# Bad Brie?



## crono760

So I've recently learned that we have a cheese monger not 5 minutes from my house.  He sells the most wonderful raw milk cheeses, and I've fallen in love with Piave cheese in particular.

I decided to try out what I've been told is a "real" brie, the "Brie de Meaux"...except that when I brought it home, it tasted terrible.  I've heard that Brie is supposed to have a slight "ammonia" taste...but this was overwhelmingly bad.  Did we get a bad piece, or was it supposed to taste like that?  We tasted a few other cheeses that were decidedly terrible as well, so I can't really tell

Mike


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## QSis

I don't know about what you had, crono, but I once bought a big wedge of brie for $1.00 at an open air market that's famous for discount prices (Boston's Haymarket).  

The brie smelled just like urine and tasted horrible.  Had to toss it.

Up until now, I just assumed it was overripe, but maybe it was similar to your "real brie".  In any case, I couldn't eat it.

Lee


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## TATTRAT

it should have a medium rind, and it will smell...it is mold, but the flavor should be like slightly sweetened, yet slightly sour cream, and the texture should give under the cut of a knife, and stick just a little, but melt in your mouth, and be palatable.

IF there is any type of aroma of ammonia, which I never honestly thought of until now, it would be VERY faint, and just in the nose as the cheese enters your mouth. 

As for the other cheeses, well I would be bummed if your monger is passing along bunk cheeses. Sure some are stronger then others, but a good cheese is a GOOD cheese.


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## crono760

QSis said:


> I don't know about what you had, crono, but I once bought a big wedge of brie for $1.00 at an open air market that's famous for discount prices (Boston's Haymarket).
> 
> The brie smelled just like urine and tasted horrible.  Had to toss it.
> 
> Up until now, I just assumed it was overripe, but maybe it was similar to your "real brie".  In any case, I couldn't eat it.
> 
> Lee



That explains it pretty well.  I've had Brie that has been exactly as Tattarat described, and I thought that maybe I'd just been buying "Americanized" Brie.  It's good to know that I was eating bad cheese, because...I can't imagine why anyone would eat what I bought


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## jpmcgrew

Brie should not have even the slightest hint of ammonia the mold on the outside should be the purest white if not it is to old. Any ammonia smell means it's bad. Why would anyone want to eat a cheese that has even the slightest hint of ammonia?


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## jpmcgrew

It's hard to get a good brie that isn't old ( unless you live in a place that sells it all the time meaning it turns over quickly when it is fresh even the mold is fantastic and is supposed to be eaten. Again it should not have even the slightest ammonia smell.


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## shortchef

I bought some Brie several years ago by a guy who had just opened a cheese shop in town.  It smelled like ammonia, we couldn't get it past our noses.  I took it back and he tried to make a fool out of me, saying that is how it is supposed to taste.  He did refund my money,but I never went back.
By the way,if you do come across some really good Brie, buy extra, wrap it really tight, and freeze it.  If you have a Foodsaver, freeze the cheese and put it in one of those bags.  It freezes very well and does not lose its taste.


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## bowlingshirt

I typed "brie ammonia" into a search engine and it found several articles about brie being over-ripened if it has this smell.


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## jpmcgrew

Also as I said before be sure the rind is pure white if it has any yellowing of brown it already smells like ammonia. I look for the white rind and then check expiration dates then I pick the one with the longest exp date. 

Glossary of Cheese Terms


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## jpmcgrew

bowlingshirt said:


> I typed "brie ammonia" into a search engine and it found several articles about brie being over-ripened if it has this smell.


 or mishandled or tempurature fluctuations. I have people who insist the ammonia smell is normal it is not.


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## Robo410

raw single cream brie can be quite runny when ripe and very "high" a distinct "nose" call it ammonia.  Your pasturinzed  bries and double and triple cream bries don't get this "stinky".  those of us who like  a  "heady" cheese, love that  intense brie, and it is hard to find.


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## BreezyCooking

I enjoy ripe unpasteurized Bries & Camemberts frequently, & a strong ammonia scent &/or taste shouldn't come into the equation.

