Seriously, what is the nose on brie? I was just reading up on some French etiquette pages and they mention the height of bad manners is cutting the nose off brie. Odd, the brie I purchase is round. I don't see anything like a nose but hey, it's probably American machine made crap compared to what's sold in France, right? So I google up French brie and find the helpful notation Brie de Meaux is the top type you're likely to find most places. And don't cut the nose off. um hmm. I google for images and see....a round wheel of cheese with a white-ish rind. There is nothing at all nose-shaped or pointy about this cheese wheel. Maybe it's an imaginary nose and I've been slicing them off, willy nilly for years? Although...most parties I see people just bake the brie and treat it as a dip.
;)
Well, after much research, it turns out we're doin it wrong. Sigh. When one sees a piece of cheese, whatever the sort, even a soft, oozy baked brie, one should cut a careful wedge. Further, you should cut that wedge such that other wedges of the same size may be made of the rest of the cheese, and you can't cheat as I do with a pie by first cutting the cheese in half so that you have some line to work by as that would make the cheese more difficult to keep if there is a large quantity left. Despite the comment about a bump, apparently the nose of a cheese is the center....the pointy part comes into play when it's been cut. Presumption is the center of the cheese is the very best part, so taking more than one's share of the best is naturally very rude.
And now we all know about cheese and noses. Hurray!
Oh, and Brie de Meaux really is tasty. I had some in Paris, I can't find it at my local shop, but if you want to order some, they have it here
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