Mercer Road

oil on wood, 10x10"

Mercer Road, original artwork by Mike Geno

I'm so glad to finally get to paint this beautiful wedge, from a new cheese friend Emiliano Tatar, of Merion Park Cheese Co. He makes this raw cow milk, 2-3 month aged firm cheese that has a wonderful mouth feel of an ideal cheddar and a forward flavor of the cave it was aged in which seems to immediately balance out to a delicious and slightly tangy and bright finish. It's really great, and good thing since Emiliano is a part time cheese maker; he's a pediatrician with a passion for cheesemaking. So as a result, he's limited to producing a small amount of wheels and therefore they're a scarce Philadelphia delecacy.

Emiliano developed the recipe by using the Welsh Caerphilly as my model because it has a unique flavor profile that isn't seen that commonly in American cheeses. He used a yeast adjunct culture instead of the more commonly used molds. He says he tweaked the recipe until it was representing his "terroir" as best as I could. The milk comes from Lancaster county and the rind is developed with the natural environment in his small creamery and cave.

His affianage allows the rind to "go a little wild" and lets his cheese develop with minimal guidance. He embraces the complex flavor profiles and the fact it can vary from batch to batch. The artisanal quality of each wheel's blemish, to me, is a celebration of the earthy flaws and beautiful character.


Country of Origin: USA, Pennsylvania

Availability: sold