For those who enjoy the scent & taste of ammonia in overripe cheese, all the more power to you.  Call it whatever title ("high nose") you want.  Enjoying spoiled cheese is definitely an acquired taste, as is the spoiled/rotten shark of Iceland, & other highly fermented dishes that are enjoyed by many.  There's certainly nothing wrong with enjoying those tastes, but please don't make it sound like there's something wrong with the rest of us because ammonia just isn't our thing - lol!!!!!

For the rest of us cheese plebians, a strong ammonia scent, off-color rind, unpleasant (as in slightly rancid) taste in Brie, Camembert or similar soft-rind cheese means it's highly likely an overripe cheese, & any reputable cheese shop should take it back & refund your money.


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## jpmcgrew

BreezyCooking said:


> I enjoy ripe unpasteurized Bries & Camemberts frequently, & a strong ammonia scent &/or taste shouldn't come into the equation.
> 
> For those who enjoy the scent & taste of ammonia in overripe cheese, all the more power to you. Call it whatever title ("high nose") you want. Enjoying spoiled cheese is definitely an acquired taste, as is the spoiled/rotten shark of Iceland, & other highly fermented dishes that are enjoyed by many. There's certainly nothing wrong with enjoying those tastes, but please don't make it sound like there's something wrong with the rest of us because ammonia just isn't our thing - lol!!!!!
> 
> For the rest of us cheese plebians, a strong ammonia scent, off-color rind, unpleasant (as in slightly rancid) taste in Brie, Camembert or similar soft-rind cheese means it's highly likely an overripe cheese, & any reputable cheese shop should take it back & refund your money.


 I agree with you 100 percent I once bought a large wheel of brie for a Bed & Breakfast I worked at and it was so fresh that when I cut a large wedge of it off a couple of days later the white mold grew right over the cut part. Amazing.  The same goes for me with goat cheese I do not like old goat cheese it is too strong for me but fresh goat cheese is really lovely.


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## GB

BreezyCooking said:


> please don't make it sound like there's something wrong with the rest of us because ammonia just isn't our thing


I do not see where anyone made it sound that way.

I never used to like brie, but lately I have been learning to enjoy it. I have never noticed the ammonia smell though.


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## auntdot

I have never had a type of cheese I did not like, including stuff like Limburger and Gjetost, stuff that many find unpleasant.  Actually a lovely wine with Gjetost is just great.

That aside, have never had a food product that smelled of ammonia without being 'off'.

Putrefication releases ammonia.  

To me Brie is a lovely cheese, a whif of ammonia I think would put me off.

And if I had a cheese monger tell me that is the way the stuff is supposed to smell, I let him go out of business quietly.


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## Saphellae

I saw this thread, and the next day I chose our weekly cheese (we try a new one every week).  Was supposed to be a nice Camembert. I opened it up and it stank just like ammonia. I had forgotten to check the date at the store. Stupid me, I ALWAYS check dates.  It was 4 days from being due.

NASTY!!!

Anyways, if I hadn't read this thread, I would have probably tried to eat it, not knowing what Camembert smells / tastes like. And I STILL don't know!


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## jlsrpierce

Yep, cheeses can smell and taste of ammonia due to being overripe, it's called ammoniated and common in Brie and Camembert. But lightly ammoniated cheese is still safe to eat ! !

Of course not a nice introduction if it's your first Brie or Camenbert, which incidentally are basically the same cheese, just made originally in different parts of France and Brie is in large rounds and Camenbert is normally small rounds.


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## crono760

hm, that's interesting.  I didn't know that Brie and Camembert where the same (ish).

I was reading a great book called "Last chance to eat: the fate of taste in a fast food world".  The author devotes a quarter of the book to Brie, which is no longer being made in the traditional way.  I was saddened to try the bad brie we bought, but I have to try again 

Mike


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## buckytom

crono760 said:


> , and I thought that maybe I'd just been buying "Americanized" Brie. It's good to know that I was eating bad cheese, because...I can't imagine why anyone would eat what I bought


 
wow, good to know you were jsut getting poisoned by food, rather than being americanized. 

cheese should never taste bad. like tatt said, it may have a funky nose, but it should never taste bad. that's mold and other creepy stuff (not americans) run amok.


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## jlsrpierce

crono760

Best way to choose a good Camenbert/Brie (normally buy brie in cut triangles):
Buy from a reputable store so you know it's been stored - matured correctly (OK that didn't work out for you.
Choosing and consuming one that is closest to it's best by date (this does not mean it expires on that date).

