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Meet the Monger: Greselda Powell, Cheesemonger at the Bleecker St. Flagship Store

There are so many great, knowledgeable people who work at Murray’s that we wanted to highlight some of them and ask some cheese-centric questions!

This month, meet Greselda, a Cheesemonger at the Murray’s Bleecker St. Flagship Store.

Where are you originally from? 

I was raised and grew up in Savannah, Georgia. Later on, I went to college at Georgia Tech, in Atlanta, and when my family retired, they went back to Atlanta, so my home home is in Atlanta!

How did you first get into cheese? 

Well, I moved up to New Jersey in 2000, to work as a telecommunications engineer.  A couple of years later, I was reading in Time Out Magazine about this Cheese 101 class and I thought, “Alright I’ll check it out”. So, I ended up taking Cheese 101 at Murray’s over ten years ago, and I really became enamored with cheese. Before then, cheese was cheddar, old Amsterdam, and Government cheese (yuck). I started taking a lot of Murray’s Cheese classes. I took them on and off for about eight years.

About four years ago I got laid off, and so I decided to retire! At that time I was not only taking cheese classes, but I was volunteering at cheese classes to get free cheese! So after I retired, I decided to go up to Vermont for a retreat and found this thing called the Vermont Cheese Trail Map, and started visiting cheesemakers. While I was visiting with them, I was enamored by the love and the passion of cheesemakers and was just blown away by the awesome cheeses that I found in Vermont.  From there, I also started taking cheese classes up in Vermont (along with Murray’s classes, of course), I started taking cheese making and fermentation classes, and I realized that this is what I really want to do as my second career, my second act.

I did everything except for affinage, and so, in the Summer of last year, I did for an internship in Murray’s Caves to learn affinage. From there, I met with Murray’s HR, and next thing you know, I’m working behind the counter as Cheesemonger!

What is your favorite cheese at the moment? 

Paski Sir, a sheep’s milk cheese from Croatia. I love the hard and crumbly texture, the savoriness, nuttiness, and saltiness of that cheese.

Paski Sir

In this hot weather, I find it’s great with cold summer fruits like melons and cherries. So I’ve been eating thinly shaved Paski Sir with a lot of Summer fruits. That saltiness really works well in contrast with the sweetness of the fruit.

What’s your favorite thing that your Murray’s sells?

The frikin’ Murray’s Granola! That stuff is like crack! It is so good. I’ve given it as gifts to friends, which was a big mistake, because now I find myself shipping Murray’s Granola all over the country. It’s not overly sweet, has some maple syrup sweetness, and has all these wonderful nuts, particularly Brazil nuts. It makes me feel guilty eating it for breakfast, I should be eating it for dessert!

Murray’s Granola

What do you love about Murray’s?

There’s a lot of things I really love about this place. First of all, Murray’s knows its cheeses. You can walk in, and get blown away and overwhelmed by the immense variety of cheese, but we are taught as mongers to help customers make the cheese approachable. I love the variety and the fact that I get to help customers explore and discovery all the variety that we have to offer.

The other thing is, it’s just a fun place to be. As a former customer and now a Cheesemonger working here, I love to tell anyone who asks about taking our cheese classes. It’s just a fun way to spend an evening. All the cheese and wine that you want to drink and eat, having something that will stimulate you intellectually and it’s just plain fun. What’s a better way to spend an evening?

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Fierte: A Special Edition Cheese for Pride

Since Murray’s opened in 1940, we have been located in Greenwich Village, the center of New York’s LGBT community. Many Murray’s employees identify as part of the community, and as a company we are proud to support and champion the LGBT community.

This Sunday is New York City’s annual Pride March, and we are celebrating with the release of a special edition cheese, Fierte. “Fierte” means pride in French, and the cheese is washed in Biere de Fierte, a Lemongrass & Ginger Belgian Tripel also made in honor of Pride by our neighbors at Big Alice Brewery.

