Satori Bourbon BellVitano and 18 month Emmentaler, my impressions

 I recently acquired two cheeses, one an American-made Italian style cheese, and the other a Swiss. I plan to go back to some of my more favored varieties of cheese in later posts, but I decided this month to still expand my horizons. And both of these cheeses will do that job just fine.

Satori Bourbon BellVitano is an American Italian-style cheese, and as the name suggests, incorporates Bourbon, specifically Kentucky Bourbon. It's washed in the bourbon to incorporate the yeasty taste of the alcohol into the final flavor. 

Now, I must admit, while this cheese tastes fine, and my fellow cheese tasters (mom and grandma) unanimously agreed on two things. One, it was better suited for being part of a dish than cooked in anything, and two, while the taste was a pleasant blend of Parmigiano and Swiss, the yeasty aftertaste of the bourbon was a bit strong for our liking. 

As part of a meal, this would be a fine ingredient for a pasta dish. There is nowhere near enough alcohol to get drunk on in the cheese, as it's simply been washed in bourbon as opposed to being deeply infused with it. Regardless, you can definitely taste the bourbon remnants, so you may wish to enjoy this cheese with suitable alcoholic libations if for some reason you want to eat otherwise neat. 

As for the other cheese, it was 18 month-old Emmentaler, or Emmental. This is a classic Swiss cheese, rather similar to Gruyere, except unlike Gruyere, it is studded with holes from gas expulsion during maturation. The taste is rather closer to Parmigiano in some regards, but the Swiss is still there alongside the meatier flavor, yet it's still very gentle and approachable. It's the kind of cheese one could easily snack on or serve on a charcuterie board.

Final notes on the Emmentaler. While this is a registered geographic designation (as mine is sourced from Switzerland itself), there are several other regional varieties with similar names native to France and Germany. Jarlsberg, which I reviewed a couple of posts ago, is of a very similar style, but I found I prefer Emmentaler to Jarlsberg, but given my general aversion to most Swiss cheeses, that's merely my opinion, both are fine if you enjoy Swiss style cheeses.