HitAnyKey42 wrote:
I’m looking to see someone (be it cheesemaker or those who have had this) put more specific wine pairing suggestions, and more importantly food/recipe suggestions. Are there any good recipe’s that this cheese would be good in? What specific dishes does it go well with? What types of cheeses is it similar to in flavor profile? Stuff like that.

all you need cheddar cheese for is grilled cheese :D

grilled cheese with sliced apple is delicious

so is grilled cheese with bacon, if you feel like indulging...

or on burgers.

*edit* ahh uhh the cheddar cheese has flavored rinds... might be wasteful to use it on grilled cheese.

pomodesign wrote:Does this cheesemaker support CA Prop 8? I'd hate to have my money go towards such a thing.

ugh. use your brains people. why bring this stuff up. so people are assuming that because this cheesemaker is from utah he's automatically LDS and therefore supported prop 8?

first, who cares? if you do, take your concerns directly to the company. and second, members of LDS don't drink so i'm guessing he's not.

if you've got political or religious questions, take them to PM or offline.

I second that emotion Dew

Win 5 pounds of your favorite Beehive Cheese(s) for free
Just submit a recipe or favorite pairing (beverages/food) using Beehive Cheese.

Instantly in for one. Wisconsin's not lighting up though. Well, I know the truth!

Seriously? Prop 8? Do you people ask how every merchant voted on every referendum? I understand Prop 8 specifically has a large amount of significance to a large amount of the population. Still though, do you ask your local wine shop if they voted for the last tax hike or school choice?

joekerjr wrote:Seriously? Prop 8? Do you people ask how every merchant voted on every referendum? I understand Prop 8 specifically has a large amount of significance to a large amount of the population. Still though, do you ask your local wine shop if they voted for the last tax hike or school choice?

Or even more to the point: Do you ask your local wine shop if they voted for the last tax hike or school choice in an entirely different state?

Every time I see a complete lack of critical thinking, I die a little bit inside. Seriously, like dewthedru said, take it to PM or take it offline. This forum exists to share analysis of the product, not political grandstanding.

Teletheus wrote:Or even more to the point: Do you ask your local wine shop if they voted for the last tax hike or school choice in an entirely different state?

Every time I see a complete lack of critical thinking, I die a little bit inside. Seriously, like dewthedru said, take it to PM or take it offline. This forum exists to share analysis of the product, not political grandstanding.

Well, to be fair, LDS in Utah threw an awful lot of dollars into support of Prop 8.

How good is this deal?

So this looks like another special offer that is different from what is available directly from the Beehive Cheese Co website. Seahive cheese does not appear to be part of any package currently available on the website, and Barely Buzzed is available only as part of a larger variety package. If you want to get just these two you must either find them locally, or order on wine.woot.

As for the prices, Tim at Beehive was kind enough to quote retail prices (and shipping). Click the link above for price comparisons and other details.

Might be a newbie question but how long will the cheese keep?

Thanks in advance

HitAnyKey42 wrote:I’m going to need a lot of convincing for this one. I have liked all the cheese offerings we’ve had so far (though still have that Gouda unopened in my fridge) but with having to cut back on all sorts of purchases, I’m hesitant. Especially since I haven’t yet seen or heard anything truly “special” about this cheese yet. One of the questions above that someone else already asked is a biggie for me that will help twist my arm.
I’m looking to see someone (be it cheesemaker or those who have had this) put more specific wine pairing suggestions, and more importantly food/recipe suggestions. Are there any good recipe’s that this cheese would be good in? What specific dishes does it go well with? What types of cheeses is it similar to in flavor profile? Stuff like that.
And the other important thing is how long it would last. I’d be pretty much eating most of this by myself, and I typically don’t go through a lot at a time. So it would need to keep well for a good while.

OK - Here is some Beta now that I am awake.

