Cheese Fest

Archive for the ‘3 Stars – Good’ Category

Délice de Bourgogne

From Burgundy, this decadent little number is definitely not one for those on a diet. With a fat content of over 75%, this triple cream cheese will clog the arteries as it makes its way directly to the waistline… but, oooh, what a way to go! Délice de Bourgogne The soft white bloomy rind, like that of a brie, covers the almost equally white paste. It has very little smell, a bit like crème fraîche (which is not surprising because it is one of the ingredients). It is soft, creamy and spreads easily, with a smooth, silky but also very fatty texture. Very, very creamy, with an almost fresh taste, slightly lemony, but with a quite salty, buttery flavour. In some ways, it has a very slight “blue” flavour, that gets stronger as the cheese gets older. Very rich and very decadent.

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia, 2012

(3.5/5)

 

Bavaria Blu

Sometimes sold under the name of Cambazola or Blue Brie, this pleasant little cheese that is easily available in many supermarkets. Though the alternative names suggest it could be Italian or French, it is actually German.

It is, by all accounts a blue Brie, using the same recipe as ordinary Brie. However, introducing the blue moulds is somewhat unconventional. Normally, the mould culture is added to the milk. During maturation, and starved of oxygen, it lies dormant until stainless steel wires are used to puncture the rind. With Bavaria Blu, the mould culture is introduced during maturation by injecting it directly into the cheese. This causes the blue moulds to be localised into little pockets rather than veins that pervade the paste.

Coated with a soft, dusty, edible, white rind. It has a cream to white paste, mottled with blue splodges, making it a quite attractive looking cheese.

Like a Brie, it has little or no smell, but unlike Brie it doesn’t produce a smell of ammonia when it gets really ripe.

It has a soft creamy texture, interspersed with the slightly harder patches of blue. A soft, delicate Brie like flavour with a gently blueness. As blue cheeses go, it is very inoffensive. A blue cheese for people that don’t like blue cheese.

Purchased from most leading supermarkets.

Produced by various manufacturers including: Cambazola, Bergader & Edelweiß

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia 2012

(3/5)

Burwash Rose

Orange/pink and sticky, with a strong smell, mildly floral, buttermilk that moves towards rotting cabbage as it ages. This cheese has been the only one to breach our (supposedly airtight) cheese confinement box. Seriously, this one could easily challenge Epoisses for the smelliest cheese in the world. Burwash Rose This Sussex cheese is unusual because it is washed in rose water.  This gives it a typically sticky orange/pink rind often associated with washed cheeses. The pate is soft and bouncy, scattered with little holes, with a lovely velvety soft smoothness. It has a flavour very similar to Livarot or Munster (though maybe not as strong), with a little bitterness, like Taleggio and very subtle floral hints. A little expensive, but very pleasant.

Produced by: The Traditional Cheese Dairy Co. Ltd., Stonegate.

Purchased from Cheese Please, Lewes.

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia.

(3.5/5)

Barkham Blue

This appealing soap-bar shaped cheese is made with Jersey cow’s milk, giving it a golden yellow colour and creamy texture.

Covered in a thin, sticky dark brown mouldery skin, it smells like damp stone. The skin is a little odd because it can almost be peeled off.

The pate is a creamy, golden yellow colour with dark contrasting bottle green veining. The texture, like brandy butter, soft and buttery, yet it breaks and crumbles under pressure.

It melts in the mouth with a sharp, blue flavour. It’s strong, but not aggressive, with a metallic “twang” and a slight fruitiness.

Note. As it ages, these interesting qualities fade and it can become unexciting.

Produced by: Two Hoots Cheese

Purchased from: Cheese Please, Lewes.

Reviewed by: Nick & Olympia 2012 & 2013

(3.5/5)

Rochebaron

We found this delightful blue cheese on a recent trip around France. We bought another one to bring home with us, but somehow it didn’t seem quite as good. Maybe, it was the fact that the one pictured, had been sitting in a warm car for a few days. Or perhaps it was a psychological effect of tasting better when you’re on holiday, picnicking under the trees.

A greenish grey ash rind about 6″ (15cm) diameter and 1″ (2.5cm) thick. Persillée (parsley), the French call this style of blue. Creamy white interior with flecks of green. Though the rind looks a little leathery, it is actually soft and pretty tasteless.

It has a lovely texture with a very mild, delicate flavour and doesn’t taste blue at all.  Not exciting, but very pleasant.

Purchased from Carrefour, Dunkerque.

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia 2013.

