Trader Joe's Creamy Toscano Cheese Dusted with Cinnamon

By itself, the flavor of this toscano cheese is hearty, nutty, creamy, and not a far cry from more common cousins like parmesan or asiago. I always try cheese by itself before pairing it with something, just to know what I'm working with. This cheese is absolutely scrumptious just by itself, but I knew it had even more potential when matched up with the right companion flavors.

I kept reading that it wanted to be paired with something sweet—apricot preserves, fresh grapes, or even honey. We generally have a squeeze bottle of raw honey on our kitchen counter, so it was easy enough to drizzle a bit of it on this cheese, along with some classic water crackers.

Wow. The difference was staggering. The sweetness and syrupiness of the honey woke up the cheese and the cinnamon in a way I wouldn't have imagined possible. Amazingly delicious. We subsequently tried it with Trader Joe's Apricot Preserves (review forthcoming) and found it equally exquisite but for slightly different reasons. Now I want to try that toscano soaked in syrah and any other seasonal versions that might pop up at TJ's throughout the year.

I hear toscano cheese pairs pretty well with chardonnay or rosé wines. You don't have to twist my arm very hard to try wine and cheese combos, but we haven't gotten around to trying this with vino quite yet. If we do before we finish this wedge, we'll report back and drop a line in the comments.

$5.60 well spent. Perfect five stars from Sonia. Dang. I knew she liked it, but that's her first perfect score in a looong time. I liked it quite a bit as well, and I hate to deny it a shot at the hallowed halls of our Pantheon, but I don't like it quite enough just by itself to go higher than four out of five stars. Still, it's a great product and we would definitely buy Trader Joe's Creamy Toscano Cheese Dusted with Cinnamon again.

Bottom line: 9 out of 10.