[Sca-cooks] period brie cheese

[Mark.S Harris]

Muiredach mac Loloig said:
> It is my understanding that Brie is actually a fairly recent cheese, dating
> back perhaps as far as 1800(?).  Probably not period enough for us.  I'd
> dig into that.
>
> Of course, they were likely making cheeses similar to brie a long time ago.

The following is from my cheese-msg file:

> From: "Philip W. Troy" <troy at asan.com>
> Date: Thu, 24 Apr 1997 10:55:46 -0400
> Subject: Re: Re(2): SC - cheese goo
>
> Sue Wensel wrote:
>
> after a whole lotta blah blah by Adamantius
>
> > Do we know when brie was developed?  I know cheddaring is only about 200 years
> > old; I still use it because people like it.
>
> Digby specifically mentions Chesire or Brie in the original recipe. Brie
> cheese clearly existed from, if I remember correctly, about 800 A.D.
> However, we don't know how closely it resembled Brie as made today. And
> yes, cheddaring is only about 200 years old, meaning that a process
> which probably already existed began to be called after a village where
> it began to be practiced industrially. Almost identical cheeses are and
> were apparently made on a smaller scale, generally known as "farmhouse
> cheeses", which are very different from what we know as farmer cheese. I
> believe the reason behind specifying "fat" or cream cheese is that it
> serves the same purpose as shortening in baked goods: it softens
> proteins, which in the case of bread makes it more tender, and in the
> case of cheese makes the curds more tender, eventually to the point
> where they are indistinguishable from each other, producing a smooth
> cheese.
>
> Bottom line here is that I think Brie or white cheddar or cream cheese,
> or some combination thereof, are probably closer to the original, but
> farmer cheese still might taste better to some.
>
> Adamantius

> Subject: Brie cheese
> Date: Tue, 29 Sep 1998 23:30:11
> From: Lady Lisette <starkiller at picknowl.com.au>
> To: stefan at texas.net
>
> Phew! It took a while, but I finally dug out the documentation for Brie in
> period. The source, is of all places, the "Family Circle Recipe
> Encyclopedia", Editor Susan Tomnay, Murdoch Books, North Sydney Australia,
> 1995. Here is the quote.
>
> "BRIE A soft creamy-yellow whole cow's milk cheese with a thin, white
> edible skin. It is aged from the outside in by moulds and bacteria that
> grow on the rind. Brie is made in a large flat wheel shape and is cut into
> wedges for serving. The cheese has been made since the 8th century when
> Charlemagne ate it at the priory of Reuil-en-Brie and pronounced it 'one of
> the most marvelous of foods.'" pg58.
>
> Lydie

> Date: Wed, 29 Sep 1999 22:32:56 -0000
> From: "=?iso-8859-1?Q?Nanna_R=F6gnvaldard=F3ttir?=" <nannar at isholf.is>
> Subject: Re: SC - Charlemagne's Cheese [long]
>
> > At any rate, he has either been an extremely uncritical user of
> > secondary sources that involved a great deal of invention, or he
> > has been an enthusiastic inventor himself (including the
> > invention of the quote attributed to Charlemagne).
>
> Well, neither story originates with Toussaint-Samat (who is a she, BTW, not
> a he). Larousse Gastronomique says in the entry for roquefort: "it was
> Charlemagne´s favourite cheese", and in the entry for brie: "Brie appears to
> have been in existence in the time of Charlemagne, who is said to have eaten
> it at the priory of Rueil-en-Brie."
>
> Nanna

 However, there is also a fairly long and detailed refutation of brie
being Charlemagne's cheese by Heather Rose Jones (Tangwystyl) in the
cheese-msg file. I think it is too long to post here, though.

There are a number of other messages on brie, too.

I hope this helps.

Stefan li Rous
stefan at texas.net