why? Botanists classify true berries, such as blueberries and cranberries, by the fact that their seeds are on the inside. Botanists classify strawberries as a, “False Fruit,” or a, “Pseudocarp.” A strawberry is a multiple fruit consisting of many tiny individual fruits embedded in a fleshy receptacle. The brownish or whitish specks, which are commonly considered seeds, are the true fruits, called achenes, and each of them surrounds a tiny seed. Berry schmerry, they sure taste good! 

I’ve said many times in this column that nothing is black/white, either/or. The solution quite often is in the middle. We do the best we can with the available information and budget. However, when it comes to strawberries, I follow the advice of the Environmental Working Group (EWG). The EWG is famous for its “Dirty Dozen” recommendations on organic versus conventional produce. Their focus is on cost – one may reduce the cost of buying certified organic produce by prioritizing one of 12 (now 15!) varieties of produce that are the most heavily sprayed, or due to the relative thickness of their skin, retain the heaviest chemical load. Strawberries are one of the, “Dirty Dozen” (“Dirty Fifteen” doesn’t sound as cool). As we’ve proven at the Rehoboth Beach Cheese Company, when it comes to organic produce, as with many things in life, cost is quite often subjective, as in subject to many decisions!

The EWG found 13 chemical residues on conventional strawberries and 80 chemicals used on them during growing. Strawberries have thin skins, and are eaten whole without peeling. Strawberries are seen as a high priority to buy organic. That’s fine, I say you don’t have to buy them organic, as long as you know the source, or at least buy from someone who knows the source. Buy unsprayed, or organic. Either way it’s the same – no chemical residue. Farm workers are not exposed to hazardous chemicals, the soil is healthier, blah, blah, you’ve heard it from me before!

I’m not going to link to recipes. We all have our own favorites for this versatile fruit. In closing, here are some fun facts.

Native American Indians called strawberries, "Heart-seed berries" and pounded them into their traditional corn-meal bread. Colonists decided to create their own version, becoming an American favorite, “Strawberry Shortcake.”

Legend has it that strawberries were named by 19^th Century English children who strung them on grass straws following picking, and sold them as "Straws of berries". It’s more likely that another 19^th Century practice of placing straw around the growing berry plants to protect the ripening fruit named the fruit.

Strawberries have long been associated with love and flirtation. At wedding breakfasts in provincial France, newlyweds traditionally were served a soup of thinned sour cream, strawberries, borage and powdered sugar.

In 14^th Century France, Charles V ordered twelve hundred strawberry plants for landscaping in the Royal Gardens of the Louvre. Given the propensity of strawberries to spread by extending ‘runners,’ I pity the poor gardeners!

Lastly, it has been known to rain strawberries in South Wales, UK. You read it here first! Our elderly next-door neighbor while growing up, following the French landscaping model could not contain her strawberry plants from running all over her garden. Consequently she had too many berries for her own kitchen. Knowing how much the children next door loved strawberries, our neighbor would pick them and throw them over the garden wall surprising many a guest and disrupting wash day…

Enjoy your strawberries this season - it's reportedly going to be a good one this year. In closing, please don't yell out of cars - it's rude to talk with your mouth full!

Don't forget - sign up for our REALdirect! greengrocer delivery service, and refer a friend between now and June 1 and stack discounts!

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This literary slice of Yum was written one day before I had to vacate my retail storefront space in Rehoboth. ENTER Cheese Man, stage left, SOLILOQUY...

It's the day before moving day. Tomorrow is the end of my tenure in my current retail space. Sitting here as we all do, putting off the inevitable. Procrastination? I'll get back to you on that! More like, hmm, what can I eat, surrounded by good food?

So, on goes the kettle. Coffee is chosen from the remaining beans in the coffee bins, ground and dumped into the French Press. Up the road I run to the bakery and secure butter croissants. Coffee brewing in the press, and I pop the lid on a jar of Maggie's Burnt Fig Jam for the croissants. What's left in the cheese case? Perfect - a chunk of Cypress Grove Midnight Moon Goat Gouda.

I download the podcast of this weekend's The Splendid Table with Lynne Rosetto Kasper on NPR and am delighted to hear the opening segment is a review of a tribute book to Britain's culinary groundbreaker, Elizabeth David. Uh-oh, I'm not going to be packing any boxes any time soon, this is going to be a good one.

Elizabeth David (1913 - 1992) spent the years of World War II in Egypt,  travelling throughout Europe, the Middle East and India. On returning to the UK after the war, David was bummed out by the 'drabness' of post war rationed British life. Grey weather. Brown food. Grey moods. Blah! David set out bringing the colors and social culture of Mediterranean foods into Post-War Britain. The result was the classic Mediterranean Food, followed by five other books that all became bestsellers.

