Lactose Intolerance + Cheese Taste Testing = Trouble...

I went to The Cheese Store of Silver Lake today.  If you haven't been there, definitely go there. They have the friendliest staff and an amazing amazing selection of fromage.  I went there to find a cheese to go on my Buttery Lamb Burger.  I ate a lot of cheese.  I love cheese.  My wife is amazed at how I eat cheese.  I order cheese plates, that are to be shared with like 3 or 4 people, all to myself.  I don't smear a little on a cracker, I load a huge chunk on top of the cracker.  My wife thinks I am sick.  The thing is, I've watched some of my favorite chefs eat cheese.  And guess what?  They eat it like me!  

So I wanted to find a good sheep's milk cheese to top on my burger.  One that melts real well and robust enough to stand alongside the meatiness of the lamb.  After a lot of sampling, I bought Onetic Blue (a Spanish sheep's milk blue cheese, Queso Romero (a semi-soft sheep's milk cheese cured in rosemary), and Lamb Chopper (a sheep's milk cheese similar to gouda but with more bite).  I tested all three on the buttery lamb burger.

The reason the burger is buttery is because I mix in whole butter right into the ground lamb. The butter mellows out the lamb, adds tons of richness, develops a nutty flavor as it caramelizes, and creates an incredibly juicy burger.  To balance out all this richness, I add a generous portion of spicy pickled onions.  And I top all this onto a toasted brioche bun.

The cheese I am going with is the Onetic Blue.  This blue cheese is amazing.  It is pungent, has some bite, robust, but is not over-salty like many other blues.  This is a controversial decision because my wife hates blue cheese.  And I know many are not fans.  I know I can't please everyone, all I want to do is make a kick-ass burger.  Honestly, this burger is good.

half pound of lamb, butter mixed in, big dollop of sheep's milk bleu, spicy onion pickles, toasted brioche...