Posted on Thu, Mar. 6, 2008
If you're pouring ale in honor of Philly Beer Week, which begins tomorrow, you shouldn't have any problem finding a cheese to match. Beer and cheese were made for each other - probably even more so than wine.
That said, few cheeses were created with as much of a brew connection as Chimay, the pungent Belgian cow's milk cheese made at the same Trappist monastery as the famous ales since 1876. The rind is actually bathed in the beer. And the result is a semi-firm cheese that has a fruity but powerful tang, just the big flavors you'll need to match the richness of a tripel ale. It's almost spiritually good. A rarity in the United States just a decade ago, Chimay is now widely available in better cheese stores for about $19.99 a pound.
- Craig LaBan
Flourish
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