If January were a cheese, it would be Beaufort. So meltable, so sturdy, so warming. A good Beaufort—and it’s all good—elevates potato gratin, French onion soup, fondue, even a winter chicory salad. Stylistically, it’s Comté’s first cousin, yet it’s all but obliterated by that cheese’s prominence. France makes at least ten times more Comté than Beaufort, so when I see the latter at a cheese counter, I pounce. Gustiamo, the Italian food merchant, equates January with pasta and chickpeas. For me, cold weather means Beaufort.