Big Alice created Biere de Fierte in collaboration with Alexa Wilkinson, one of our very own wholesale account managers. We sat down with Alexa to discuss Murray’s Fierte, Big Alice’s Biere de Fierte, and her relationship to the two.

MURRAY’S BLOG: What is Biere de Fierte, and what is your relationship to it?

ALEXA WILKINSON: Biere de Fierte is a Lemongrass Ginger Belgian Tripel Ale that was brewed for the sole purpose of being a collaborative, limited release Pride ale between Big Alice Brewing and LGBT Craft Beer Meetup to not only be delicious, but help raise money to aide the LGBTQAI community.

Back in 2015 I started LGBT Craft Beer Meetup for a couple of reasons, the main one being that I wanted to create a community of LGBT craft beer nerds that, through a little research and organization, could occupy a craft beer bar or space in which we all felt safe and accepted. This craft beer industry is still very centered from a marketing standpoint towards typically straight men, and it’s still hard to find bars that feel safe to those in the LGBT community.

Big Alice Brewing Co’s owner, Kyle Hurst, and I would have many late night chats about the issue while he ate dinner at the bar I was managing, and about what we could do for the community. First step was brewing a delicious beer together, second step was serving it.

MB: What were you going for with this beer? Why did you choose the style and flavor profile?

AW: Honestly, the ingredients came together purely out of us wanting to have the acronym “LGBT.” Lemongrass and ginger are very complementary flavors, so after that it was deciding whether to keep going on with a list of four ingredients, or make a Belgian Tripel. We decided on the Belgian tripel 😊. Historically speaking, the yeast strain handles those intense, spicy flavors well, and Big Alice had already had a lot of success with both lemongrass as an ingredient and with the style itself.

MB: Is this the first incarnation of this beer? Were there others? If so, what was it like before this?

AW: This is the third year of this beer being brewed and sold, and every year it just keeps getting better. The first year was purely experimental, with just a taproom release. The second year was surrounded by a couple of events and fundraising efforts with multiple bars in the city. This year we were a little more relaxed and practical about it. Jon Kielty, head brewer of Big Alice, sourced some California Chardonnay barrels and did a smaller batch this year in order to get the flavors just right. The ABV on this year’s brew alone clocks in at almost 1% higher than last year because it just had more time to develop. It was sweeter and brighter before, with more residual sugar left over. This year it’s perfectly balanced, with hints of vanilla, spice, oak, and white wine. It’s fantastic. We are all very pleased.

MB: What was your goal in making Biere de Fierte?

AW: Our goal was to first and foremost collaborate on a beer that, while being sold, could actually benefit others. Money from every pint and bottle sold is going to New Alternatives, which is an LGBT homeless youth center in NYC. These kids have nowhere to go after simply being honest about who they are, and New Alternatives helps them with everything from the basic essentials like clean clothes and food to job training and education. Of the homeless youth in this city, 40% are LGBTQAI. That’s a disproportionately high number.

MB: When did you make the move from beer to cheese?

AW: I started in beer when I moved here from California as a singer-songwriter who desperately needed a serving job to pay bills. I found my way to the Gingerman through a friend of mine who knew Anne Becerra, who has become a mentor of sorts to me. While working there, we would spend hours on Sunday’s talking about beer and she inspired me to go after my Cicerone certification. After that, I went to culinary school at ICE and became an executive chef for multiple restaurants upstate and in NYC, all of which were centered around craft beer. So the jump from beer to cheese was not that difficult. They are both beautiful, 4 ingredient foodstuffs, old as civilized human history, that have a longstanding impact on economies and cultures. I love both equally, although beer will always be my first fermented love. Or is it pickles? No, it’s cheese! I have been eating cheese way longer than drinking beer.

MB: How did the idea come about for our Caves team to wash and age a cheese with this beer?

