raccoon cheese copyright 2009 TAS mania
After three weeks on the sparsely traveled roads of New Zealand, the "one up" conversation begins. "What do you mean you don't milk your sheep? You got like 40 million sheep and only four million people. We Americans even milk our raccoons."
- Let's back up a bit to the fact or folklore gathering conversation.
While traveling in Thailand with a group of northern Europeans, we had a conversation about indigenous animals. I found some Europeans, don't know what a raccoon is. I searched the internet and unearthed a source, reporting raccoons in Germany as early as 1934 with an ensuing migration of raccoons to neighboring countries over the last 75 years. But my poll data of n= 7 says, they generally don't know what a raccoon is or what it looks like. Now pay attention here, this is where the opportunity comes.
- I committed that little tidbit to memory. It's the "one up" material, the "amo" to use, when I meet a fellow traveler. You know the one that shows up as the trip "know it all."
He says, "We're surrounded by more sheep in this country than people."
I say, "about ten to one. And no pecorino cheese, no La Mancha manchego with a crisp granny smith apple.
Do you have sheep cheese in Switzerland?"
He says, "Why yes, but 99% is cow cheese."
- A possible weakness identified.
After 3 weeks of touting his culinary acuteness, his epicurean resume and his name dropping of haute cuisine restaurant around the globe, it was my time, my moment to attempt a "one up" conversation with this unchosen traveling companion.
My opening move, "Well in America we got em all. -cows, goat, sheep, buffalo. Why, we even milk our raccoons."
He says, "raccoon? what's that?"
- Time for the automatic weapons
I make the masked bandit sign over my eyes. "Ricky Raccoon? " no sign of recognition. RJ from the movie Over the Hedge? How about Davy Crockett? You know his raccoon hat?"
He looks even more puzzled.
I rant, "raccoon cheese is a delicacy. Racoons eat a widely varied diet, so each region has their own unique flavor nuances."
He falls silent.
I let him squirm.
Just as I was about to fess up, he puffs up his chest and blurts out, "Oh yes, I had some raccoon cheese, that was two years aged...... it was from the Appalachian region of the USA. ... the cheese was infused with truffles from the the Garland farm in North Carolina." "Yes!... now, I remember the Relais & Chateaux rated, Inn at Little Washington served the cheese with some freshly harvested chanterelles."
- Okay so He got Me. .... maybe next time.
Traveling with an "unchosen" traveling companion, can make for some great sitcom like travel happy memories, so collect some "amo souvenirs" as you travel happy.
or hop over to the goAWAY
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