QuesoDiego – The San Diego Cheese Club
In lieu of our February meeting, we will be celebrating our 13th anniversary as a club with our popular Bubbly and Cheese Pairing. This is a ticketed event for members and their guests and will not be held at AleSmith. If you are member and didn’t receive an invitation, or if you aren’t a member yet and would like to join as a member and attend the event, please reach out to the officers.
We’ll resume regular meetings at AleSmith in March.
Happy New Year and welcome to another fun cheese filled year. Our scheduled meeting was a guest presentation by author and Moroccan chef, Kitty Morse. Unfortunately, she will not be available due to unexpected circumstances. We will reschedule her presentation as circumstances allow.
January Queso Diego Meeting
Pairing Cheese and Beverages: Complementarity and Contrast
January 17th 2023, 6:30 PM
AleSmith Brewery
9990 AleSmith Ct.
San Diego, CA 92126
Taking inspiration from our upcoming Anniversary Party, our January Queso Diego Meeting will explore the guidelines for cheese pairings and provide an opportunity for each of you to participate in developing some pairings of your own. Cheese and beverages for your pairing experiences will be provided. Prepare your palate for a fun experience.
In the meantime, watch your email for the announcement of our annual Anniversary Party on February 21st. Be sure to purchase your tickets early to ensure your place at the table, as tickets will be limited. The price is $20 for members and $30 for guests.
We also wanted to remind everyone that it’s time to renew annual dues. It is $20 for a personal membership and $30 for household. Feel free to bring cash or a check to the meeting or you can pay online at payments@quesodiego.org.
Please remember to bring a chair to the meeting, looking forward to seeing you then!
Please RSVP here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdv35R3HbLAjpcm_WCFlmD1MjPUwTZrSkPUc4o56yN-CTym-A/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0
Our monthly meeting will be held next Tuesday at Alesmith Brewery, 9990 Alesmith Ct. Potluck will start at 6:30, and the meeting topic will be Cider Making and Cheese Pairing. Stan Sisson will be our presenter and he is an experienced cider maker. We will have a few homebrewed ciders for sampling along with cheese pairings.
In lieu of our regular monthly meeting, we will be holding our annual “Bubbly and Cheese” pairing to celebrate Queso Diego’s 11th anniversary as a club. This is a special sit-down guided pairing event for members and their guests. If you would like to join as a member and attend, contact membership@quesodiego.org for details.
Members should have received the sign-up information via the club email list. If you are a member and did not, please contact the officers.
We will resume normal monthly meetings in March and we hope to see you then.
Please join us to celebrate 10 years of Queso Diego with a CHEESE & MUSIC PAIRING, Tuesday, February 16, 6:30pm
We will be pairing the cheeses listed below with different genre of music to discover how the music impacts the taste, smell, and/or sensation of cheese. Several genres of music will be played for each cheese, including at least one from the country of origin for each cheese. Much like different wines, music can change the tasting profile of cheese.
Here’s how it works:
You obtain one, two, three, or all four of the cheeses (from your cheese cave, refrigerator, or local cheese shop).
You obtain one bottle of bubbly, after all this is our anniversary and traditionally, it is “bubbly and cheese” to celebrate. If desired, you acquire other liquid refreshments you’d like to enjoy during the pairing (some general and specific, non-alcoholic and alcoholic recommendations for each cheese are listed at the bottom, if you need some ideas).
Optional: Headphones/ear buds – wearing headphones/ear buds helps you focus on the music and blocks out background noise in your environment (e.g., sounds of traffic, barking dogs, sounds of refrigerator).
We supply the music, pairing presentation, and polling questions.
The Cheeses*
FRENCH BRIE
SPANISH MANCHEGO (aged 6 mo)
ITALIAN PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO
AMERICAN (USA) AGED CHEDDAR (3 – 5 years)
*Note: The countries listed for each cheese are commonly associated with the style. Feel free to vary, as needed or desired. For example, you could get a brie-style cheese from Germany or Vermont. Work with your local cheesemonger/cheese shop (e.g. Smallgoods and Venessimo).
Pairing Ideas**
FRENCH BRIE – Champagne, Pellegrino (w/lime), cider from Normandy, Saison or other farmhouse beer
SPANISH MANCHEGO (aged 6 mo) – Merlot, Green Tea, Spanish Sidra Cider, Nut Brown Ale, Tawny Port, Sherry, amber spirit (aka aged)
ITALIAN PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO – Champagne, Merlot, Chardonnay, Amber Ale, Moretti or Peroni beer
AMERICAN (USA) AGED CHEDDAR (3 – 5 years) – Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Black Tea, 2 Towns Bad Apple Cider, Sherry, Stout, Alaskan or Stone Smoked Porter, German Rauchbier, Bear Republic Red Rocket Ale, Anchor Steam Beer
**The celebration will be focused on cheese and music pairings (i.e., beverage pairings optional)
A Zoom link was sent to the club email list. If you didn’t receive it, contact the officers.
Back by popular demand, we are having another pairing (Whoo Hoo!); this time we’ve expanded it to include meat. Our tour guides for this pairing event will be no other than Jenny and Mike Eastwood of Smallgoods during the October QD meeting (zoom info at the bottom). As many of you know, Jenny is a Certified Cheese Professional and together, Jenny and Mike are the cheesemonger and meatmonger (is that a real word?) of Smallgoods (and owners). They are well versed in pairings and pre-COVID were doing pairings around town at the different wine and beer establishments. Check out some of the pairing plates that they prepare weekly on facebook, https://www.facebook.com/smallgoodsUSA. They will discuss the individual cheeses and meats and how they pair together and with your beverage of choice(s). You will hear about the textures, aromas, flavor profiles, etc. and some interesting tidbits about their sources.
The plan is to have four cheeses and two cured meats. Below are the cheeses and suggested pairings. Most of the pairings will probably go more with beers but a few alternate options have been included for those that may prefer a different beverage. As before, we will each find our own beverage (places to look are in your frig, “cellar,” local wine, beer, spirit store). There are no rules, so if your beverage of choice is not listed, bring your favorite beverage(s).
Cheeses and Suggested Beverages :
– Ashed Chevre – Rose? something bubbly?
– Aged raw goat milk tomme (dry & crumbly) – Cider & Ale’s
– Aged raw cow milk Gouda (crunchy & butterscotch) – Stouts & Porters
– Aged cow milk Cheddar (big, rich, nutty) – Ciders & IPA’s
Oh, can it be Tuesday, yet? I can almost taste the cheese……………
So, where’s the meat?? The meats are a surprise but will play well with beers & ciders (and the cheeses) – Fear not! It’s not mystery meat; the meats will be revealed during the meeting though you can look at them and guess when you pick up your plates 😉.
So, here’s how it will work:
Beverages – members provide their own (see recommended beverages above for the selected cheeses)
Cheese and Meat Plates –
Cheese and Meat plates for members are $15, a 25% discount off the regular price (club is covering the other portion).
Members will pick up PRE-ORDERED (see below) cheese/meat plates at Smallgoods (7524 La Jolla Boulevard La Jolla, CA 92037) on Saturday (10am – 5pm), Sunday (10am – 2pm [CLOSES AT 2pm]), or Tuesday (10am – 5pm). *
It is super easy to get to their shop; on the weekends quickest to go into La Jolla by around 10:30am and on Tuesday between 10 – 11:30am and 2-3pm.
DIRECTIONS: From I-5 or 52, take La Jolla Parkway; keep straight on to Torrey Pines Road; Left on Girard Avenue; Right on Pearl Street; and Right on La Jolla Boulevard
** Pre-Orders are now closed **