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.

Jannei Fresh Curd

Fresh Curd
Goat's milk (Saanen)
Blue Mountain Ranges
100g or 200g tubs
www.jannei.com

Nothing says Spring like the first batch of new season goat's curd, and this is one of my favourites. Jannei Goat Dairy is a true farmhouse operation, owned and run by Jannet and Neil Watson (Jan + Nei = Jannei), just outside Lithgow on the western side of the Blue Mountain Ranges.

Jannei Fresh Curd

Fresh curd really allows the quality of the milk to shine through. Being the youngest of all cheese styles, with virtually no 'maturation', there's litte the cheesemaker can do to tweek or enhance its natural flavours. And there's certainly nowhere to hide if the milk quality is below par.

Not that there's much risk of that at Jannei, where sustainable farming is practiced and the goats are grazed and given natural feed suplements. The Fresh Curd has a lovely texture - thick and creamy without being heavy or dry - and a delicious lemony tang. It's really clean and refreshing, and nicely salted.

Try it spread on olive bread, or dolloped on thinly sliced smoked trout with lemon zest - yum!