Cheese of choice

I love them all, but there is something special about Camembert on a warm day. 

@tjagain

dyna ti – must have been a poor cheesemonger.  there is no way M&S have the same quality cheese as someone like the cheesemonger I linked to.  However it is hugely expensive

This is incorrect, we supply the same cheese, from the same suppliers (and the cheese we produce ourselves) into both supermarkets AND farm shops and cheesemongers alike, grade (age, maturity) may be different dependent on customer, but the quality will be the same. We supply a lot of the well known cheesemongers throughout the World.

I've not read the whole thread but are some of these artisan cheese un pasteurised ?
I was quite glad of Louis being around and discovering how to prevent botulism amongst other things
Lockerbie mature cheddar or McLelland from down the same area does me, toasted if I've got time
This thread is like a coffee thread with only Arabica beans from the Vietnam hills being good enough after coming out a monkeys bum

@redmex - Some yes, some no. UP cheese is fine but soft UP cheese such as Brie de Meaux is a bit riskier and has had the highest number of recalls I've ever carried out due to listeria presence. Hard aged cheddars are fine as the pathogens can't compete with low moisture, acidity and salt levels.

This thread is like a coffee thread with only Arabica beans from the Vietnam hills being good enough after coming out a monkeys bum

As much as I like posh cheese, I’m just as partial to La Vache qui rit.

Hate all coffee.

This thread is like a coffee thread with only Arabica beans from the Vietnam hills being good enough after coming out a monkeys bum

When it comes to cheese, it’s all good, including dubious cheese-related ‘products’. I can happily just squeeze this into my gob from the tube, which should please TJ as it does away with the need for crackers…

This is incorrect, we supply the same cheese, from the same suppliers

And any good cheesemonger will also have cheeses that you don’t supply.

but are some of these artisan cheese un pasteurised ?

A proper Camembert is. Perfect after a couple of hours out of the fridge in summer 🙂

"And any good cheesemonger will also have cheeses that you don’t supply."

Some cheesemongers will of course supply different cheeses, there are thousands of brands, varieties etc., regarding the quality of a product (in a like for like scenario) supplied to supermarkets or cheesemongers, the quality will be the same. An example being Rosary Goats cheese supplied to Waitrose in own label and the same make (prodcution make) as Rosary Goats branded cheese. The Brie de Meaux we supply Booths is the same that we supply to the farm shops delis etc., around the UK. Yoredale unpasteurised Wensleydale from Curlew Dairy is another small producer we work with as well as the Crickmores at Fen Farm, not just the big brands like Arla and Lactalis McLelland.

What I'm saying is the supermarkets (whilst I'm not a massive fan) have done their homework when it comes to buying cheese and actively seek out award winners etc., and to say that they don't supply the same quality of product as an independent is incorrect. Different products that may be, but not necessarily different quality.

As an cheese maker, grader and auditor, I've visited a good chunk of the UK's small cheesemakers seen their production records, know their processes and how passionate they are about the products they produce. We help nearly 200 uk cheese makers get to market, both in the UK and around the globe. If a customer wants it we supply it.

Some products are set at certain price point mild cheddars for example are cheaper as the storage costs are less, mature kept up to 6 months cost more and so on. They're still the same product and not made any differently just left to age. It's not always the case of course you can change starters, add flavour cultures before rennetting, mature at a higher temp to move the cheese on if you want. but the images of the goats cheese I posted earlier is all the same make, but the mature will fetch roughly £1/kg higher at wholesale.

I could go on forever so I won't bore you all!

Don’t be coming round here with your specialist industry knowledge and extensive professional experience!

You’re just going to have to accept that it’s no substitute for sweeping statements made based on… erm… something or other

All cheeses are beautiful.

Currently I love Le Roule Garlic & Herb Soft Cheese.

A good mature cheddar type thing is a good daily driver.

A good cheeseboard with a selection of cheeses and chutneys is even better!

I think someone above said something simmilar, It's a bit like asking someone what their favorite music is... I listen to all sorts, depending on what I fancy listening to at the time.

Brie on an oat cake with a smidge of dark cherry jam is particularly decadent.

I'm also partial to a bit of Spanish Manchego on occasion, and sometimes a blue cheese of some sort.... there is no cheese of choice really.