(3.5/5)

persillée

Harlech

Now, it has to be said that we are not fans of flavour added cheese, but this: wrapped in a bright orange jacket (presumably to reduce the chances of it being lost at sea) with its creamy pate and green flecks of horseradish, makes a welcome exception. Harlech It should come as no surprise that it smells of cheese and horseradish. Indeed, it is just a flavour added Cheddar, but the makers of Harlech got the mix just right. The cheese itself is a little sharp, a bit like a Cheshire, but then the taste of horseradish boldly marches in and makes its presence felt. Unlike many supermarket brands of horseradish sauce, the flavour of the horseradish is tangy, clean and fresh. It’s neither hot nor overpowering, but compliments the cheese to perfection. The whole experience is very satisfying and the bold flavours mean that it is just as at home in a salad sandwich as it is being nibbled with a glass of wine. Every good cheeseboard should have a flavour added cheese to add a touch of variety. Harlech is not only visually striking, but delicious and fits that requirement perfectly.

Purchased from Cheese Please, Lewes.

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia, 2013

(3/5)

Tomme de Vache

In a French motorway stop, there was a craft fair and a man selling cheese. Amongst his offerings was this rather gruesome looking object. Gnarled, grey with bits of white, it looks like a lead weight that’s sat at the bottom of the sea for a few years… so we had to buy it

About 4″ (10 cm) diameter, with a leathery, dirty grey rind, this little cheese looks like it has seen better days. The outside smells strongly of ammonia, like it’s been sat at the bottom of a pigeon coop for a few weeks.

The pate is a dirty yellow colour, greying towards the outside edge. It smells very strongly milky and slightly blue. The texture is soft, rubbery and creamy.

The flavour is, however, not strong. Slightly alpine, milky with bitter overtones. Despite its rough appearance, it is a rather delightful little cheese.

Reviewed by Nick, Olympia & guest reviewer, author John Bartlett

(3/5)

 

Wildblumenkäse

This rather peculiar and delightful offering was brought over, a couple of weeks ago, from Germany by Marjam (aka Maus) a lifelong friend of Olympia’s.It comes from the Allgäu in the Alpine area of southern Germany……and, yes, it is covered with wild flowers! Wildblumenkäse   The pate is a pale yellow, with the odd round bubble hole in it, very similar to many other Alpine cheeses. Of course, what makes this particular cheese rather unique is that they coat it in colourful, dried, wild flowers. Red, orange, mauve, white and green petals and herbs make it look more like pot-puris than a cheese, and it smells like it too. The rind smells of hay, lavender and aromatic pipe tobacco. The pate itself has a very faint alpine cheese smell. The flavour is mild, sweet and milky. The rind is edible, and it’s a good job too, because it turns this otherwise bland and unexciting cheese into something special. The rind tastes much like it smells: lavender; hay; flowers and herbs, with a subtle but definite underlying Alpine flavour. An interesting experience and definitely something to seek out if you find yourself in that part of the world.   [the feet in the picture are German cheese biscuits, called käsefüss (Cheesy Feet) also brough over by Maus ]

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia, 2013.

(3/5)

 

Stinking Bishop

Made famous by the Wallace and Gromit film “Curse of the Were-rabbit”, this is one of, sadly, few English washed rind cheeses. The practice of washing cheeses was developed by monks, which, when king Henry VIII wiped out the monasteries, also died out.

Washing cheeses enriches the flavour and has the side effect of making the cheese very smelly. (Epoisses, possibly being the most notable. Washed in brandy and banned on the Paris metro because of the resultant pungent aroma.)

Stinking Bishop cheese is washed in perry (pear cider) made from Stinking Bishop pears, the colloquial name for the Moorcroft variety. This pear was apparently grown by a Mr. Bishop, who, by some accounts, was not a particularly pleasant character.

All this aside, does it actually live up to its name? Well, yes and no. Most washed cheeses are smelly, and this is no exception, but it isn’t as overpowering as the name suggests. Even a ripe Camembert would beat it in it’s nostril assailing quality. That said, you probably wouldn’t want to sit in the car with one of these in the picnic hamper, on a hot summer day without the windows open.

Like most washed cheeses, the rind is sticky, with a pale pink/orange colouration. The texture is gooey, but has a slight “bounce” to it. The flavour is actually quite mild. Smooth and creamy with a slightly bitter after taste. It’s pleasant enough, but nothing special.

The main appeal of this cheese is the kudos of having tried it or serving it up to friends on the cheese board.

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia, 2011.

(3/5)

Cornish Blue

It looks like a blue cheese that would knock your socks off. A gnarled, rank looking grey/straw coloured rind hiding an equally, rank and “old” looking patchy cream, brown and blue pate. Strong looking blue moulds gather around the regular holes that have been punched through the cheese specifically for this purpose. Cornish Blue But, looks can be deceptive in the world of cheese, and this is definitely a case of don’t judge a book by its cliché. It is beautifully creamy, with a very mild Stilton like flavour. If Stilton had a soft southern cousin, this would be it. If, Stilton scares you because of its pungency or acidity, then this would make a good substitute.

Purchased from Cheese Please, Lewes.

Reviewed by Nick & Olympia, 2011

(3/5)