AW: I approached our buying team about how to make this happen and they were more than happy to try something like this out. Murray’s has worked with a couple of other breweries in NYC before, so it wasn’t too much of a risky experiment at this point to attempt a wash with this beer. All I did was help brew it and get it to our caves. PJ, our cavemaster, did the rest. He’s a Disney prince-looking genius who really knows his stuff. I feel very lucky that I get to work at a company that can combine my passion for both cheese and beer and actually make something incredible out of it!

MB: What do you pick up in this cheese? How does that play off the profile of the beer when they are paired together?

AW: If you’ve ever tried our Greensward and liked it, I highly recommend you try this cheese. It picked up some amazing piney and woodsy notes from the oak. Plus a hint of spice and umami as washed rind cheese tends to do. Its inner paste has duck fat and bacon notes as well, very decadent and tongue-coating. The pairing itself is fantastic too. The clove and banana notes in the beer stand out above the other flavors, leaving you with almost a bananas Foster campfire in your mouth. It’s a sophisticated pairing to say the least. Not your standard IPA and Cheddar!

MB: If people are interested in learning more about these products and the initiatives that proceeds will support, where can they do so?

AW: To find out more about Big Alice Brewing Co you can find them on social media or go to their website. This beer and cheese will be sold in our retail locations, and the cheese will also be sold online! Please visit New Alternatives to find out more about this organization. They do great work with limited resources and need every dollar we can give them.

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From all of us as Murray’s, Happy Pride!

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Olympia Provisions: The Grandest Salumeria in the Land

Cheese and meat is one of the oldest pairings, and Portland, OR’s Olympia Provisions is one of America’s foremost producers of artisanal meats—Bon Appetit calls them the country’s best charcuterie, and they’ve won more Good Food Awards than any other producer ever. So it’s only natural that we’d team up.

Murray’s and Olympia are joining forces for a series of experiences that are all about the glorious relationship between meat and cheese. We’ve developed exclusive recipes, collections, and classes that we’re sharing with you here.

Take a gander at some of the stellar Olympia products you can get right here on our site:

The Grand Olympian

Oregon’s first USDA-approved salumeria has been handcrafting world class meats for the last decade, developing a renown that only grows. In this collection, we’ve paired some of Olympia’s finest provisions with their cheesy counterpoints, along with a selection of classic meat-and-cheese accompaniments. This collection is a legitimate bounty.

Included in this collection:

• Olympia Provisions Summer Sausage
• Olympia Provisions Etna Salami
• Olympia Provisions Sweetheart Ham
• Taleggio
• Piave Vecchio
• Three Little Figs Balsamic Fresh Fig
• Rustic Bakery Olive Oil & Sel Gris Flatbread
• Castelvetrano Olives

Salami Etna

As masters of the charcuterial arts, Olympia Provisions has nailed this large-format, southern-Italian salami. It’s studded with pistachios and pepped up with lemon zest, giving the meat a bright and complex flavor profile.

Olympia’s artisanal meats are crafted with the utmost integrity, with pork from local farms that’s hand-butchered and free from antibiotics and hormones. These practices lead to an Etna salami that is exceptionally buttery in texture, with the pistachio providing an occasional crunchy contrast. That consistency makes this salami ideal for traditional antipasto plates—a few slices, along with mixed nuts and olives bring, out the best of the traditional Sicilian flavors.

Capicola

From the velvety white and pink marbling to the crust of toasted herbs, this traditional Italian meat tastes as beautiful as it looks. A cut of heritage pork shoulder is cured for ten days, then coated with black pepper, fennel seed, coriander, and anise. The crust is then made crispy with a slow roasting, creating a tender shoulder ham that is perfect for slicing. If you’re thirsty, grab a nutty brown ale or an inky Syrah.

Sweetheart Ham

This is one sweetheart that’s easy to fall in love with. It’s made with pork sirloin tip that’s brined for ten days with juniper berries, fresh herbs, garlic, and onions. After its glorious week-and-a-half flavor soak, the ham is slow-smoked over applewood for ten hours, acquiring a deeply satisfying depth. Makes for a revelatory ham and cheese sandwich, especially when counterpointed by an aged Manchego. Pop open a bottle of rosé or Chenin blanc for ultimate summer picnic vibes.

