Brie

Brie (/briː/; French: [bʁi]) is a soft cow's milk cheese named after Brie, the French region from which it originated (roughly corresponding to the modern département of Seine-et-Marne). It is pale in color with a slight grayish tinge under a rind of white mold. The whitish moldy rind is typically eaten, with its flavor depending largely upon the ingredients used and its manufacturing environment.

Production

Brie may be produced from whole or semi-skimmed milk. The curd is obtained by adding rennet to raw milk and warming it to a maximum temperature of 37 °C (99 °F). The cheese is then cast into molds, sometimes with a traditional perforated ladle called a pelle à brie. The 20 cm (8 in) mold is filled with several thin layers of cheese and drained for approximately 18 hours. The cheese is then taken out of the molds, salted, inoculated with cheese mold (Penicillium candidum, Penicillium camemberti) or Brevibacterium linens, and aged in a cellar for at least four to five weeks.

If left to mature for longer, typically several months to a year, the cheese becomes stronger in flavor and taste, the pâte drier and darker, and the rind also darker and crumbly, and it is called Brie Noir (French for "black brie"). Around the Île-de-France where brie is made, people enjoy soaking this in café au lait and eating it for breakfast.

Fat Wreck Chords

Fat Wreck Chords (pronounced as if spelled "Fat Records", /fæt ˈrɛkɜːrdz/) is a San Francisco, California-based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by NOFX lead singer Michael Burkett (better known as Fat Mike) and his girlfriend at the time, Erin Burkett, in 1991.

The label has released material for many notable bands including NOFX, Good Riddance, Descendents, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, The Loved Ones, Screeching Weasel, Propagandhi, Rise Against, Lagwagon, Strung Out, No Use for a Name, Less Than Jake, Against Me! and Anti-Flag. Fat Wreck Chords has released 157 studio albums to date.

History

The label was started by Michael Burkett (better known as Fat Mike) and his girlfriend at the time, Erin Burkett, in 1990. Michael wanted a label that would represent himself, signing only bands he liked and that had similar beliefs. In the beginning Erin would fill orders and handle mail when Michael was on tour. The operation moved into its own office around 1993.

Fat Mike

Michael John Burkett (born January 31, 1967), also known as Fat Mike is an American musician, producer, lead vocalist and bassist for the punk rock band NOFX, as well as bassist for the punk rock supergroup cover band Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and temporary bassist of Against Me!. He was born in Newton, Massachusetts.

Musical career

While attending Beverly Hills High School, Mike began his musical career with the band False Alarm. After the band split up in 1983, he met Eric Melvin and Erik Sandin and formed the original line-up of NOFX. He has also appeared as a guest-vocalist on a number of other bands' tracks including "Peter Brady" on Screeching Weasel's 1993 album, "Anthem for a New Tomorrow." Other appearances include "Beware" by Randy, "Mr. Coffee" and "Lazy" by Lagwagon, and can be heard heckling and requesting "Free Bird" at the end of the Lunachicks song, "Missed It," off their 1996 album, "Pretty Ugly," which he also produced. He also appears as a guest vocalist on the Dropkick Murphys single "Going Out In Style". Mike is the owner and founder of Fat Wreck Chords, one of the biggest independent labels in North America.