[dropcap]Foodies[/dropcap] and cheese lovers may recall an Intermountain Jewish News article from 2014 about a man in New York dedicated to bringing good cheese to kosher consumers. Now, some three-and-a-half years, later, The Cheese Guy’s products are available in Denver.
The full range is being stocked at Pete’s Fruits and Vegetables, which already purveyed a large selection of kosher cheese from other producers.
According to Ted Moutzouris, who together with his father Pete Moutzouris is proprietor of Pete’s, the new stock came about by way of suggestion from a customer, Dr. Lisa Greenstein (author of the IJN’s twice monthly “Kosher@5280” recipe column.) She sparked the idea; Moutzouris reached out to Brent Delman, aka The Cheese Guy. Voilà! Denver’s kosher cheese selection has reached the next level.
For its first run, Pete’s ordered “a couple of everything,” says Ted. The selection is indeed wide-ranging, including fresh mozzarella (one of the most popular varieties so far according to Ted) and a blue cheese, both of which have been difficult to source kosher in the Denver area. There’s also Asiago, Pecorino and even a sheep cheese aged in red wine — to name a few.
Delman’s cheeses are OU-certified.
Delman, says Ted, was excited to bring his products to a new market. For Pete’s it was a good fit. “I’m always interested in hearing about which products our kosher consumers may want,” says Ted, who also says that he likes working with smaller purveyors, “producers who are passionate about food.”
Pete’s will continue to stock other kosher cheeses, much of which is shredded or sliced, a convenience that many customers are looking for. The Cheese Guy’s products are all whole blocks, higher end than some of the other cheese on offer.
“People still go for the cheddar they’re used to,” says Ted, “but they’re also maybe trying one of The Cheese Guy’s variants. Then maybe next time they come in they’ll try a different one.”
[dropcap]Meanwhile[/dropcap], next door, where Pete’s Pizza was once housed, Ted is getting ready to open Pete’s Wine & Spirits, an atmospheric wine shop with wood paneled walls fashioned from the barrels of feta that Pete’s imports, direct from Greece.
Ted plans to stock kosher wine after he “feels out what people want,” he says.
He understands, for example, that when it comes to kosher wine there is mevushal and non-mevushal, kashrut terms that reflect whether a wine is cooked, so he’s waiting on — and welcomes — feedback as to what wines kosher consumers are looking for.
“We’re always open to new ideas,” says Ted.
Located at Cedar and Holly where Hilltop meets Crestmoor, Pete’s Fruits and Vegetables has long been popular among the local Jewish community. Its new cheese counter, combined with the open approach of its proprietors, continues to serve Denver’s growing Jewish population.
Pete’s Fruits and Vegetables, 5606 E. Cedar Ave., 303-393-6247
Shana Goldberg may be reached at shana@ijn.com
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