This goat’s milk Camembert shines best when ripe

I’m always on the hunt for great domestic takes on Camembert, the soft-ripened round with a bloomy rind that, in its ideal state, is runny and boldly flavored. But I’m constantly amazed by how much the ripeness of each particular cheese is essential to the equation. Buy one too young and firm and it’s a boring bouncy paste. Buy one that’s right on point, with gently yielding sides and an oozy heart, and the character of its milk shines in its true, full glory.

This dynamic is especially a factor with the usually excellent Merry Goat Round from FireFly Farms in Accident, Md. As the name implies, this is a goat’s milk rendition of the cow’s milk Normand classic. But it can be like two completely different products depending on what stage you buy it in. And considering Merry Go Round is widely available in markets like Whole Foods and Mom’s Organic, where ripeness isn’t always closely monitored, choosing one can be a game of cheese roulette. I’ve lost that gamble a couple times, both with Merry Goat and its Spruce Reserve sibling wrapped in a band wood.

But I’ve also scored more than enough winners to reassure me this cheese is genuinely luscious when bought at the right moment. A gentle ripeness test of a light thumb-press is what you need to do before buying. Do its sides yield easily inside the wrapping, but with a hint of firmness still at the center? If so, buy it! Inside its delicate powdery rind, the bone white paste should gleam with a fully developed lactic shine that’s meant for spreading. Its flavor tastes like white button mushrooms wrapped in a citrusy, barnyard tang that is distinctive to goat cheese. And FirefFly’s milk, processed with a vegetarian rennet and sourced from nearby family farms that practice humane animal husbandry, has an especially clean quality that finishes with a lingering butterfat sweetness.

– Craig LaBan

Merry Goat Round, just over half a pound each, cost $19.99 a pound at Mom’s Organic Market and $23.99 at Whole Foods Market.