Madame Fromage's Adventures in Cheese: How to Explore It, Pair It, and Love It, from the Creamiest Bries to the Funkiest Blues

by Tenaya Darlington

Meet Madame Fromage, aka Tenaya Darlington. A charming, witty, deeply knowledgeable and, above all, passionate caseophile-a fancy way of saying cheese lover-she's here to teach us pretty much everything we need to know about choosing cheese, tasting it, pairing it, and sharing it.

Structured around the concept of eight tasting journeys, Madame Fromage takes us on tours through the cheese world. We skydive into fresh cheeses, like chevres, ricotta, and buffalo mozzarella. Trek through the Alpines, with its Emmentalers and Gruyeres. Go spelunking into stinky cheeses like Taleggio, Pont-l'Eveque, and the rank Langres. Take a geological adventure with aged cheeses, including Parmigiano Reggiano and Manchego, and hop on a blue cheese rock 'n' roll tour-with their piercings and weird markings, these funky gorgonzolas, Roqueforts, and Stiltons are the rock stars of the cheese world. They also pair well with bourbon and elevate a burger, not to mention a wedge salad.

Along the way we learn about pasture-raised animals, spend time with fearless cheesemakers, discover tips on creating next-level boards for every style of cheese. And find a bucket-list of 25 greats readers will want to tick off, one by one. For any curd nerd whose eyes light up at the mere mention of triple crème, it's a journey that can't be missed.

• ISBN10: 1523506776
• ISBN13: 9781523506774
• Publish Date: 14 September 2023
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Workman Publishing
• Imprint: Workman Adult
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 288
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Madame Fromage's Adventures in Cheese is a well written, lightly humorous, encouraging, and info packed guide to choosing, using, pairing, and serving cheese, written and curated by Tenaya Darlington. Released 12th Sept 2023 by Hachette on their Workman imprint, it's 288 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

There's a bewildering array of cheese purpose built for every situation. There are artisanal cheeses made from an astounding array of milks and casein containing products and "Madame Fromage" gives the low-down on most of them. The book is engagingly written and graphically appealing and arranged in a logical manner so the info is easy to find and use.

The chapters are arranged in order: discovery (building a cheese board, what cheese *is* and how it's made, and more), exploration (different classes of cheese including fresh, soft ripened, cheddars, Alpine cheeses and even "stinky" cheeses), entertaining (shopping for, buying, and presenting cheese), and further reading and learning opportunities (cheese tours!!). The author/publisher has provided a bibliography and resources, links lists, glossary, and cross referenced index. 

The illustrations are simple and colorful; there are no photographs. Items of special interest are presented in highlighted text boxes throughout. 

Five stars. Interesting information, usefully presented, attractively packaged, and arranged in an accessible and logical manner. This would be an excellent choice for public or school library acquisition, home use, as well as for smallholders and foodies. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.