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Janet Fletcher

180 Stonecrest Dr
Napa, CA, 94558
(707) 265-0404
{ Janet Fletcher / Food Writer }

{ Janet Fletcher / Food Writer }

Janet Fletcher

  • Home
  • About
    • About Janet
    • Media
    • Client List
    • Contact
  • Planet Cheese
    • Planet Cheese Blog
    • Planet Cheese Signup
    • Cheese Library
  • Store
    • All Items
    • World Cheese Tour
    • Books
  • Classes
    • World Cheese Tour Classes
    • Other Classes & Events
    • Custom Class/Event Request
    • Cheese O'Clock Video Archive
  • Recipes
    • Spring
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    • Autumn
    • Winter
    • Comfort

The Blue We Need

February 4, 2025 janet@janetfletcher.com

Most cheese counters I visit—even the best ones—have a big gap in goat blues. The options just aren’t there, domestic or imported. It’s not an easy style to make, according to the cheesemaker who just launched the one pictured here. Goat curd is dense and wants to mat. If it doesn’t remain open and airy, it’s hard for blue veins to grow. But the flavor of a well-made goat blue can be captivating—more tangy than buttery, sometimes closer to feta than to Stilton. I’ve fallen for several over the years—Persillé de Rambouillet from France, Andazul from Spain, Harbourne Blue from the U.K.—but then they vanish. Let’s hope this California newcomer finds an audience and sticks around.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Goat Tags goat cheese, blue cheese, California cheese, Shooting Star Creamery, Central Coast Creamery, Reggie Jones, Avery Jones, goat’s milk blue cheese
8 Comments

Lose One, Gain One

October 3, 2023 janet@janetfletcher.com

Losing a great American cheese is a bummer—especially a cheese that so many loved—but a new arrival can soften the blow. So while I’m still in mourning for Ewereka, a blue-ribbon sheep Cheddar that Central Coast Creamery has discontinued, I’m enthused about its just-released replacement. Unforeseen hurdles compelled the Paso Robles, California, creamery to ditch Ewereka, but just wait until you taste the newcomer (above). Cheesemaker Reggie Jones has the American palate and purse dialed in, and I’d bet a bundle that this value-priced newbie will fly out of cheese shops.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Cow Tags Central Coast Creamery, Ewereka, Faultline cheese, American sheep cheese, California cheese, Central Coast cheese
Comment

Welcome Back, Teleme!

August 29, 2023 janet@janetfletcher.com

Chill the Champagne. We have something to celebrate. Franklin Peluso has resumed making his incomparable Franklin’s Teleme after a five-year pause. Peluso lost his production space in late 2018 (landlord troubles), and for a long while I feared we would never see this California classic again. This third-generation cheesemaker is 78, after all, and entitled to throw in the towel given how many location leads failed to pan out. When he called me recently to tell me Teleme’s rebirth was imminent, I felt like kissing the phone. Even better, he told me that his son, Adam, was working alongside him, assuring a future for this one-of-a-kind cheese.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Cow Tags Franklin Peluso, teleme, California cheese, Franklin’s Teleme
49 Comments

Better Than Ever

June 21, 2023 janet@janetfletcher.com

I recently led a small cheese and wine tasting for the winners of a charity auction lot. The cheeses were donated by the makers and maybe not what I would have chosen—they weren’t fancy-schmancy—but free is a nice price. So I wasn’t expecting any “wow” moments from this cheese plate but…wow.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Cow Tags Wagon Wheel, Cowgirl Creamery, washed-rind cheese, stinky cheese, California cheese
17 Comments

Oozy Does It

October 25, 2022 janet@janetfletcher.com

With November around the corner, we’re entering the ooey-gooey season. Fall is prime time for those unctuous, bark-wrapped cheeses that spread like buttercream frosting, and this year we have a new one to celebrate. It took more than three years to get this beauty through R&D. Turns out the style presents all sorts of hurdles.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Cow Tags Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese, California cheese, American cheese, bark-wrapped cheese, spruce bark, Quinta, bloomy-rind cheese
2 Comments

