The Big Cheese Bracket: Day 6
January 16, 2012 in Persephone Bracket
Folks, this week is gonna suck–take a look at what the bracket looks like for this round. There will be much gnashing of teeth and weeping of salty, salty tears. I’m truly sorry, but there’s no avoiding it; there’s a hell of a lot of great cheese in the world!
I thought of all my cheesy Persephoneers this weekend as I dined at a restaurant specializing in cheese (YEAH, baby!). I selected a three-cheese sampler, and for the first time had: Prima Donna, a youngish aged Gouda that is dreamily creamy and ridiculously caramel-y; Grayson, a complex, striking Chimay-type; and Bleu d’Auvergne, which was just lovely, all top notes and tingliness.
While I was playing at the fromagere’s counter, you were voting between our Wild Card competitors.
Results for Day 5:
Queso Fresco 61% v. Muenster 39%
Paneer 64% v. Oaxaca 36%
The Sweet Sixteen starts off with a doozy: Cheddar v. Gorgonzola! Team Bleu, you’ve got a big job today: you’ve only got one candidate left, and it’s up against what may be the world’s best-loved cheese. Can you sway the masses? Can you make the bracket your bitch? Or are you gonna give up without a fight??
Team Stand-Alone and Team All-Purpose are butting heads as well: the fascinating Camembert and the journeyman Cream Cheese are worlds apart in the affective spectrum of cheese experience. Which way will you go?
Good luck, my brave soldiers! Voting is open until 4 p.m. EST; the next poll will be posted at 4:30.
- Motivated
- Smarter
- Tickled
- Hungry
- Sad
- Angry
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Raani said on January 17, 2012 at 3:42 pm
I have imbibed more sharp cheddar in my lifetime than all other foods put together. Not voting for it would be sacriledge.
Also, camembert.
[E]Coco Papy said on January 17, 2012 at 11:04 am
CAMEMBERT 4 LIFE
freckle said on January 17, 2012 at 7:24 am
I feel mellow, so I went for mellow. And Camembert. And now I really desperately crave cheese fondue, but I only got three cheeses in the fridge.
Kortney Thoma said on January 17, 2012 at 7:08 am
My mom calls cream cheese, “creamacheese.” I chose it for versatility though I do believe this is the last time cream cheese can play that card!
QoB said on January 17, 2012 at 6:15 am
Cream cheese? PSHH. Delicious, gooey Camembert…
milly parkhurst said on January 16, 2012 at 8:42 pm
if gorgonzola loses, i will be so. pissed.
TEAM BLEU. 4 EVA.
Jen R. L. Disarray said on January 16, 2012 at 9:46 pm
WORD.
Amanda said on January 17, 2012 at 7:36 am
We’re fighting a losing battle and that makes me very sad. :(
Lauren sMash said on January 16, 2012 at 8:34 pm
I just had an apple and sharp cheddar sandwich and it blew my MIND with how delicious it was. Also, for some reason, I feel like cottage cheese and cream cheese should have been pitted against each other even though I have no logical reason for that feeling.
tehwritergrl said on January 16, 2012 at 9:05 pm
That sounds really good. I’ll have to try it. I love sharp cheddar.
Millie said on January 16, 2012 at 11:04 pm
Sharp cheddar is one of the (seven?) wonders of the culinary world.
jen* said on January 16, 2012 at 9:11 pm
I agree with pitting cottage and cream against each other. It seems they are more evenly matched.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 9:58 pm
That’s part of why it wasn’t done; the tradition with brackets is to pit the top and bottom seeds against each other, working your way to the middle. Cottage was the lowest-ranked seed in its group; cream cheese was considerably higher up.
jen* said on January 16, 2012 at 8:04 pm
I am also not on Team Bleu. In fact, Gorgonzola is the only bleu I like. I’m wrestling with this choice against cheddar, though, because while cheddar is ubiquitous – and rightly so, it’s delicious and versatile – I just don’t know that it beats the Gorg for special-ness. And Cheddar is very special to me.
Um..how/why were these two paired against each other? That is crazy talk. I still am not sure how I’m gonna vote…
Edited to add: after reviewing the bracket my dismay has increased. Is it possible that we could lose either Cheddar or Gorgonzola but still have Havarti in the next round? I love Havarti, but this is not justice.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 8:07 pm
Take a look at the bracket–this is simply the next level of competition!
wtfox?! said on January 16, 2012 at 8:01 pm
Okay, seriously, not long ago I had a beautiful extra-sharp aged cheddar with honey. I cannot even begin to describe to you how sublimely beautiful the experience was.