Bratwurst

German born, American adopted—the bratwurst is beer’s favorite sausage. That makes it ideal for a summer cookout. Olympia seasons theirs with white pepper, ginger, and nutmeg, a classic blend that’s never tasted better than when it meets pork of Olympia’s quality. You might say it’s the bratbest.

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The Macallan Whisky & Cheese Pairing Guide

Scotch whisky is every bit as diverse, intricate, and nuanced as cheese, so it helps to know which whiskies go best with which cheeses. With that in mind, we partnered up with our pals at The Macallan to put together this definitive guide for pairing their whiskies with the best possible cheesy companions. Without further ado, we present The Macallan Whisky & Cheese Pairing Guide:

Triple Cask Matured 12 Years Old

Nose: Complex with a hint of fruit and heather honey
Taste: Soft and malty, balanced with oak and fruit
The Perfect Pair: An extra aged gouda, such as Roomano
Here’s why: Triple Cask Matured 12 Years Old’s unique and complex honey sweetness enhances the caramel and toffee notes for which this cheese is so beloved.
Also pairs well with:
– A classic Comté , such as Murray’s Comté
– A creamy cheddar, such as Milton Creamery Prairie Breeze

Double Cask 12 Years Old

Nose:  Creamy butterscotch, candied orange, vanilla custard
Taste:  Honey, spices, and citrus, balanced with raisins and caramel
The Perfect Pair: A young manchego, such as Murray’s Young Manchego
Here’s why:  This sheep’s milk cheese is rich yet mellow, cutting through the citrus and spice notes within Double Cask 12 Years Old while enhancing the notes of honey and vanilla custard.
Also pairs well with:
– A French sheep’s milk cheese, such as Brebis du Haut-Bearn
– An earthy, truffled pecorino, such as Murray’s Pecorino Tartufello

Sherry Oak 12 Years Old

Nose:  Vanilla with a hint of ginger and dried fruits
Taste:  Smooth, rich dried fruits and sherry, balanced with wood smoke and spice
The Perfect Pair: An aged Alpine Gruyère, such as Murray’s Cave Aged Gruyère
Here’s why:  Alpine cheese typically leads with hints of caramelized onion, roasted garlic, and sweet, nutty notes. These flavors pair particularly well with the mellow wood smoke and dried fruit notes in Sherry Oak 12 Years Old.
Also pairs well with:
– An American Alpine-style cheese, such as Jasper Hill Farm Alpha Tolman
– A Swiss Alpine-style cheese, such as Annelies or Challerhocker

Triple Cask Matured 15 Years Old

Nose:  Full with hints of rose petal and cinnamon
Taste:  Intense rich chocolate, notes of orange and raisin
The Perfect Pair: A mellow blue cheese, such as Castello Traditional Danish Blue
Here’s why:  The salty, buttery flavors found in this blue cheese provide a refined contrast to the Triple Cask 15 Years Old’s floral and citrusy notes. It’s a perfect example of opposites attracting.
Also pairs well with:
– A Bavarian blue, such as Chiriboga Blue
– A buttery blue, such as Jasper Hill Farm Bayley Hazen Blue

Rare Cask

Nose:  Vanilla, raisins, and chocolate, followed by citrus fruits and spices
Taste:  Nutty spices, tempered by raisin and citrus
The Perfect Pair: A rich Camembert, such as Murray’s Camembert Fermier
Here’s why:  This funky, bloomy-rinded cheese has sweet, floral notes that bring out the Rare Cask’s qualities of maple syrup and candied nuts. The vanilla and citrus in the Rare Cask also help to cut through the cheese’s richness.
Also pairs well with:
– A woodsy, creamy bloomy rind, such as Jasper Hill Farms Harbison
– A soft-ripened triple creme, such as buttery blue, such as Delice de Bourgogne

And just like that, you’re ready for a fine dram and its perfect partner in cheesy refinement. In terms of the best way to enjoy your Scotch: you’ll get the most out of it by sipping on it at room temperature either neat or with a drop or two of water. Ice will chill the spirit, locking up both its taste and its aroma. A tiny bit of water can act to release new properties in the whisky, but a little bit goes a long way. With stuff of this quality, its best to appreciate it in its purest form.

