Cheese Thread

Aard

Over in the Forums forum, there's a suggestion for a cheese forum. Tbh, I can't see the admins approving one unless there is sufficient demand. So, I propose a "Cheese Thread" - somewhere we can discuss anything and everything cheese-related, with emphasis on the eating of the product itself.

Maybe we cheese-lovers should each give a little introduction: favourite kinds of cheese, cheese recipes, good combos for a cheese-board, that kind of stuff


I'll get the ball rolling.


I'm no cheese expert by any stretch of the word, but I've been making a concious effort to branch out of my tame cheese-boundaries. Whereas previously the extent of my experimentation stopped with Brie, Jarlsberg, or a mild chèvre (:o), recently I've gone on to Manchego, Camembert, Reblochon, and Gorgonzola amongst others. (I might note here that Marks & Spencer have a great deal on pre-made cheese-boards: 5 cheeses for less than €10 - great for the novice!)

I've loved all the cheeses so far, even though it took about a week to pluck up the courage to try the Gorgonzola! The last time (and first time) I had it was in a friend's house in Italy - it was so strong that I have been afraid to try it ever since! But I was pleasantly surprised when I finally took the plunge - no doubt M&S's version is a lot milder, though.

I also got a Tesco Irish cheese-board of 4 cheeses. I had Cooleeney last night. To be frank, it wasn't love at first bite - it was only when I was nearing the end of the cheese that I started to appreciate it. I have a wedge of Cashel Blue coming up to room temperature atm - I'll report back on that tomorrow!



So, I'd love to hear from any other cheese-people out there. Maybe some advice on what I should go for next :pac:

Davidth88

To me one of the most important thing about enjoying cheese is to ensure it's served at the right tempreture...... not straight out of the fridge.

You also need to let it ' breath ' for a while , ie don't eat it out of the horrible plastic

the beer revolu

I've ranted here about Irish cheese before

I implore people to get out to farmers markets or dedicated cheese shops/good delis where you can talk about cheese with a knowledgeable person and sample before you buy.

There is a world of fantastic Irish cheeses to be had and the more interesting ones are rarely to be found in supermarkets.

I find it hard to remember some of the cheeses I love but some of my favourites are.

Hegarty's - all of them. Farmhouse cheddar, extra mature, smoked.
Mount Callan - really 'wangy' at the back of the mouth.
Gabriel & Desmond - Irish Parmesan
St Tola - Goats hard and soft.
Knockdrina snow - soft brie like goats.

for the blue lovers (not my thing):

Crozier - Cashel's sheeps blue
Bellingham - my OH's favourite.

And on and on and on and on and on.

Buy Irish!!

When I'm abroad I don't go looking for Irish cheeses, when I'm at home I buy 90% Irish cheese.

PS I have no association with the cheese industry, whatsoever (apart from being a consumer)

Spastafarian

the beer revolu wrote: »

I've ranted here about Irish cheese before

I implore people to get out to farmers markets or dedicated cheese shops/good delis where you can talk about cheese with a knowledgeable person and sample before you buy.

There is a world of fantastic Irish cheeses to be had and the more interesting ones are rarely to be found in supermarkets.

I find it hard to remember some of the cheeses I love but some of my favourites are.

Hegarty's - all of them. Farmhouse cheddar, extra mature, smoked.
Mount Callan - really 'wangy' at the back of the mouth.
Gabriel & Desmond - Irish Parmesan
St Tola - Goats hard and soft.
Knockdrina snow - soft brie like goats.

for the blue lovers (not my thing):

Crozier - Cashel's sheeps blue
Bellingham - my OH's favourite.

And on and on and on and on and on.

Buy Irish!!

When I'm abroad I don't go looking for Irish cheeses, when I'm at home I buy 90% Irish cheese.

PS I have no association with the cheese industry, whatsoever (apart from being a consumer)

Do you know any good beer and irish cheese combos? I've got sunday off and that sounds like a good night in. Maybe watch Schindlers List too.

