There aren't many foods with broader appeal than cheese. Love for cheese knows no economic bounds, and thus those without a Bentley budget should still be entitled to premium parmesan and high-end havarti. Finding great cheese for cheap isn't impossible, especially if you know where to look.
Or in our case, you know somebody who knows where to look. "A lot of it is scalability economics," says Zach Berg, cheesemonger and owner of Detroit's Mongers' Provisions . "If you're talking about a farmstead operation, you have to talk about the cost of raising and feeding the animals, before you even get to the cost of making the cheese in a very different way than a large industrial operation is doing.
" Buying small-scale artisanal cheese doesn't just taste better, but feels better, knowing that your extra dollars are supporting smaller or more local operations. This doesn't mean, however, that all artisanal cheese is the same when it comes to price, or that there isn't great value to be had in the world of fancy cheese -- and that you can't score good cheese for (relatively) cheap. To that end, Berg talks us through some pro strategies for how to save some cheddah on your cheddar.
.. and gruyere, and camembert and so on.
(We've also got tips on how to store your cheese so It lasts longer , and how to find cheap wine that tastes expensive .) Talk to a cheesemonger Becoming friendly with your local cheesemonger is very likely to pay off. "Finding a person who you can talk to is step one.