Since I haven’t tried a soft cheese yet during my tasting adventure, I picked one up at the store this week. It didn’t have a ridiculous price, and I had never heard of it. Winner! Shallot and Chive Boursin cheese it is.
Origins
Boursin cheese is a foil-wrapped, cow’s milk, soft cheese. It has origins in Croisy-sur-Eure, a small town in Normandy, France. It was created by Francois Boursin in 1957 and is still very popular in France today.
Francois’ inspiration came from a traditional French party dish that combines fresh cream, soft cheese, garlic, herbs, and salt and pepper.
Boursin is actually the brand name as well as the name of the cheese. They make 6 flavors:
- Garlic and fine herbs
- Shallot and chive
- Basil and chive
- Pepper
- Cranberry and spice
- Chili pepper
Taste
Boursin smells pretty similar to cream cheese. It also has a similar color but speckled with little chunks of shallots and chives.
I tried this cheese with crackers because it seems like it’s meant to be spread. It’s salty, creamy, but slightly fluffy and crumbly. This cheese is very similar in taste to cream cheese but more savory. It also has a higher fat content. The shallots and chives add a nice accent that makes it taste slightly more complex.
I could definitely serve this at a party, as it looks nice and has a classy feel to it. I’m not sold on the taste though. It’s more or less glorified cream cheese with some herbs added in. Nothing special as far as a cheese spread goes.
Don’t get me wrong, I like this cheese, it’s just not as complex as I like a good cheese to be.
Recipe
Serve Boursin as an hors d’oeuvre at a party and end the night with happy guests. It would be delicious in place of the cream cheese in these cucumber cracker bites.
Pairs Well With
Food – Rye crackers, baguette, ham
Wine – Pinot noir, Riesling
Beer – Brown ale
Boursin Trivia
True Boursin cheese will always say “Gournay cheese” on the packaging. Gournay (a region in France) is the name Francois Boursin gave his cheese after customs officials asked him about the cheese’s origins.
Next week I’ll be trying a smoked blue cheese from Weyauwega Star Dairy.