Dear fellow food-lover,

Welcome to The Cheese Plate, a monthly email from Oldways with curated information about different types of traditional cheeses, with ideal pairings. We hope  The Cheese Plate will be a great guide to put wonderful traditional cheeses on your plate. Visit your favorite cheesemonger to find these delicious cheeses!
Flavored Cheeses
This month The Cheese Plate is serving you three flavored traditional cheeses. You won't see gimmicky flavors here. These cheeses feature full-bodied flavors that are a reflection of the areas where they are produced.
Frumage L'Ottavio (Italy)
Beer and cheese. Need we say more? Indulge us, as we share more about what makes Frumage L’Ottavio from Le Fattorie Fiandino so special. To make cheese, animal rennet is usually used to turn milk into a solid. With this raw cow’s milk cheese though, the rennet is made with thistle flower. A plant-based rennet, thistle can be used with cheeses that are aged for two months and under. Frumage L’Ottavio is aged for 60 days at which time it gets washed with a local brown ale. The mouthwatering result is a savory malt flavor in the interior of the cheese, and a rind with notes of coffee and chocolate. Enjoy this soft (but not gooey) cheese on crackers or in a sandwich made with hearty whole grain bread.  
Maple Smoked Cheddar (USA)
If you ever wondered what the state of Vermont would taste like if you took a bite out of it…this is your chance to find out! A nibble of Maple Smoked Cheddar from Grafton Village Cheese starts with a buttery flavor followed by a hint of smoke. An option in a line of scrumptious flavored cheddars, this one is a mix of classic Vermont flavors. Pair it with a sweet dessert like an apple pie, and you have the ultimate treat for a crisp fall day. Smoked with maplewood, this cheddar is made with unpasteurized milk mainly from jersey cows that graze in lush Vermont pastures. Grafton Village is unique in that is owned and operated by the Windham Foundation, a non-profit that supports agricultural and rural communities in Vermont.
Fenna Mundo (Denmark)
Fennel (a flavor you might recognize from Italian sausage) and organic goat’s milk combine to make Fenna Mundo an aromatic and complex semi-hard cheese. A lovely addition to a cheese plate, it is also a perfect ingredient to include when baking a soufflé or quiche. Danish goat cheese producer Tebstrup uses practices that honor the environment, animals, and people involved in the production of their artisanal cheeses. Fenna Mundo is a distinctive cheese both because of its flavor and how different it is from other Danish cheeses, which are often blue cheeses and made with cow’s milk.
Featured Pairing: Quinoa Salad
September is Whole Grains Month, a month-long ode to whole grains and all the flavors and health benefits they offer. If you aren’t celebrating it yet, we suggest you start with a Quinoa Salad paired with a flavored cheese! In addition to being packed with nutritional value, quinoa salad is a flexible dish that can include your favorite vegetables, fruits, herbs, and spices. Pick a flavored cheese that adds a burst of flavor to compliment the quinoa's mild nutty flavor, and the other salad ingredients you choose.
for a food and cheese lovers trip of a lifetime!