Religious cheese

Chimay, a major Trappist beermaker, also produces a wonderful cheese by the same name.

It’s a semihard, pressed variety, with a natural, brownish rind. Made from scalded cow’s milk (a gentle way to pasteurize), Chimay is full of cream flavors and flowery aromas. It’s perfect with the sibling beers, especially the blue label.

Maredsous, a community of Benedictine monks, also markets a marvelous beer and a pungent, full flavored cheese to go with it.

The cow’s milk cheese is lightly pressed, then washed in brine during maturation. Its firm rind is burnt orange in color. Inside, the paste is the color of hay, smooth and fairly firm.

PAIRINGS: Northern Europeans like many of the monastic cheeses, including Pere Joseph, as desserts. They also work well with many big, winey Belgian ales. Or, try one with a glass of framboise. Not surprisingly, both Chimay and Maredsous are great alongside their namesake beers