Why You Will Fall in Love with American Artisan Cheese Apricity

 

Apricity, a bright, fluffy cheese orb from Alemar Cheese Company, resembles nothing if not a snowball, a fitting symbol for a Minnesota-based creamery, but its name is actually a tribute to a different kind of orb altogether: “Apricity is a word meaning ‘the warmth of the sun in winter,’” says Alemar head cheesemaker Charlotte Serino, “a sensation which most Minnesotans are acutely aware of. In creating a light cheese full of fine flavors and textures, we needed a name to match.”

An obsession-worthy cheese, and a favorite of Cheese Professor editor Amy Sherman, Alemar has a history of capturing lightning in a bottle with its artisan, grass-fed cow’s milk cheeses. Alemar’s very first cheese, a camembert-style Bent River by founder Keith Adams, was an award-winner on its first submission to a major competition. (editor’s note: read more about Keith Adams and his other cheese company, Wm Cofield Cheesemakers). Alemar’s website notes that James Beard award-winning food writer Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl likened this to “starting to throw javelins one day and coming home with an Olympic bronze 2 years later.” Now with a lineup of about 8 soft cheeses, and a new cheesemaker in Serino, Apricity is the latest from Alemar worthy of a following.

 

What is Apricity?

Apricity is a lactic-set, very young, soft-ripened cheese, made in the style of other small, soft European cheeses such as Italy’s decadent cheese cupcake, La Tur. A delicate, geotrichum candidum rind encases the fluffy, pasteurized cow’s milk paste, giving the appearance — and craveability — of a white chocolate truffle. “Apricity is a great first cheese on a charcuterie board,” says Serino. “Think of it like a white wine in cheese form — bright and full-flavored without being heavy.”

 

History of Apricity: A Happy Accident

Like a microcosm of the world of cheese itself, Apricity is a result of going down one path, and coming out an entirely different place than where you thought you were heading. “The initial idea behind this cheese was to make an apple in cheese form, “says Serino, “something sweet, fruity, and tangy to pair with the apple brandy-pickled grape leaves on our Sakatah,” Alemar’s grape leaf-wrapped bloomy rind in the style of Banon or Mothais a la Feuille. “Apricity was initially intended as a new take on the Sakatah, but somewhere along the line, it became clear that the delicate flavors of this cheese would stand best on their own.”

 

How Apricity is Made

Apricity is the specific handiwork of Serino, who came to Alemar following her time at Pennsylvania’s Yellow Springs Farm, which specifically focused on lactic-set cheeses before the closure of their dairy operation in 2021.

“While most cheeses are coagulated from milk via the addition of a substantial amount of rennet, the curd for Apricity is made from milk via a very long fermentation up front,” says Serino, a new approach for the operation. “The cheese is then scooped into bags, drained for several days, and formed by hand into its final shape.” 

 

Apricity is ripened for only 3 to 4 days in the same ripening room as other Alemar cheeses, and the cross-pollination environment also contributes some of its character. According to Serino, “the rind of this cheese is prone to white, orange, and blue growth as it ages — things love to jump onto this cheese in particular.” (Note: even the microbes crave Apricity.)

 

Apricity Tasting Notes

Serino suggests that Apricity leads with butter, lactic tang, and fermented fruit, with subtle secondary notes of barnyard funk, herbs, and grass, with its funkier, fermented qualities increasing in intensity as the cheese ages. Texturally, Apricity has “a creamy, fudgy texture with slight graininess that melts in your mouth,” says Serino. Twin Cities’ France 44 describes it as having a “gently yeasty tang, reminiscent of cultured yogurt, tart white grapes, or natural, unfiltered white wine,” and Wisconsin’s Fromagination calls it “fluffy, tangy, and impossible to forget.”

 

Apricity Pairings

“A little sweetness really brings out a lot in this cheese,” says Serino. “Honey — and honey butter, if you really want to get indulgent — (author’s note: yes, please,) are especially good. The fine flavors of the honey and the cheese really play together nicely.” She also recommends lighter jams and preserves such as those made with citrus or apples.

Similarly, ideal beverage pairings are “sweet, bright, and light,” such as a variety of white wines, with crisper selections offering contrast to Apricity’s buttery vibe, and richer selections amplifying it, as well as wheat or fruit beers and ciders to play off of its fruity tang.