A couple independent reviews:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/06/FDUK15IPMP.DTL

http://archive.supermarketguru.com/page.cfm/37327

The winee's at Oxbow market played with a best wine pairing for some time and here is what they came up with for Barely Buzzed - Andrew Rich 2005 Columbia Valley Coup d etat. I am from the school of "Whatever wine that you like best with our cheese is the best" Play around a little, after all these are creative cheeses. I happen to like broccoli and beets but maybe you don't.

Both cheeses are made in the style of cheddar, but that it where the similarity stops. Our cheeses are made with Jersey Cows milk, which is the highest in butterfat. Our milk comes from a single dairy and we do not "standardize". That means that the milk changes pretty much with the season and we do not alter it to get protein/fat ratios etc. Our cheeses change with the season just like the milk. Summer cheese are lower in fat and tend to age out better, say to 18 months. Winter cheeses are higher in fat, develop flavor faster and can go south after 18 months.

The Barely Buzzed cheese in this shipment was made on July 28th, 2008. The SeaHive was made on May 19th, 2008. We would not call either cheese "sharp", but the SeaHive will have more of a bite.

This is not a freezer cheese - That will break the proteins and kill the cheese.

and finally... least favorite pairing with either cheese would be politics

timwelsh wrote:and finally... least favorite pairing with either cheese would be politics

HA! Now I'm DEFINITELY in for 1. But before I click the big yellow button, I want to make sure I'm understanding you correctly...

timwelsh wrote:Both cheeses are made in the style of cheddar, but that it where the similarity stops. Our cheeses are made with Jersey Cows milk, which is the highest in butterfat. Our milk comes from a single dairy and we do not "standardize". That means that the milk changes pretty much with the season and we do not alter it to get protein/fat ratios etc. Our cheeses change with the season just like the milk. Summer cheese are lower in fat and tend to age out better, say to 18 months. Winter cheeses are higher in fat, develop flavor faster and can go south after 18 months.

The Barely Buzzed cheese in this shipment was made on July 28th, 2008. The SeaHive was made on May 19th, 2008. We would not call either cheese "sharp", but the SeaHive will have more of a bite.

This is not a freezer cheese - That will break the proteins and kill the cheese.

So both of these are going to be summer cheeses, which means they'll age well and be good for approximately a year and a half (that is, until January 2010 and November 2009, respectively)? And I should keep them in the refrigerator, not the freezer?

rnieves wrote:Might be a newbie question but how long will the cheese keep?

Thanks in advance

The cheeses will arrive vacuum packaged and hey that is what we have been doing all night for you. When you are ready to serve, take the cheese from the ice box and let it come to room temp for an hour or two, open the package and enjoy.

Once you open the package, you should plan on eating it within several days to a week, each time re-packaging to keep the oxygen away from the exposed or cut surface.

Or keep the cheese in the original vacuum package and age it out for another 6 months. If the package puffs during this time, it's OK. That is CO2 forming as the cheese ages. The colder the aging temp, the slower the flavor development and CO2 production. Do not age for more that a month above 44 degrees and never age above 56 degrees with this cheese. You can hang on to it for 6 months between 38 and 42 degrees.

timwelsh wrote:OK - Here is some Beta now that I am awake.

A couple independent reviews:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/06/FDUK15IPMP.DTL

http://archive.supermarketguru.com/page.cfm/37327

The winee's at Oxbow market played with a best wine pairing for some time and here is what they came up with for Barely Buzzed - Andrew Rich 2005 Columbia Valley Coup d etat. I am from the school of "Whatever wine that you like best with our cheese is the best" Play around a little, after all these are creative cheeses. I happen to like broccoli and beets but maybe you don't.

Both cheeses are made in the style of cheddar, but that it where the similarity stops. Our cheeses are made with Jersey Cows milk, which is the highest in butterfat. Our milk comes from a single dairy and we do not "standardize". That means that the milk changes pretty much with the season and we do not alter it to get protein/fat ratios etc. Our cheeses change with the season just like the milk. Summer cheese are lower in fat and tend to age out better, say to 18 months. Winter cheeses are higher in fat, develop flavor faster and can go south after 18 months.

