Milkpail is something of a cheese mecca for me in the two states region (Northern and Southern Californias...)  They have walls of cold cases divided up by region and type, with an un-exaggeratedly vast, as well as deep, international selection of unusual and hard to find cheeses.  (Milkpail tops Whole Foods, Bi-rite, and dare I say it, the Cheeseboard Collective in Berkley in both variety and price, though the crowd in this tiny shop can be somewhat bumper to bumper.) You can find great wine, nuts, fruit, olives, salumi, pickles etc. to complete the ultimate cheese course.  Furthermore, the croissants in the freezer section are convenient confections, flaky, buttery and so light they're interstellar.

Clockwise from top left:  Jean Grogne, St. Agur, Boorenkaas Gouda, Mimolette demi Vieille

Fork and Bottle describes the Jean Grogne as, "Creamy and rich. Bloomy rind. Mushroomy but delicate  with a sight bitterness on the finish." A cow's milk triple crème by French cheesemaker and affineur, Robert Rouzaire.

The French St. Agur Blue is not as sharp or salty as an English blue and meets halfway with a washed rind's creamy soft texture. I like the funkiness, gentler blue kick, and lack of salt of this double creme from Monts du Velay cow's milk.

Our Boerenkaas Dutch Gouda is 3 year aged, cow's milk, farmer's cheese.  A hard hunk of lightly caramelized, grassy raw milk flavor with a complex yet mild taste.  From Slashfood: "The paste color is a deep yellowish-brown, and its aroma has notes of hazelnut and caramel with some meaty and cellar notes."

Mimolette demi Vieille just means Mimolette of 6 months age.  The orange comes from annato or achiote, which farmers of Lille, France add to cow's milk to make this goldeny cheese with a cantaloup exterior.  The hard texture and fruity-sweet, salty flavor isn't my favorite, but we got some so the SO could taste it because he found the color so mesmerizing.