Culture Magazine

16 culturecheesemag.com THE HOT LIS T 2024 CHEESE BITES Home Is Where the Cheese Shop Is SAN SEBASTIÁN'S SMALLEST CHEESE SHOP IS AN INCUBATOR FOR INSPIRATION written by Jenn Rice I extended my stay in Donostia–San Sebastián, Spain, to visit a cheese shop I'd researched: Elkano 1 Gaztagune—a tiny space with a sizable variety of cheeses. I had recently befriended the shop's cheesemonger, Cecilia Garmendia Torres (also a biologist and cheesemaker, formerly of Lamp Post Cheese in Lebanon, Ohio), and deemed it my kind of cheese shop when I spotted Quesos y Besos from Jaén and El Teyedu from Picos de Europa in Asturias. Ramón Lizeaga, one of the greatest cheesemakers in Basque Country, opened Elkano 1 Gaztagune in April 2015 in hopes of making cheeses other than Idiazabal. In 2017, a few months after Iker Izeta Alberdi started working in the shop and became the owner, Lizeaga passed away. "Bitten by the cheese bug, [Alberdi] decided to take over—first the cheese shop, then the creamery," Garmendia Torres tells me. Alberdi mainly produces lactic cheeses and bloomy rinds with Latxa sheep's milk in Aia, a small town located between San Sebastián and Getaria. His most sought-after cheeses are Ondarre and Bigel. The former is a lactic cheese with a wrinkly rind and "the paste is like whipped cream with a runny cream line under the rind," says Garmendia Torres. Bigel is also known for its sultry, runny cream line that's the "show of the shop"—a solid entertaining cheese. "The flavors are layered, vegetal, a little cooked cauliflower—but you can also taste the animal," she adds. Elkano 1 is a magnet for chefs and restaurants; the shop helps select cheeses for dishes and cheese boards for a long list of standout establishments, including three Michelin-starred restaurants: Lasarte, Arzak, and Hiruzta Bodega (a winery where you can guzzle Txakoli, a sparkling dry white wine from Basque Country, alongside cheeses). I was lucky enough to sit down with Garmendia Torres for dinner one night at the cozy Geralds Bar, where an Elkano 1 cheese board barely touched the bar counter before I devoured it. That evening, I learned the cheese world is a small world that often feels like home. "When I started my creamery in Ohio, I started researching what Spanish cheesemakers were doing," says Garmendia Torres. "I found out about Ramón, unfortunately, after he'd just passed away, but I kept following Elkano 1 on social media," she adds. "They are a small shop that cares about the local economy; they are closely connected to the producers and take pride in the cheeses selected." Devastatingly, Garmendia Torres had to shut down her creamery amidst the pandemic, but it prompted her move back to San Sebastián with her husband. A cheesemonger job at Elkano 1 presented itself, and because of her background, the team immediately welcomed her. "I enjoy learning from [Alberdi] about his cheesemaking practices—and enjoy that I can help him from time to time at the creamery," she says. "I have realized that I enjoy selling cheese more than I thought." c CAMERON SMITH MAÎTRE DU FROMAGE AT THE INN AT LITTLE WASHINGTON By Alyssa Langer When you opt into the Inn at Little Washington's $32 cheese course, you get dinner and a show, thanks to f romager and "cheese whiz" Cameron Smith. For nearly 17 years, Smith has been serving cheese with a side of comedy. His act starts the moment he wheels the cheese cart—a rolling cow—into the dining room. Heads turn. iPhone cameras flash. Sure, you get to learn about cheese f rom a Certified Cheese Professional, but what's most impressive is how effortlessly Smith intertwines his cheese knowledge with an endless supply of dairy-themed entertainment. I caught up with Smith to discuss all things cheese. Tell me more about the famous cow cheese cart; how and when did that idea arise? Initially, there was a regular-looking cheese cart at the Inn, but it wasn't that well-received. It was the chef's idea—"Why don't we put it on a goat? That would be more approachable." But they couldn't find a goat. Instead, they found a lady who made life-size cows, so they asked her to make a smaller one. That was in 2000 (the "churn of the century"), so [the cow cart is] 24. She was inspired by a Jersey cow born at the Clay County Fair in Iowa—hence her name, Faira. You have a reputation as a pun master— how did this become an integral part of the cheese course? This comedy routine developed over time. Way back when, there was a guest who made a cheese joke, and it snowballed into a barrage of all these jokes. Chef O'Connell has a theater background; he feels the dining room is the living theater, and this is my act. How do you curate the cheese cart, and do the cheeses rotate? There are usually around 25 to 30 cheeses on the cart; it just depends on what fits. It's all about covering the different groups. There's always going to be a few chèvres, goat milk cheeses, sheep's milk cheeses, blue cheeses, bloomies, washed- rind cheeses, something you can scoop out with a spoon, something really pungent, and something pungent-yet-mild. Then there's the hard cheeses. I also try to order seasonally and directly from some local farms. I'll sometimes take finished cheeses and "doctor them up" to make them exclusive to us, for example cold smoking a chèvre, or taking a cheese and rolling it in herbs. The cart will change every day; I don't buy in mass quantities. c For more Q&A with Cameron Smith, visit culturecheesemag.com WHEYS Less TRAVELED Q&A PHOTO: Elkano 1 Gaztagune: Images courtesy of Elkano 1; Cam Smith: Greg Powers

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