I was born in Wales, UK and lived in the country until the age of 28. Even in Wales - a region with its own specific food culture, I can attest to how deeply Mediterranean foods (from all parts of the Mediterranean) are ingrained into your average domestic kitchen and professional restaurant kitchens. This is to David's credit. David is also referenced as a defining professional influence by many of our popular modern chefs on both sides of the Atlantic - Jamie Oliver, Nigella Lawson, Alice Waters... Ruth Reichel, American food writer and critic, discusses on NPR that while on our side of the Atlantic, Julia Child has been credited as a major influence in our food culture relative to French cooking (France has a Mediterranean coastline), Child's focus was on technique - anyone could make French food if you knew how. David's focus was on the importance of ingredients and the social experience of her delight in simple, picnic meals made with quality ingredients. No stuffiness. Simple ingredients.

Well, this latter point struck a chord with me. I had the rare, and privileged opportunity this past weekend to sit in on a pre-dinner service staff meeting with one of our most talented, and most sincere local chefs - Nino Mancari, of Salt Air Kitchen and Salt Air Farm & Table. I got to hear Nino share his philosophy and driving passion - the rational for his restaurant, farm and food business with his staff. I know! How cool is that? While listening to The Splendid Table today, what I heard from Ruth Reichl while disussing Elizabeth David, Alice Waters, Jamie Oliver, and Nigella Lawson with Lynne Rosetto-Kasper, resonated in the back of my busy mind. I heard much commonality with Nino's own words and open-hearted impropmtu mission statement with his staff.

Salt Air - Delaware Beach Picnic, beach BBQ, farm to table, seasonal, locally sourced ingredients supplemented by quality ingredients sourced as locally as possible. No stuffiness. You know as customers, it is sometimes hard for us to perceive the end point in an ongoing development of a business concept. I will say, two years ago when Salt Air first opened, I didn't get the beach picnic concept. What I did get was the great food, great service, and dining experience. Two years  on it is quite evident for a customer to see Nino's vision, his dream for his business, evolving before our eyes. Eye get it (get it?). I hope you will hop on over to Salt Air Kitchen, Delaware Avenue, Rehoboth, and get a great experience at Chez Nino! While you're at it, hop on over to NPR's online store or Amazon and get Elizabeth David's books; hop on over to NPR and get Lynn Rosetto-Kasper's weekly broadcast of The Splendid Table.

For me it's back to the packing. Yum will be back. Persistence wins the race. Look to one of my inspirations, Julia Child. No more gutsy, persistent person ever lived. Watch her TV shows re-broadcast. She's awkward, drops utensils, drops food, forgets her mark, yet keeps going, we learn as we watch, yes we laugh (admittedly with the unease of recognition of the same traits in ourselves), but you know, somewhere along the way, we get it!

Bon Appetite! Suck it up Cheese Man! Keep on going!

P.S. Why Tumbleweed Times? Because that's what this past year of business has had me feeling like. Time now to nuture some new shoots of this business, settle in one place, and re-grow from there. I hope I'll find you there too, and if I don't then I'll always come to you (big hint on what's coming next!). See ya around town, pardner!

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It's been a long week and I've spent most of it in the doghouse, while the dogs have been in my bed. Running your own business will sometime land you where I've been this week, and guess what, sometimes it's not the businesses' fault. Shocker! This entry is for my honey, who proves every day that my Mother-in-law is not the only perfect person on this earth. I Love You Man!

It's raining in downtown Rehoboth and the store is quiet. Soft, fine rain - the kind I'd like if I didn't own a retail storefront focusing on perishable inventory! This kind of rain can settle in for days at a time in Wales, my home land. The temperature is quite balmy for early March, so this is good dog walking weather, or, as in my case since I have a store to run (read babysit - cue unhappy smiley face), I'll reach for the blog, and not the dog(s). Oh yeah, they're all in my bed!

OK - here's a hint for those whom have not had the pleasure to know me well, yet... I love play on words, I love non-sequitir humor, I love irony. So, usually when I have a point to make, even though I've lived in the USA decades at this point, I'll turn to that British conversational staple: obliqueness, to posit a well-made point. Read around the point - not through it and you'll get me, and get more out of my blog. Or not.

I also love to write. It's one reason I love to do my own marketing. I very often will be doing something unrelated, such as cleaning the walk-in cooler at the store, and an idea for a column hits me, and I have to stop and get it down before I lose it. I sometimes submit these for publication, so you may have read me somewhere other than here, at some point.
  