A Cheese Debut and a Retirement

September 14, 2021 janet@janetfletcher.com
Planet Cheese 186 _DSC4715.jpg

It’s still summer and I’ve just seen my first holiday decorations. I guess people are anxious to make up for all the gatherings that didn’t happen last year. If you’re already thinking about autumn cheese boards and how to entertain holiday guests, serve this rising star and prove you’re an early adopter. A little bit stinky (but not too much) and extra buttery, this California newcomer makes a tasty segue to autumn.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Cow Tags Marin French cheese, California cheese, triple cream cheese, triple crème cheese, Brevibacterium linens, washed-rind cheese, stinky cheese
14 Comments

Pandemic’s Silver Lining

May 17, 2021 janet@janetfletcher.com
Planet Cheese 41 _DSC4169.jpg

There aren’t many silver linings to this pandemic but here’s one: it spurred the development of a new fresh sheep cheese from Bellwether Farms. With restaurant sales of its aged cheeses plummeting—from 300 wheels a week to five—the California creamery ramped up its plan to launch a sheep’s milk version of fresh chèvre. Just a few days old when released, this dreamy toast-ready cheese is what pandemic-weary consumers want now, says Callahan. I’m loving it on crostini with carrots and dukkah.

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In From: U.S., Milk: Sheep Tags Bellwether Farms, crostini, sheep cheese, American Cheese Month, chèvre, California cheese, fresh cheese, Cakebread Cellars
2 Comments

Petite Treat

March 16, 2021 janet@janetfletcher.com
Planet Cheese 191 _DSC3889.jpg

The oldest cheese in America also happens to be one of the youngest. The fresh little guy pictured here is only three to four days old when packaged, but the creamery has been making it since 1865. Correct me if you know better, but I don’t believe any domestic cheese has been in commercial production longer. More to the point, it’s delicious: moist, mild and milky, the perfect segue to spring.

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In Milk: Cow, From: U.S. Tags Marin French Cheese, California cheese, spring cheese, fresh cheese
14 Comments

Welcome Aboard

March 2, 2021 janet@janetfletcher.com
Planet Cheese 167 _DSC3332.jpg

When the pandemic picked up steam last spring, Ray Rumiano found a whole new gig. His family’s century-old business, Rumiano Cheese, was doing just fine, producing the mid-priced jack cheeses that supermarket shoppers were stockpiling. But Ray knew that some of his friends who made artisan cheese were in dire straits as their restaurant and catering sales plummeted. What could he do to help them through this crisis?

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In From: U.S. Tags Rumiano Cheese, Board at Home, cheese party, vitual tastings, California cheese
13 Comments

Six to Try Now

April 6, 2020 janet@janetfletcher.com
PC Top-Dual.jpg

Cheesemakers across the nation want to get their cheeses to you. Many are making it easier with discounts and deals—even waiving shipping fees in some cases. I’ve heard from some readers who saw my list [link here] and were moved to order, and I’ve heard from others who saw the list and couldn’t decide what to order. The cheeses most in need of a home are the fresh and lightly aged ones (think Camembert) that aren’t built to last. While you’re housebound, why not make your happy hours extra joyous with these six lovelies?

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In From: U.S. Tags quarantini hour, virtual happy hour, Alemar Cheese, Nicasio Valley Cheese, Jasper Hill Farm, Pennyroyal Farm, Anderson Valley, California cheese, Jacobs & Brichford, FireFly Farms, Beehive Cheese
7 Comments
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Welcome to my world: a fragrant, fascinating universe devoted to great cheese. In this and future Planet Cheese posts, you’ll find profiles of the world’s best cheeses plus insights into everything cheese: shops, recipes, interviews, pairing discoveries, classes, videos, travel. If you haven’t already done so, sign up here - it’s complimentary - and join me in learning something new about cheese every week.


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     Photographs: Douglas Fletcher, Ed Anderson, Megan Clouse, Faith Echtermeyer, Eva Kolenko,
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