The Barely Buzzed cheese in this shipment was made on July 28th, 2008. The SeaHive was made on May 19th, 2008. We would not call either cheese "sharp", but the SeaHive will have more of a bite.

This is not a freezer cheese - That will break the proteins and kill the cheese.

and finally... least favorite pairing with either cheese would be politics

Thanks for the reply and info. I also edited your quote to make the links you provided clickable.

Now to try to decide whether to get some or not. Think I'll wait for some of the labrat reviews. Or at least until I'm not at work and can do more research/reading on them.

magus57 wrote:I'm intrigued by what's being offered today, but I have a few questions, if anybody could answer:

1. I've never bought cheese that wasn't fresh from a deli and refrigerated - how long do these types of cheeses last, and how should they be stored? I'll probably be the only one eating it, and I don't want to force myself to eat two pounds of cheese in a short time.

2. What are the closest cheeses in terms of general taste and texture? Is it anything like Brie or Camembert? I haven't tried many cheeses in my lifetime, and I've never been a fan of the very strong (and in my opinion bitter) cheeses, but I'm always up for something new - as long as it doesn't end up hurting my wallet from not liking it at all.

1. I'd say 1-2 months based on the firmness of the cheese, if not even longer. I've had my BB in the fridge for 2 weeks and it shows no negative signs of aging.

2. See my first post regarding the BB. Will try to acquire some Seahive today and comment on it as well, but from the description and Tim, sounds like it's similar to BB - most similar to a mild cheddar, if one must compare to another cheese.

fairnymph wrote:I have the Barely Buzzed in my fridge right now, actually! I picked it up at gourmet store here in Chapel Hill.

I'll be honest - I'm not very impressed by it, but then I tend towards strongly flavoured cheese. The BB is quite mild (like a mild cheddar or jack) other than the coffee and lavender flavours, which are fairly limited being only on the edges. Maybe it'd be more interesting if the rind:cheese ratio were higher, though coffee/cheese isn't the best pairing, IMO. The lavender has promise. Texture is firm and smooth, not crumbly.

I am a big fan of artisan cheeses and have enjoyed past woot offerings. These 2 cheeses appear to be trying too hard to be something special. Maybe the cheese by itself is not so special.

Wine pairings with these adulterated cheeses is going to be problematic. Unless there is some new revelation about this offering I'll pass

gijose wrote:all you need cheddar cheese for is grilled cheese :D

grilled cheese with sliced apple is delicious

so is grilled cheese with bacon, if you feel like indulging...

or on burgers.

*edit* ahh uhh the cheddar cheese has flavored rinds... might be wasteful to use it on grilled cheese.

attended vermont institue of artisan cheese- during the british cheese course the cheddar expert from England gave us this recipie. Made it for a party- was a huge hit-

shred some cheddar- ad to it some poached leeks, crumbeled bacon, finly chopped red onion, bind it with a little mayo and brown mustard. Spread it on multi grain bread , butter the bread and grill. The cheese is melty and the bread is crispy its great

timwelsh wrote:The cheeses will arrive vacuum packaged and hey that is what we have been doing all night for you. When you are ready to serve, take the cheese from the ice box and let it come to room temp for an hour or two, open the package and enjoy.

Once you open the package, you should plan on eating it within several days to a week, each time re-packaging to keep the oxygen away from the exposed or cut surface.

Or keep the cheese in the original vacuum package and age it out for another 6 months. If the package puffs during this time, it's OK. That is CO2 forming as the cheese ages. The colder the aging temp, the slower the flavor development and CO2 production. Do not age for more that a month above 44 degrees and never age above 56 degrees with this cheese. You can hang on to it for 6 months between 38 and 42 degrees.

Is the cheese going to be refrigerated during shipping? Also, how quickly does the cheese need to be refrigerated once it arrives? I usually have wine sent to my apartment because the office can receive packages for me even when I'm at work... but if the cheese arrives in the late morning and I can't pick it up until late evening, is it going to be bad for it to be unrefrigerated for that long?

