Cheese is quite probably the one food most vegans had trouble removing from their diets, but thanks to the extraordinary efforts of people like Miyoko Schinner, that is now a thing of the past. She started Miyoko’s Kitchen and opened a new world of vegan artisanal cheeses. As soon as I learned that Miyoko’s Kitchen was offering a “Miyoko’s Mix Collection” of all 9 their Miyoko’s Creamery cheeses, I jumped on it. When the package arrived I eagerly opened it up to find 9 individually numbered boxes of heaven, one of each flavor. The contents of the box were: No. 1 Classic Double Cream Chive, No. 2 Double Cream Sundried Tomato, No. 3 High Sierra Rustic Alpine, No. 4 Fresh Loire Valley in a Fig Leaf, No. 5 Mt. Vesuvius Black Ash, No 6. French Style Winter Truffle, No. 7 Aged English Sharp Farmhouse, No. 8 Aged English Smoked Farmhouse, and No. 9 Country Style Herbs de Provence.
Each cheese boxed, numbered and ready to be eaten
Ethan and I invited a few people over to share in our bounty and had a small cheese tasting party. We asked everyone to share their thoughts on each one with us so we could get a variety of opinions. Overall, everyone loved the cheeses, but a few stood out as favorites. The standouts were the Classic Double Cream Chive, High Sierra Rustic Apline, and Aged English Smoked Farmhouse.
All cheeses have an amazing soft and creamy texture, but some are more spreadable and others are a little firmer. They all present beautifully and would be a welcome addition to any cheese platter. The cheeses are all cashew based, so they would not be good for anyone with a nut allergy. Taking them in numerical order, here is our take on Miyoko’s Creamery Products.
No. 1 Classic Double Cream Chive: the chives give this cheese a lovely green tint. It is mellow with a slight tang and a mild chive taste. It worked well with crackers, but it would also work as a great spread for a sandwich or on a bagel.
No. 2 Double Cream Sundried Tomato: this cheese is a lovely reddish-orange color and has a robust flavor that is simultaneously sweet and savory. This cheese could easily be tossed into some fresh hot pasta to make an amazing creamy sauce.
No. 3 Rustic Alpine High Sierra: this cheese is a little firmer and has a deep almost earthy taste with just a hint of smokiness. This cheese pairs great with crackers or fruit. This was one of the favorites of the night.
No. 4 Fresh Loire in a Fig Leaf: the presentation alone of this cheese is magnificent. The soft wheel of cheese comes wrapped in a wine cured fig leaf. The taste was both new and familiar. It has a slight sweetness to it that called to mind hints of maple and coconut, even though neither is in the cheese. The play in textures between the creaminess of the cheese and firmness of the fig leaf is wonderful.
L to R: Classic Double Cream Chive, Diuble Cream Sundried Tomato, Rustic Alpine High Sierra, and Fresh Loire in a Fig Leaf.
No. 5 Mt. Vesuvius Black Ash: this creamy cheese is coated in black ash and was the first cheese with a split of opinions. The split came regarding the saltiness of the cheese. A few of us found it to be too salty, but others did not mind the salt. The grittiness of the ash is a strong contrast to the creaminess of the cheese.
No. 6 French Style Winter Truffle: this cheese has a very strong earthy, mushroom flavor. It is great for someone who loves mushrooms, but some found it to be overpowering.
No. 7 Aged English Sharp Farmhouse: this cheese is a little firmer and has a wonderful cheddar like sharpness to it. It has a very nice tang and a buttery smoothness. This would be great on a sandwich or even used to make a cheese sauce. This was beaten out for a spot in our top three by…
No. 8 Aged English Smoked Farmhouse: this cheese is a smoked version of the Aged English Sharp Farmhouse. It has a strong smoke flavor that is reminiscent of the smell of chestnuts being roasted by vendors on the streets of Manhattan at Christmastime. While the smoke is strong, it does not become acrid or overpowering as can happen with some smoked foods. In our pre-vegan days, Ethan and I loved smoked gouda, this is a welcome replacement.
No. 9 Country Style Herbes de Provence: this mild cheese is coated in Herbes de Provence. This cheese was bit of a surprise for all of us. It looks very striking with its herb coating, and everyone was a little hesitant about trying it, thinking the herbs would be too strong. However, the herbs and cheese meld into a lovely mix of flavor and texture.
Bottom to Top: Mt. Vesuvius Black Ash, French Style Winter Truffle, Aged English Sharp Farmhouse, Aged English Smoked Farmhouse, Country Style Herbes de Provence.
These cheese are game changers in the world of vegan cheese. They could be served to any omnivore without worry. A few of these will be making appearances at future gatherings of my family, where my mother always serves a variety of cheeses. I might actually tell her I will handle the cheese plate next time. Miyoko’s cheeses are available for purchase online.
Please note, that even though I referred to all of these products as “cheese”, Miyoko’s Kithcen is very clear to say that these are “cultured nut products” because in California to be called “cheese” the food must contain dairy. Although I don’t think anyone eating these would miss the dairy here. In fact, they probably wouldn’t even know these are dairy free. After eating them, the definitely wouldn’t care.
Our full spread. There was little left afterwards.
