Gruyere? It’s more like a slightly sharper version of swiss cheese, with a more sturdy texture, better flavor, and it’s great stuff. I’ve only been munching it for a couple of years, and tend now to get it from regular stores rather than the imported slabs from the warehouse clubs, which tend to be almost as stiff as parm reg, and not as flavorful.
Sidebar, asiago was in vogue until gouda suddenly caught fire — my favorite gouda since the early 1980s has been leiden, which is gouda with cumin — and while I like it, I can no longer get the big-assed chunks of asiago at the warehouses (much cheaper that way).
One store in the nearby Big City carries something called “cave aged gruyere”, and of course there’s a smoked gruyere, just as there are smoked provolone, smoked gouda, smoked you-name-it. I’m glad sriracha didn’t catch on with cheese, btw.
Of the stinky cheeses, my hands-down fave is Fontinella (that’s not Fontina, no no no). I’ll nibble that, the taste is fab, and a surprise compared with the smell. The aftertaste is durable and it keeps me thinking about the next bite.
I’m thinking about getting lipo. ;^)
Another occasional pleasure is Huntsman — Double Glouchester with Stilton layers. Stilton is quite strong but very tasty. Crumbly.
Double G with chives and onions (Cotswold cheese) is a more frequent pleasure.