Slàinte mhath.

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Señor Lechuga Hot Sauce: Caliente A.F.

“I’ve just always had a love for really spicy food,” says Nico Lechuga. Seems natural, then, that he’d love hot sauce too. And he does. But he always felt that the hot sauce game had a problem. There was plenty of eye-wateringly, tongue-flamingly, nasal-drippingly spicy stuff on the market, but none of those blistering bottles had any flavor to them. So, one day, he decided he would do something about it.

Nico didn’t come up as a chef. He was born and raised in California, in the Orange County town of Trabuco Canyon, and moved to New York to attend NYU for college. He’s been in NYC ever since, building a career in private equity. During that time, craving a hot sauce that registered equally high in Scoville count and deliciousness factor, he began making his own. He’d put it on everything: eggs, meat, soup, tacos, whatever. And then his friends caught on. When he and his wife Lauren would have people over, they’d try the bottle on the kitchen table without knowing that it was Nico’s creation. First they’d rave. Then they’d ask where the couple found it. When Nico would cop to having made it right there in the kitchen, everyone would say the same thing: “We would buy this if it was available in stores.”

And so Nico started working towards that. He made a test batch, he developed a trio of styles, he learned how to scale production, and then he found a space in Brooklyn where he could make and bottle the goods. Meanwhile, Lauren, who works in beauty, began developing the branding. She came up with the name, the labeling, the aesthetic, the website, the Instagram feed (go ahead and search #calienteasfuck)—everything outside the bottle. And thus, Señor Lechuga was born.

We met up with Nico and Lauren in their production space a couple weeks ago, where they led us in a make of their sauce. Naturally we brought a selection of cheese with us to pair with the sauces.

Our big takeaway from watching the operation in action was how meticulous Nico is at every step. There’s constant measuring and testing for things like pH and temperature precision and quality control. And the labeling (including handwriting every batch and bottle number on the bottles themselves) and pasteurizing and lid wrapping lead to a process that is quite intensive in both concentration and physical labor.

But as much sweat goes into making these bottles, maybe even more results from consuming them. Which we did, in copious amounts, with a suite of cheeses and side items. Here’s a rundown of our post-make creations:

The Wingless Buffalo Bite

There are three primary components to the ultimate buffalo wing: a peppery, vinegary sauce, a creamy and cooling blue cheese dressing, and a bright green crunchy element. Señor Lechuga’s Original Hot Sauce pairs with Point Reyes Original Blue and McClure’s Bread & Butter Pickles to achieve all that in one bite.

The Murray’s Monger Nachos Bite

Arzua Ulloa is our go-to cheese for nachos, and Señor Lechuga’s Chipotle Hot Sauce brings the smokey, spicy depth any good nacho should have. Add in a slice of chorizo for the meaty component and you’ve got yourself a combo that evokes the dish.

The Hawaiian Pizza

Cheese, pineapple, pork: the Hawaiian pizza is a thing of beauty. This combo tastes just like it. Señor Lechuga’s Pineapple Hot Sauce brings heat and tropical sweetness to contrast against a fresh, creamy cheese (we used burrata, Delice de Bourgogne, and Four Fat Fowl St. Stephen), while a slice of Speck hams things up.

Each one of these pairings sang, and then, when the heat hit, they also pleasantly screamed a little bit. And if, like Nico, that’s exactly what you’re looking for in a hot sauce, know that Señor Lechuga has you covered in spades.