Fromage. Cheese. What kind of cheese, you asked? I love them all; soft and hard, fatty and smelly. But the orange colored ones really turn me off; which means I only eat white cheddar cheese!

You can say cheese is my new obsession. I’m so into him now! Cheese, like wine, has a personality, and therefore, must be addressed as a HE. And how do you like your men? Mozzarella-fresh? Semi-firm like a baby Gouda? Or firm like a Gruyere or a Manchego? Oh, I know! Hard-aged like a Parmigiano!

I think of wine as a SHE. Wine can be enjoyed young or mature. Soft as a Merlot, or hard as a Cab. Fresh as a Beaujolais, or demure as an old Zin. Wine should be appreciated slow. Admire the look, the legs. Allow the smell to imbue your senses. Let the taste fill your tongue. The way you would appreciate a woman.

And what can complement women better than men? Besides money? :) I guess there are certain wine (women) for certain cheese (men), and some people think they can tell of a person by the food he/she eats and the wine he/she drinks. I like the pungent Roquefort and a robust Cab, even though the two tastes don’t really go together. I guess I’m a sadist who likes smelly men?

OK. OK. No more digressing. Here’s the recipes for Fromage Bread, an appetizer I’ve enjoyed tremendously at a french bistro. Focaccia was used, but I’ve reproduced the dish with baguettes and I like my version better.

• French bread. I like the baguette with a dense dough. About 8 slices.
• Butter ( 1/4 stick) and minced garlic. To make life easier, I use the already minced garlic sold in jars.
• Gruyere, Brie, Cheddar. Proportion is 1/2 Brie, 1/4 Gruyere, 1/4 Cheddar.

Slice bread about an inch thick.

Melt in microwave oven, the butter stick with minced garlic

Spread butter mixture on bread. Put on top of bread slices of brie, gruyere, and cheddar.

Bake in 375 oven for 10 minutes. And voila, the best and easiest and fastest appetizers on earth! I had it with a 2007 Grenache from Italy, but I wish it were a Cab.

Note added on 02/28/2010: If you like anchovies, then this would be the ultimate loving machine. Pick out anchovies fillets from the can. Discard the oil or water coming with the anchovies. Add anchovies to butter and garlic mixture, smashing them to bits. When brushing butter on bread, make sure you also scoop up some anchovies bits too. OMG. This appetizer rocks and might bring you the big O. But again, only if you like anchovies.