And if cream cheese wins, I will be SO disappointed in the world.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 8:03 pm
Cheddar with honey has never occured to me! I will have to test that out some time soon.
[E] pileofmonkeys said on January 16, 2012 at 8:04 pm
Cream cheese, while delicious and completely necessary for bagel consumption, is not to be considered a cheese in the same league as, you know, actual cheese.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 8:09 pm
Although it *does* contain cultures, which is more than American cheese can claim.
jen* said on January 16, 2012 at 8:11 pm
American cheese = not cheese.
jen* said on January 16, 2012 at 8:05 pm
that cheddar with honey sounds delicious – I need to find this.
msophelia said on January 16, 2012 at 8:54 pm
oh, cheddar with honey…. that sounds stupendous.
[E] pileofmonkeys said on January 16, 2012 at 8:00 pm
Cheddar vs. gorgonzola hurts. Because cheddar is so multi-purpose, and completely awesome and versatile, but gorgonzola is so good, and aaaahhhhh!!!
msophelia said on January 16, 2012 at 8:55 pm
right there with you – that’s the first bracket pairing that’s given me any serious pause for thought, and caused some pain. because blue cheese is super tasty – and yet, taco night would not exist at our house without cheddar. gah!
Cesy said on January 16, 2012 at 7:53 pm
Oh the dilemma. I had a cheese called Cambozola the other day- the marriage of Camembert and Gorgonzola. It wasn’t one or the other, it was quite disappointing actually.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 8:00 pm
I can’t see that working out too well… in general, I’m not a fan of mixed/blended cheeses. But a brie-type with a blue makes even less sense than usual. What would be the point?
Cesy said on January 16, 2012 at 8:21 pm
Unless it was as an “entry level” blue, I have no idea. It only had a few spots here and there and it didn’t taste blue at all. To be honest, it was a cheap cheese, it barely tasted of anything.
The cumin gouda I had at the same time though….mmmmm yummy.
Millie said on January 16, 2012 at 11:07 pm
I love the phrase “entry level blue [cheese]“!
14KGold said on January 17, 2012 at 7:42 am
It’s completely accurate! Gorgonzola dolce is a good example; it has only a fraction of the mold normal gorgonzola has. Oddly–and I’m quite picky about my blues, I emphatically do *not* like all of them–I detest gorgonzola dolce even though I love gorgonzola. I think the entry-level blues, which are mild, offend my palate because I know they should be stronger ;)
[E]queSarahSarah said on January 16, 2012 at 7:52 pm
I’m not really Team Bleu, either, but you’re right, Gorgonzola is amazing. Mmmm…. I may have to rethink my meal choices for this week.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 7:48 pm
I can’t believe I’m going to interfere in my own bracket…
BUT COME ON, PEOPLE. CREAM CHEESE ISN’T EVEN REALLY A CHEESE.
[E]Meghan Young Krogh said on January 16, 2012 at 7:59 pm
I’ll fess up; I voted for cream cheese, but only because I’m not really a camembert fan and I look for extra reasons to eat cream cheese. Basically whatever it’s up against next time it’s going down.
14KGold said on January 16, 2012 at 8:01 pm
NOT A CAMEMBERT FAN??
No, really, to each their own :) But I would pick Camembert over most things! Certainly over brie…
[E]SaraB said on January 16, 2012 at 8:25 pm
Interfere all you want, without cream cheese there would be no cream cheese cheesecake. Or crab rangoon. Ricotta cheesecake is good, delicately sweet and crumbly, but cream cheese gets my vote, hands down.
[E]Meghan Young Krogh said on January 16, 2012 at 7:47 pm
Look, I’m not even ON Team Bleu, but Gorgonzola is one of my favorites of all time. OF ALL TIME. So I gotta plead with you folks; cheddar is great, but gorgonzola? Gorgonzola is amazing.
[E]SaraB said on January 16, 2012 at 8:33 pm
I am, right this very second, eating gorgonzola gnocchi (paired with steamed green beans, so I have the whole smokey/sweet thing going on) and it is divine, and I STILL voted for cheddar. Why? Because I can’t imagine a world without the ubiquitous cheese, but I know I could live without gorgonzola.