BenjiM - do you supply to Mewes or Mellis?  There is cheesmongers and cheesemongers.  these are high end specialists and I have never seen anything they sell in supermarkets bar Mull cheddar and similar.

A great U.K. triplet in my opinion is:

Lincolnshire poacher - better than cheddar, it’s make with continental cultures

Cornish yarg - creamy but tasty

rollright - a U.K. reblochon style. Quite variable but delicious

a nice glass of 2009 Yquem if your feeling flush.

Neil SuperstarComponents

But more importantly - where do you stand on crackers with cheese?

Lincolnshire poacher – better than cheddar, it’s make with continental cultures

YES !!

Cornish yarg – creamy but tasty

YES !!!

rollright – a U.K. reblochon style. Quite variable but delicious

Hold on.. what?!?! Reblochon is my other half's favourite... the round I bought for her birthday cost me a small fortune (don't mention Brexit)... what's this UK attempt?

Looks very promising. PDF

@tjagain Yes we supply George Mewes. Not had much dealing with him since I came back to the company earlier in the year though.

Ian Mellis, not personally had any direct dealings with them, however I'll check at work tomorrow although I know we did supply them before I left a couple of years ago. I can see a number of products they stock that you'll find in the multiples. Brendan from Isle of Mull is a nice chap, always a pleasure to deal with. Rory Stone from Highland Fine Cheese is great, always love the way he comes back to customers who complain his Blue Murder is mouldy 😀

Don’t be coming round here with your specialist industry knowledge and extensive professional experience!

Obviously we welcome the knowledge. But I can ride to two cheesemongers who stock stuff I have never seen in any UK supermarket. And probably never will.

The cheese with the cheesy name I mentioned in my first post I'm sure will end up in supermarkets at some point (the name seems perfect for that), but I've not come across it other than in cheesemongers so far.

I can see a number of products they stock that you’ll find in the multiples.

Obviously. Something like Yarg is stocked everywhere. But talk to a good cheesemonger and you'll be shown things that won't be in plastic in the supermarket. M&S or not.

But more importantly – where do you stand on crackers with cheese?

@tjagain - I'm not fussy, I eat a few pounds of cheese a week, rarely with crackers. If I am it's usually Carrs Melts.

I could go on forever so I won’t bore you all!

Oh, please do. And you won't.

Lincolnshire poacher – better than cheddar, it’s make with continental cultures

All our cheese are made with "Continental" cultures, that's a marketing ploy to be honest, there's only really Barbers producing pint starters in the UK and some teritorial producers make their own starters (Singletons used to) but it's a bit of a faff, and not as convenient as DVI frozen starters, plus you need the kit to make your own. I think Helers also make their own. Ours come from France, Denmark, Italy, Spain. It depends on the characteristics we're looking for really.

@kelvin - You mentioned Black Bomber, is that what you meant as not in the supermarkets? It's pretty much everywhere and a very strong brand. Most big producers have some form of strong cheddar truckle in Black wax, we have True Grit (got calcium lactate crystals in it) and Dambuster. They're all made by bowl chopping cheddar and extruding it to whichever shape you need.

@tjagain mentioned Old Amsterdam earlier, there's only one Old Amsterdam brand, we import about 9 tonnes a month and it's the same cheese as you'd get in the Netherlands, though age may vary the profile will be consistent. We do have a really nice 3 year old aged gouda (not Old Amsterdam) which is incredible with espresso. Bit of a bastard to cut in to though.

is that what you meant as not in the supermarkets?

Absolutely not!

Every supermarket does it in small truckles. Get one for Xmas folks.

They’re all made by bowl chopping cheddar and extruding it to whichever shape you need.

Yes, I learnt that from you. On this forum! And I hinted towards you telling us again… 😜

And it’s bloody delicious (the cheese experts will be along to tell us that it’s a mass produced mix and not a real cheese).

Ta BenjiM

You did say " grade (age, maturity) may be different dependent on customer, but the quality will be the same." which is what I meant.  Fine pedantry points 🙂  Same cheese but a different grade.

Old amsterdammer - its what my dutch family call all the heavily aged stuff - a bit like "Biro" or Hoover" its a trade name used as generic.  The stuff they get there is clearly not the old amsterdammer trade name from what  you say as  its much nicer.  IIRC buried underground for years to mature or something.  Maybe the same as your 3 year agred Gouda but I have never been able to find the same cheese here

>

Dinnae worry about asking around or showing receipts - your word is good enough

thanks

That rollright was inspired by a trip to the Jura...isn't reblochon from Haute Savoie?

