My new cheese cave...

As some of you know, I worked the harvest at Ch. Coupe-Roses in France this past September. I spent two amazing weeks in the town a La Caunette, and I've put some pictures way down below, as (unfortunately) my trip isn't really the point of this post...

Everyone knows the French motto "Liberté, égalité, fraternité," right? While there, I learned the motto of the French table, "Pain, Vin, Fromage." We consumed this trilogy at nearly every meal (we substituted cafe for vin at petite dejunnier).

And for the cheese, my hosts had a fantastic little cheese cave in their fridge. I shit you not, it was a Tupperware brand "Cave a Fromage." I love cheese, and I wanted one of these, but instead of carrying it back with me, I decided to track it down once back in the states. You know, we have Tupperware here too...

Or so I thought. After an exhaustive search of the web and stores as well as e-mails and phone calls to Tupperware, I realized I was in trouble. Not only weren't these sold in America, they couldn't even ship to me. I found a few on French e-bay, but with the shipping and exchange rate, the price was out of control.

And then it dawned on me, CG's folks were heading to France the following week. Could they be persuaded to bring one home to me? After a few e-mails, they agreed. Then in late November, the cheese caves (yes plural) arrived. One small and one large. These are Tefal brand, not Tupperware, but I'm not complaining. These are even better than the ones I used in France. Merci beaucoup, Steve!!

I've been using them for a few weeks now, and I love them. The keep the cheese at a better humidity than what the fridge normally offers, and they filter the smells of more pungent cheeses as well. What a delight. In the cheese cave pictured above? Montgomery's Mature Cheddar from the UK (the guys at Setve's Cheese tell me this is the best wheel they've ever had, it is simply fantastic), Abbaye de Belloc (a sheep's milk cheese from the Pyranees), and Mary's Peak goat cheese pyramid from River's Edge Chevre (who is quickly becoming my favorite Oregon creamery).

If you are over in France and you like cheese, I'd recommend bringing one (or two) back with you...

Now for the pics of La Caunette. There are from my visit in early 2006, but I assure you absolutely nothing has change...