Le Wavreumont - French washed rind
Monastery style cheese. Earthy, sweet,
buttery. Not that stinky. Yum!

Anyways, what's my point, this point, the point I'm trying to make? While lunching on some Le Wavreumont cheese and raw almonds, the thought occured to me that I've never quite been able to succinctly answer a question I'm frequently asked, "Why, Cheese Man do you sell things other than cheeses, when you call your business a cheese company? It's rather silly, don't you think?" Italics are my addition - look to the end for a clue to this pop culture reference ***

Today it came to me - clarity on a cloudy, drizzly day. Here's my, 'elevator pitch.' Organic produce, spices, seasonings, specialty foods. What do all these have in common with REAL cheese? Simple - no farms, no food. We Know Farms. We Know Food. We Know Yum. Full circle. It's the circle of Yum, Greg!

*** Pop culture reference. The wonderful Joan Collins plays an unforgettable character ("Sign the will, Cecil!" Oops, wrong unforgettable character!), Helena Barnes on the NBC sitcom, Will and Grace. Helena tells Grace, "You are an odd girl, aren't you?" Grace asks why British people insult you and then ask you to agree with them, Helena replies, "I don't know. It's rather silly, don't you think?"  

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Public Relations experts advise addressing a concern before it becomes something to cry about - an issue requiring a tissue.

I thought I would turn to my blog to 'spring a leek,' or leak some news ahead of the rumor mill common to life in a small town. Of course I know that there are those who will dislike me for spoiling a good rumor with the truth, but not everyone's going to like everyone all of the time - that's life! Much better to insert food into one's mouth than one's foot. A cheese plate is much easier to eat than one's words. Let's make sure the words we share are the correct ones.

So, what's up Cheese Man? Not so much up as out. I'm sad to report that as of the end of March, I will no longer be present selling my cheeses, specialty foods, and organic produce, and operating my organic juice bar at Hamel's Market. My winter stint as Manager of Hamel's Market will soon conclude and the owners return to assume the running of the business. While the owners of Hamel's and myself realize that we have a solid background from our separate businesses on which to form a new business alliance, I have decided not to procede with a joint venture with Hamel's at this time. My personal friendship with the Hamel's owners will continue. Sorry rumor mill, there's, "No trouble at 'mill" -nothing sinister here - no bad feelings - purely a case of a good opportunity with not so perfect timing. I am thankful for the opportunity to have managed Hamel's for the winter season, am confident I have performed a good job, have contributed to the development and growth of the business, and leave Hamel's Market in a good position to re-open for their third summer season. Please continue to support this wonderful local, independently owned business.

For me, what next? I find myself somewhat in a state of flux. Caught between a retail space and a hard place. I had anticipated opening a cheese/specialty foods retail storefront in Rehoboth this spring. Yet, with the absence of a suitable space, it is now uncertain whether this will happen. This much I do know: as I've grown in my knowledge of the specialty foods industry over various entrepreneurial stages of my business the past five years, one thing has become clear to me. What has emerged is my role as connector, facilitator of access to specialty foods and the sales and marketing knowledge necessary to allow others to experience such foods free of any lobbied bias or platform. This does not necessarily need or mean a retail store, but I do not rule it out! What comes next is a logical extension of what has come before. This metropolitan beach town on the edge of a large agricultural plain where chicken houses sometimes outnumber human, is my home. A community that I am a full time member of. A community I love. Yum may have temporarily left the building, but most definitely not the beach.

Thus, I've chosen today, March 1, Saint David's Day, to announce the formation of my new company, the, "Rehoboth Beach Cheese Company." My current mission to support our local businesses in wholesaleing specialty foods direct to them will continue. Additionally, my educational and marketing platform will continue through private and public cheese classes and formal sales and marketing training for my business customers staff. The Rehoboth Beach Cheese Company will continue to enhance and develop relationships with other businesses, growers, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. For the time being we will move all of our retail products onto our website You may order online for shipping, or free local delivery. Since I do not currently have a retail storefront, then Auntie's Organic Juice Bar will be mobile only. To book Auntie to juice up you parties, mailto:rbcheeseco@gmail.com. Our organic produce department will also move onto our online store where you may purchase organic fruits and vegetables through a new local delivery service I am calling, "Doorganics." You can order specific fruits and vegetables, or order boxes that we select for you based on seasonality. Doorganics will also expand to distribute locally and seasonally grown chemical-free produce. Please stay tuned for an update to the weknowyum website, going live April 1 with a new logo and new features in keeping with this news.

