Cheese for dessert

I found out this afternoon that My Very Very Very Very Single Engaged Friend was in town on a quick trip, and he asked me to join him for dinner.  We ended up at Shanghai Fraternity Association (上海總會) where the food is always good.

One of the best dishes of the evening was stir-fried sugar snap peas with ham (火丁甜豆).  This is a Shanghainese classic using very young sugar snap peas, which are very tender, sweet, and deliver a very satisfying pop in the mouth under pressure.  The diced ham add just the right amount of savory flavors here.

I brought along a bottle to share with this non-drinking group...

2000 Etude Heirloom Pinot Noir - a little bubblegum, very ripe, with lots of sweet fruit.  Almost jammy.

After dinner we decided to have a drink at ON Dining Kitchen and Lounge.  Once we were there, it was a no-brainer for My Very Very Very Very Engaged Friend to have some cheese that he wouldn't find in Taipei.  Jeremy asked me what I would like, and I replied : "Beaucoup de fromage!"  I was overjoyed when 10 different types of cheese showed up...

Rouelle Cendrée - very rich and thick texture, very creamy.  The goat flavor is very mild and almost not detectable.

Pavé de la Ginestarié - slightly more salty and ripe.

Bûche des Pyrénées - aged for 3 weeks.  Pretty ripe and salty.

Pérail - much more ripe, salty, more medicinal and ammonia.

Comté, 4 years - mmm mmm good as always.  Full and rich, creamy, and salty.

Coupe de Corne - really strong and pungent, with ammonia.  A little salty.

Saint Félicien - slightly salty, nice and ripe.

Colombier fermier - very creamy and acidic, a little gamey.

Époisses - soooo ripe.  So rich and salty.

Roquefort - very salty and very strong.