Jannei 'Bûche Noir'

Ashed Chèvre
Goat's milk (Saanen)
Blue Mountain Ranges
150g rounds or 250g logs
www.jannei.com

For anyone who thinks they "don't like goat's cheese", do yourself a favour and try this. Jannei's 'Bûche Noir' is one of the cleanest-tasting, consistently good goat's milk cheeses in Australia - and it hails from the Blue Mountain Ranges, just past Lithgow.

Jannei 'Bûche Noir'

There are two version of this cheese - 'Bûche Blanc', the 'white' version, and 'Bûche Noir', which is dusted in a very fine layer of black ash.  I prefer the ashed 'Noir'. The charcoal doesn't change the flavour or texture of the cheese, but I find it keeps the surface a bit dryer, and it looks stunning.

Not surprisingly, it just won another gold medal at the ASCA Sydney Cheese Show last month, along with Jannei's Fresh Curd and 'Bent Back' Chèvre.

I love its very smooth texture, lemony zesty tang, and freshing acidity, and the fact that it pairs perfectly with my favourite wine style, young Semillon from the Hunter Valley. Like all goat's cheeses, it's also good with Sauvignon Blanc, but I think the Semillon gives it a unique racy edge.