What type of rennet was used for these cheeses? I know there are vegetarian rennets out there, but don't know many artisan cheesemakers who use them.

havent seen anything yet about how long these cheeses have been aged, just the statement that they ARE aged.

craiggery wrote:havent seen anything yet about how long these cheeses have been aged, just the statement that they ARE aged.

The Barely Buzzed cheese in this shipment was made on July 28th, 2008. The SeaHive was made on May 19th, 2008. We would not call either cheese "sharp", but the SeaHive will have more of a bite.

mjc613 wrote:What type of rennet was used for these cheeses? I know there are vegetarian rennets out there, but don't know many artisan cheesemakers who use them.

Vegeterian Rennet

timwelsh wrote:Vegeterian Rennet

SOLD! To the lady in Houston.

In for 2! These both sound great. I'm in KS so I can't get wine shipped to me (OH GOD! RUN!!) but I've bought several of the food offerings here and have yet to be disappointed.

I'm a labrat this week, and they shipped a wedge of both of these cheeses with the wine. I thought it was a bonus (as indeed it was), I didn't realize I was experiencing double-labrat action!

Luckily we tried the Seahive cheese last night. It's quite good. It's a medium-dry cheese with great creamy dairy flavors. It's not a super-sharp cheese, but definitely you taste something like a cross between a farmhouse cheddar and maybe an aged Jarlsberg. There's a decent hit of salt right off the bat which fades quickly. The honey flavor is there, but not overpowering or cloying. It's not a "sweet" cheese. I'd pair it with a Pinot, or perhaps a dry Riesling.

Bottom line: well worth it if you like cheese.

We'll try the other cheese tonight.

Don

The word "lavender" in the description has me spooked. The Purple Haze lavender goat cheese offering a few months ago was a divisive cheese in our little group. (Political discussion was tame in comparison that evening.) 3 loved it, and 2 really, really disliked it. We still call that little get together our "bath bead cheese party."

Can our labrats please add a comment or two on the lavender flavors?

I see that Beehive is participating in the Blue Sky program with your local power company.

Is this primarily a business/financial decision or a philisophical one?

If I don't like coffee, what are the chances I'll enjoy the Barely Buzzed? Strong coffee flavor? Hint of coffee? Somewhere in between?

BillThePoet wrote:The word "lavender" in the description has me spooked. The Purple Haze lavender goat cheese offering a few months ago was a divisive cheese in our little group. (Political discussion was tame in comparison that evening.) 3 loved it, and 2 really, really disliked it. We still call that little get together our "bath bead cheese party."

Can our labrats please add a comment or two on the lavender flavors?

Very Subtle lavender... See Janet Fletcher review

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/06/FDUK15IPMP.DTL

nmachen wrote:If I don't like coffee, what are the chances I'll enjoy the Barely Buzzed? Strong coffee flavor? Hint of coffee? Somewhere in between?

You can avoid the rind if you are not a big coffee person (there is usually someone around who is glad that you did because that means more for them). The flavors, from the coffee, that go into the cheese are not strong, some describe them as smokey and baconey.

Hi Tim, I saw cheese from Utah, and thought gee, my good friend Dan has a brother in Utah, that he roasts coffee for here in Colorado (legacycoffee.com). Just called him up, and found out it's a small world.

I might add, I thought he was a good friend, however, I want you to know, he is very protective of the samples he brings back..

I also want you to know, I am envious of all the wine that shows up in his shop for shipment to Utah.

Oh and for the rest of you Wooters, what little cheese I get from Dan, it's very good.

WWA

Southern Season does indeed carry the Seahive cheese as well, so I picked some up ($19.99/lb, there).

