Once upon a time, manchego and goat cheese had a stinky little baby...

Once upon a time, manchego and goat cheese had a stinky little baby and her name is Balarina Aged Goat Gouda.

There was a time when the idea of stinky cheese was utterly unappealing to me.  How could anything that reeks of gym socks possibly taste good? Well, somewhere along the way, I got far enough past the smell to actually taste some of them, and you know what? That last statement is indicative that either one should or should not drink wine in copious amounts, as wine is partly to blame for me getting past the stink.  Delicious! 

Anyway, at $17.99/lb, Balarina is fairly dear for my modest means, but a worthwhile occasional purchase.  Very satisfying.  I'm nibbling on some now on my lunch break.  Too bad I have to go back to work, else this would be quite marvelous with a nice wine.  Mmmm. 

There's this one stinky cheese that is one of my all-time favorites - epoisses - which the link terms "a stinker with a drinking problem."  I had a friend who shared a house in Santa Fe with a couple of friends, among them the wine buyer for the Santa Fe Whole Foods.  Went there one New Years' Eve party and found a puck of epoisses salaciously oozing across a plate.  The wine was red and delicious, and I succumbed to this neglected dissolving puck of creamy funky heaven.  Epoisses actually has a creamy sweetness you would not expect, but have a care-- the scent is un-ignorable.  This cheese is reputed to be banned on the Metro in Paris, for some reason. :P