Of course you need to bring wither up to room temp before eating to bring out the aroma and fravor.

One quarter of a book just on brie! My understanding is that US laws only allow cheese made from pasteurized and homogenized milk, if you see merlin's post in the forum of website in my signature, he says French Brie's made from raw milk "completley blows our stuff out of the water".


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## hentsand

*Bad Brie.*

BRIE THAT HAS AN "AMMONIA" TASTE IS A CHEESE THAT "HAS GONE OVER THE HILL".  IT IS BEST WHEN FRESH AND "RUNNY".  THE BEST WISCONSIN BRIE I HAVE EVER HAD WAS FROM "KOLB-LENA" CHEESE CO. IN LENA, WIS.
UNFORTUNATELY, IT IS NOW GONE.

PRAY TELL, DOES ANYONE KNOW OF ANY WISCONSIN CHEESEMAKERS WHO MAKE ANY BRIE, CAMEMBERT OR LIEDERKRANZ TYPE CHEESE.  ANY LEADS WILL BE APPRECIATED.  THANKS.  hentsand@ix.netcom.com


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## CheeseisGood

It's funny.  I'm a big fan of brie and I recently tried a brie de meaux which I felt was milder and less ammonia-tasting than other bries.  Perhaps you just got a bad one as others have suggested.


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## jpmcgrew

I will say it again any cheese should NOT even have the slightest hint of ammonia Brie should be a pure white even when it's white it can have a slight ammonia smell if it doe's it is entirely unacceptable. I mean who would want anything that smelled like a cleaning product. A good brie is so good that you can even eat the white mold. It's almost impossible for me to get a decent brie where I live and it makes me really sad. The same goes for any soft cheese I adore St. Andre but if it's old it makes me gag if it's good I can't get enough.


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## BabyMia

It is my understanding that there is such a thing as aged brie. At Wegmans (They have the finest cheese section I have ever seen), they sell their own brand of brie in the following categories: Mild, Medium, and Intense. I adore the intense brie (I like ALL brie). The smell of the intense brie (What I understand as aged brie) does not smell like amonia to me, but has a definate mushroom like aroma. Does not bother me that much, although I can understand why others may be turned off by it. I find its flavor fabulous.... but it is an aquired taste.


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## BreezyCooking

There's a HUGE difference between "mushroom-smelling" brie & "ammonia-smelling" brie.


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## jpmcgrew

BreezyCooking said:


> There's a HUGE difference between "mushroom-smelling" brie & "ammonia-smelling" brie.


 
 Ditto! When I live in a town that sells a lot of brie it's heavenly but where I live now it's sometimes good but usually not and since it's already wrapped in slices I have no way of telling besides exp date. No cheese should have any kind of ammonia smell. I wish I could go to France on a cheese bender not to mention everything else.


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## BabyMia

*Brie*

Then I guess I have been lucky enough to never encounter ammonia brie. Phew


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## julieann22

Not to argue for the sake of arguing, but here is another opinion from a cheese master.

Stinky Brie Cheese | Reluctant Gourmet


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## Rocklobster

I am one of those people that has no problem with the amonia smell. I just don't eat the rind. I have never had problem with any stinky cheese. Sometimes I can only eat a bit or don't particularly like the flavor, but have always tried just about anything.

Years ago, we went on a trip for a few days in the summer and I left instructions for my son to throw out the garbage. Like a typical teenager, he didn't so when we returned the back summer kitchen smelled horrible because there were animal by products rotting in the bag in mid summer. Anyway, I got rid of the bag and aired out the back room. Later on that evening, I had a piece of farmers cheese that was very fermented(really fermented) and was eating some at the kitchen counter. My wife came in to the kitchen and emmediately said "I thought you threw that garbage bag out. The horrible smell is still very strong in here".  It was the cheese I was eating. She wouldn't let me keep it in the fridge because the smell made her sick. I loved the stuff....


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## taxlady

Danes love their stinky cheeses. I like them too. They joke about having a cheese in the fridge that needs to be tied down with a string.

When my DH tried his first stinky Danish cheese, he got a look on his face that I can't describe, but I immediately asked, "Are you alright?" Yes, just surprised by the vicious attack cheese. He admitted it was good, but surprising.


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