Flight's Guide to Funk

A lot of the time when people come in to Flight for the first time, they see the descriptor word "FUNKY" on some of my cheeses, and instantly close the door on that cheese because they aren't a fan of blues! But there are three different types of funk that have totally different profiles, and who knows - maybe it turns out you like one of the others instead!

I like to break funky cheeses down into three main categories: Blue, Washed Rind, and Goat. Some cheeses may not fall into any of these categories, but for the most part, stinky and funky cheeses will fit in one of them!

Blue cheeses are the most well known - cheeses that are inoculated with particular strains of mold to give a spicy, characteristic flavour. Typically on the salty side, blue cheeses are abundant with variety!

The flavours of blue cheese have a drastic spectrum - not just from mild to bold, but each blue cheese will have a varying degree of: 

They are the most well known - and most feared! - of the funky cheeses. Blue cheese has so many flavourful qualities that you don't often get to taste in other types of cheeses, but I think the mold throws a lot of people off sometimes. Blue cheese is not something you have to jump in the deep end to learn how to appreciate. Start slow, start mild, and if you can see why someone might like that flavour while you're eating it, you're well on your way to being a blue lover! If you want some tips on how to get into blue the easy way, check out my Guide to Blue Cheese!

Washed Rind cheeses are cheeses that - you guessed it - get washed on the rind during production. Typically, they have a sticky, orange rind with an almost stinky feet kind of aroma. Generally they smell much worse and pungent than they taste! The most well known washed rind cheeses to the "average Ontarian" would probably be Oka or Raclette, but worldwide cheeses such as Epoisses, Vacherin Mont d'Or, Taleggio and technically even Gruyere are very popular and well known! 

Washed Rind cheeses can have flavour notes of straw/hay, fruitiness, meat/bacon, or yeast/biscuit. They range in intensity, but those who love washed rind cheeses usually say the funkier the better! You can easily identify them by their rusty orange rind and can loosely predict their flavour profile. 

When making these cheeses, cheesemakers will either dunk or brush the rind with some sort of brine - it could be wine must, saline, beer, brandy, spices - basically anything that would promote the growth of a bacteria called Brevibacterium Linens (aka B. Linens) which is where that sticky rind comes from! This process requires regular "washings", making it very labour-intensive compared to other methods of aging cheeses, which also gives a more artisanal and unique profile to each cheese! 

The flavour profiles of washed rind cheeses is very hard to describe if you've never had one before, but if you want to get more into cheeses or learn more about what your favourite flavours are, it's definitely worth giving these a try! Start with something milder, such as Taleggio, Oka or Raclette and if the funk isn't off putting, step it up a little bit!

* OTFS means "On the funky scale"

"Funky Goat" cheeses are generally any cheese that isn't the fresh goat cheese you buy in a tube in the grocery store or see on pizzas at restaurants. Although that's the most "popular" type of goat cheese, we're talking about the funky ones! Goat cheeses have a very distinct, sharp, almost sour goaty flavour. It's one that's pretty hard to describe without you having tasted one before. Examples of a funky goat cheese would be Grey Owl (9/10 OTFS*), Crottin de Chevre (4/10 OTFS*) or Chabichou de Poitou (7/10 OTFS*). 

Typically, "funky goat cheeses" are those that follow the flavour profile of Loire Valley Chevres. In the Loire Valley of France, goat herding has been around for centuries, dating back as early as the 8th century. The region has very fertile land which makes these goats very, very happy, and the French know how to make some darn good cheese! 70-80% of France's goat cheeses come from this region, and once you taste 'em, you'll understand why! 

Funky goat cheeses are another one that's really hard to explain the flavour of unless you've had one before - they're nothing like the grocery store tubes at all, and have an addicting funkiness that funky goat lovers just can't stop going for. Start light, something like Crottin de Chevre or one of the firmer Spanish goat cheeses to get the vibe, and go from there! 

 I think it's really important to note that NOT EVERYBODY LIKES FUNKY CHEESES. You're allowed to dislike funky cheeses, you're allowed to prefer milder cheeses, and you're no less of a cheese lover if you have particular preferences! 

I talk to a lot of people who want to get more into cheese and learn about it and try them all, and with that sense of adventure comes a little bit of pressure to enjoy them all, but that's really not the case! Everybody is going to like different things, so try to not beat yourself up if you just like the plain and simple choices! 

Part of my job as a cheesemonger is to help you figure out what will work best for you. I WANT you to find the ones you love, and I WANT you to experiment, get out of your comfort zone, but also curate your tastes to best suit you. That's the fun part for me, and you'll never get pressured into buying a cheese from Flight that you aren't totally going to love. Gourmet cheese - from mild to funky - is an adventure, and my goal is to make it as fun and accessible to "regular people" as possible!