Remember, slow food, and local food is as much about supporting small, independently owned local businesses as it is farmers markets and farms. Us local retail and wholesale distributors also have a role to play in keeping foods and artisan skills alive. We are the enthusiastic, knowledgeable connectors in our food economy and food supply, as I alluded to above. Use it or lose it applies as much to choices in our food supply as in our muscles.

If you know of a small retail storefront for lease in Rehoboth Beach, a small lock-up refrigerated storage unit for lease, or a small refrigerated delivery vehicle for sale, then mailto:rbcheeseco@gmail.com

We Know Yum! Thank you, Andy.

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Good For You Market is now closed at our Route 9 location in Lewes, DE!

Thank you for four award-winning years! With your support and your business, we won Best of Delaware three times and became only the second of two Delaware-based artisan cheese retailers to be a member of The American Cheese Society (the other is way upstate). Not too shabby for a former Corporate IT guy turned specialty foods retailer!

At this point I am pretty certain our Route 9 building and farm are leased. I'm very excited about our tenant. However I will not leak the news - they have a really cool concept and it's their spotlight not mine.

Why did I decide to close Good For You Market instead of relocating as originally planned? Was business not good? Business was great! After four years, it was time for a change. I decided to close so we could re-tool, take the Best of The Best (of Delaware!), simplify the business concept and focus on the lines of business I've learnt to excel at.

While we've been looking for a new location on Route 1 southbound for my new concept specialty foods store, an opportunity arose for me to work with Mary Murphy of Hamel's Gourmet Market, Rehoboth. For those whom do not know Mary and her lovely store on Rehoboth Avenue, opposite Grove Park, then why not? You're missing out on a local treasure of great food and phenomenal customer service under Mary's leadership. Mary brings many years of hospitality industry executive management experience to her Hamel's business. We share a similar corporate America background, a no-nonsense passion for authentic foods, a common business philosophy and high standards of customer service.

So, while I still entertain a possible Route 1 south location, I could not pass by the opportunity to team with Mary. The synchronicities between our businesses were too many to let this go. Here is our press release announcing our new team.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Yum Comes To Town!

Hamel's Gourmet Market, Rehoboth Beach, DE - October 26, 2010 - Andy Meddick, former Owner of three-time Best Of Delaware award winning Good For You Market, Lewes, DE, will manage Hamel's Gourmet Market for the winter. Andy will oversee a winter menu of Hamel's popular baked goods and prepared foods to go at Hamel's Rehoboth Avenue store - original site of the historic MacQuay's Market. Andy will bring with him the best of The Best of Good For You Market's specialty food lines sold under his "We Know Yum!" brand. Yum includes Andy's popular artisan cheeses, growing charcuterie and high end deli, organic produce, bulk spices and dried goods, fresh prepared organic juices, smoothies, and coffee, special events, educational classes, and catering. "This is a natural synchronicity between two local foodie entrepreneurs. I am proud that Hamel's would consider me to operate their gourmet food market. Together we continue to demonstrate that we do not have to sacrifice choice, customer service, or value when we relocate, or recreate at the Delaware Beaches. We Know Yum and we're proud and excited to be continuing Yum with the talented team at Hamel's Gourmet Market."

Contact:

Andy Meddick
Hamel's Gourmet Market,
Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971(302) 381-6182 http://www.weknowyum.com

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It's no secret we live in a small (beach) town, but here's a guilty secret you may not know! We love to eat at the bar in our favorite restaurants! Not only do you experience great service and camaradrie with the bartender (a key staff member in any restaurant in my humble opinion), you meet the most interesting people at the bar. Sociable, fun, creative people, full of zest. Or, as my Jersey relatives say, "Piss and vinegar!"

As a small town, 'townie,' I love to sit at the bar because, well, you get great scuttlebut! As delicious as the food! Sometime, during the winter months, when we're all running a little slower, start a rumor about yourself, and see how long it takes to come back at cha! Social networking indeed!

Here's the key skill any great bartender, small town Doctor, or small town Banker understands, "The better part of valour is discretion." Great bartenders never kiss and tell, great Doctors don't bring up that wierd tattoo on your butt cheek over dinner with friends, your Banker will never discuss the size of your business deposits at the firehouse spaghetti dinner! For this, I raise my glass to you all!

Not convinced? Pull up a stool, order up, and socialize! For a brief hour or two, curiously, PDAs are silent! Join in the conversation, you make great new friends at the bar. Above all else, take a leaf out of Bartending 101 - be a good listener, you learn so much about your town...

For the record, I'll never tell who asked me what wine to pair with Velveeta at my artisan cheese bar! Townies, did you hear any scuttlebut?

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