And it's really, really tasty. I'm not sure that it's $20/lb tasty...but it's high quality, unique cheese. This is like a sharp cheddar in both flavour and texture (if you blind-tested me, I'd be convinced it were one), but it has this mild hint of sweetness. If I didn't know, I'm not sure that I would guess honey. It's not a STRONG honey flavour, but I can pick it out knowing it's there easily enough. Wildflower honey for sure, with those light floral nuances. And the sweetness just adds a certain je-ne-sais-quoi that I really enjoy.

This also noticeably creamier than cheddar despite the firm texture. I don't find the BB particularly creamy, but the Seahive is. It's very more-ish on the whole, and goes nicely with rye crisps.

BillThePoet wrote:The word "lavender" in the description has me spooked. The Purple Haze lavender goat cheese offering a few months ago was a divisive cheese in our little group. (Political discussion was tame in comparison that evening.) 3 loved it, and 2 really, really disliked it. We still call that little get together our "bath bead cheese party."

Can our labrats please add a comment or two on the lavender flavors?

&

nmachen wrote:If I don't like coffee, what are the chances I'll enjoy the Barely Buzzed? Strong coffee flavor? Hint of coffee? Somewhere in between?

To both of you: those flavours are isolated to the rind, which you could cut off if you don't like them. Regardless, they are quite mild -even if you eat a hunk of rind by itself.

WineWootaholic wrote:Hi Tim, I saw cheese from Utah, and thought gee, my good friend Dan has a brother in Utah, that he roasts coffee for here in Colorado (legacycoffee.com). Just called him up, and found out it's a small world.

I might add, I thought he was a good friend, however, I want you to know, he is very protective of the samples he brings back..

I also want you to know, I am envious of all the wine that shows up in his shop for shipment to Utah.

Oh and for the rest of you Wooters, what little cheese I get from Dan, it's very good.

WWA

Hey it is a small world! Maybe you could chime in about the quality of the coffee that goes into Barely Buzzed since you know the roaster/owner of Colorado Legacy Coffee Co. It is like a double artisan brother cheese

btw - all of that wine that ships to CO is definitely consumed in CO.

I'll send him with a care package for you for your kind words..

fairnymph wrote:Southern Season does indeed carry the Seahive cheese as well, so I picked some up ($19.99/lb, there).

It is good to hear that Southern Season is still in business. Moved up to Michigan from Durham many moons ago and we loved to shop there (as well as another place like it that I can't remember but I think has since closed)

fairnymph convinced me... in for 1.

On a side note.... UPS came today, 2 words:

mmmmmmmm Helios

Sadly, as appetizing as this cheese sounds, I think I'll have to pass after thinking pretty heavily about it. I'd really like to try it, but I'm just not ready to throw $35 on two cheeses I've never tasted before. Maybe if I had gotten around to selling a few things I've been meaning to for the past month or so, but right now I just don't have the money for it, let alone really good reason to do so.

But thanks for answering questions anyway - I'll keep this cheese in mind when I have more money and am feeling adventurous

Ha, I just got it. Barely Buzzed, coffee, caffeine, buzzed. Heh. Good one

Labrat report part 2:

Tasting the Barely Buzzed now. The coffee and lavender are subtle. I personally like it a lot because I like cheese to taste primarily of cheese. If there are non-cheese flavors I want them to be enhancements rather than the primary taste.

To put it in perspective, there is less coffee and lavender flavor in this cheese than there is dill flavor in conventional dill havarti or pepper flavor in pepper jack.

Nevertheless the flavors are there; it's not some sort of gimmick. And the cheese itself is quite similar to the Seahive; it's very creamy, medium-dry, and like a farmhouse cheddar blended with something else, something a little nutty. Emmenthaler? Edam?

All in all I like this one even more than the Seahive, and I liked the Seahive.

A worthy woot.

Don

woopdedoo wrote:It is good to hear that Southern Season is still in business. Moved up to Michigan from Durham many moons ago and we loved to shop there (as well as another place like it that I can't remember but I think has since closed)

I love it! They have EVERYTHING. This area is wonderful for many reasons.