lled Blackie from the black-waxed rind and it resembles
Vermont State cheese, although it is flatter. This is a proud new
American product, proving that although Papa Cheddar was born in
England his American kinfolk have developed independent and valuable
characters all on their own.

Coon Cheese

Coon cheese is full of flavor from being aged on shelves at a higher
temperature than cold storage. Its rind is darker from the growth of
mold and this shade is sometimes painted on more ordinary Cheddars to
make them look like Coon, which always brings a 10 percent premium
above the general run.

Made at Lowville, New York, it has received high praise from a host of
admirers, among them the French cook, Clementine, in Phineas Beck's
_Kitchen_, who raised it to the par of French immortals by calling it
Fromage de Coon. Clementine used it "with scintillating success in
countless French recipes which ended with the words _gratiner au four
et servir tres chaud_. She made _baguettes_ of it by soaking sticks
three-eights-inch square and one and a half inches long in lukewarm
milk, rolling them in flour, beaten egg and bread crumbs and browning
them instantaneously in boiling oil."

Herkimer County Cheese

The standard method for making American Cheddar was established in
Herkimer County, New York, in 1841 and has been rigidly maintained
down to this day. Made with rennet and a bacterial "starter," the curd
is cut and pressed to squeeze out all of the whey and then aged in
cylindrical forms for a year or more.

Herkimer leads the whole breed by being flaky, brittle, sharp and
nutty, with a crumb that will crumble, and a soft, mouth-watering pale
orange color when it is properly aged.

Isigny

Isigny is a native American cheese that came a cropper. It seems to be
extinct now, and perhaps that is all to the good, for it never meant
to be anything more than another Camembert, of which we have plenty of
imitation.

Not long after the Civil War the attempt was made to perfect Isigny.
The curd was carefully prepared according to an original formula,
washed and rubbed and set aside to come of age. But when it did, alas,
it was more like Limburger than Camembert, and since good domestic
Limburger was then a dime a pound, obviously it wouldn't pay off. Yet
in shape the newborn resembled Camembert, although it was much larger.
So they cut it down and named it after the delicate French Creme
d'lsigny.

Jack, California J