These guys produce lovely cheese

https://torpenhoworganic.co.uk/

If you're up near Bassenthwaite pop in and buy some

Tunworth, Stinking Bishop, Epoisses & Vacherin are my favourite.

I do have a type.

Cornish yarg – creamy but tasty

Another favourite of mine, but I sometimes find it difficult to find fresh, or rather not having sat on a plate in a counter for 6 weeks slowly drying out.

I also like Ossau Iraty which is an unpasteurized sheep's cheese.

Goats cheese. m&s do a nice one for crackers.

Blue for sauce for my steaks, but not Stilton, too damn salty

A quality Comte and a vacherain mont d’or if we are going further afield. 

im partial to an ancient crottin of Parmesan type hardness which sort of burns when you eat it. Seem to only be available from rolly fag smoking farmers in French markets 

I feel young cheeses get overlooked mainly because shops won’t sell them due to shelf life. Truely special if you can find a good example. Like a young manchego for example. <br /><br />

let’s not forget jody scheckters superb buffalo mozzarella either. Excellent for something widely available from supermarkets. I could murder a burrata right now

Neil SuperstarComponents 

The Auvergne is heaven for anyone who likes cheese and road riding

https://www.fromages-aop-auvergne.com/nos-appellations/

Indeed.  They have a cheese trail even where we found a small goats cheese round covered in long black hairy mold.  a step too far even for MrsTJ who could outdo binners in cheese consumption

First choice when I go to Calder Cheesehouse in Tod is the cannabis raclette, its delicious

I loooove blue cheese and especially at this time of year. Favourites right now are:

Stichelton. Incredible. Never the same cheese twice. A good independent 'monger will let you sample before buying in case it's a "blow your head off" batch and your tastes are less extreme - come back another time and it might be a lot subtler.

Doddington Darling Blue - I anticipate eating a stupid amount of this at Christmas.

Harrogate Blue - Yum. Just, yum.

Arenas de Cabrales

OMG the old lady in the hardware shop in Las Arenas used to bring out the secret (I suspect illegal) stuff with a twinkle in her eye. Like a fully funky rotted down stilton that has turned black.

There is a wine soaked manchego that takes that fine cheese to the next level.

+1 Baron Bigod, delicious, subtle earthy goodness. My favourite cheese ever.

Possibly a cheese lightweight speaking here but my go-to for the last 5 years is Norwegian brown cheese, the caramelised stuff. Strangely repellent to those that haven't tried it :o) as it doesn't have any cheesy characteristics. However; like good drugs my first hit was free & now im hooked. A massive plus for this stuff is that it can be left unguarded in the fridge as nobody else will go near it :o)

Parmesan and I think I've only tasted the cheaper stuff from Lidl, I'm waiting to hear that it's nowhere near the proper reggiano stuff from IJ Mellis down in Stockbridge or South St  St Andrews

A sharp knife to cut off shards straight to the tongue rather than grating on to pasta

A few of my favourite Spanish cheeses:

* A decent viejo or añejo Manchego. The ones soaked in olive oil are also great. (There's also a lot of crap Manchego on sale here - it's similar to Cheddar in that respect)

* As mentioned above, Cabrales

* Idiazabal, particularly the smoked variety. Similar to Manchego but stronger

* Local to me, La Laguna is a great soft cheese. Available in supermarkets in Madrid.

* Tetilla (so named cos it looks like a tit) - nice soft cheese, great with membrillo.

And two from Extremadura, where my wife's from:

* Ibores. A small, round cheese produced from goat's milk. The variety my MiL buys has a pimenton-covered outer layer.

* Torta del Casar. Let it warm up to room temperature, then slice a round hole in the top and spoon out the runny goodness. And damn it stinks 😀

And a quick question for @BenjiM - how useful/important are the World Cheese Awards? Are they a reliable indicator of quality, or just marketing?

All (harder) cheese can be eaten like that - Yes, there is pleasure in huge lumps, but a thin, almost see through shard sat on your tongue gives all the flavour and no calories - honest. Then you can have eleventytwo pieces to make up the huge lump you were planing anyway.

Doesn't work so well for soft cheese where the creamy mouthfeel is part of the experience.