Oh yeah.

corkage

Gubeen and Durrus are two of the best cheeses in the world, I also like a cheddar made from unpasturised milk called Coolatin.It's a little hard to find but the guy who makes turns up at the odd farmers market.Meanwhile Sheridans is a great place to source cheese in perfect condition.

spellstar

Ha i was looking for a cheese forum - was shocked when i couldn't find one!! i am a big fan of cheese although I really have to try and control myself because its hard not to eat the whole lot in one go :rolleyes:

Big fan of the blue cheeses, cambozola is lovely a cross between camembert and gorgonzola so its extra creamy.

Would love to try more of the Irish cheeses, fallon and byrne in town seemed to have a good selection when i was in there before, tried an amazing unpasteurised goats cheese mmmm it was delish very strong tho. Really must get out to a farmers market to talk over the choices.

Also was in a French restaurant in town years ago who did the best cheese platter ever.. great selection of about 6 cheeses increasing in strength and richness... Will have to go back and see if they still doing it

Aard

Spellstar, could you give the name of that restaurant? The only place I've been that had a memorable cheese board was a little restaurant in the hills above Nice. I'll be back in Nice in a few weeks, and will definitely try some local cheeses. I hear that goats' cheeses are their specialty. It's a shame I can't bring any back though - customs don't allow it .

spellstar

Aard - the restaurant was George's on South Frederick St... but this was 2 years ago so dont know if its the same... I might be goin there next weekend so I can let you know

Beruthiel

Aard wrote: »

customs don't allow it .

Really?
I've brought cheese back from France. So have my French friends.
Superquinn do a pretty good range of cheeses.

If you are in town, Sheridans (just off Grafton Street), do some lovely cheeses.

Aard

Thanks Beruthiel - I had been told by two different people that, for some reason, cheese was not to be brought back from France. Glad to hear that you had no problems with it.

boggerboy

Guys
Agree with all the posts so far and the choices, particularly the Cambazola!
Have any of you tried Wicklow Baun? It's lovely!
Harder to get than the Wicklow Blue, I know Donnybrook fair do it, it's made near Arklow I think
my tuppence worth!

the beer revolu

Aard wrote: »

Spellstar, could you give the name of that restaurant? The only place I've been that had a memorable cheese board was a little restaurant in the hills above Nice. I'll be back in Nice in a few weeks, and will definitely try some local cheeses. I hear that goats' cheeses are their specialty. It's a shame I can't bring any back though - customs don't allow it .

You can't bring soft cheese through security (it's comes under paste or gel)
but hard cheese shouldn't be a problem.

Hootanany

Epposse is lovely Fallon & Brynes really smelly taste sublime

space 1

'cais rua' from fermoy is the best cheese in the country - mark's cheese stall sell this, you can find him in a few Cork markets. If you come across it try it, it's divine

thorpe

As a former cheese plant supervisor and still working with the dairy industry I still love that smell that all cheese factories. It just gets to you and it stays with you. I love to watch that first cut of the gates through the curd after the settling stage and watch the curd as it was milled coming from the cheddering tower, you could tell so much from just watching it.
A little test we used to do. At the end of the salting conveyor we used to take a piece or two from best. One we ate to test for flavour and the other we used to test for texture (this was binned after).
So as you can guess, its either a good hard vintage chedder for me although cais rua is not a bad one either

stepcodd

Anybody know an online site to buy cheese fondue kits - the cheese not the hardware?
Thanks

ntlbell

lets make this happen folks!

milly4ever

my favourite cheese is wensleydale and cranberry
i used to love a hard cheese with pineapple in it, last seen in superquinn circa 2005... not been able to find it anywhere since

FarmerGreen

Found an interesting site for making you own cheese
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/Fankhauser/Cheese/Cheese.html

foodaholic

my fav cheese shop closed down last year (damn you recession) You'd spend an hour sampling the cheeses :pac: my fav was a goat gouda

the beer revolu

foodaholic wrote: »

my fav cheese shop closed down last year (damn you recession) You'd spend an hour sampling the cheeses :pac: my fav was a goat gouda

Yeah, there are some amazing, Irish goat goudas knocking about!

dacookie

Best cheese on a home made pizza lads?

the beer revolu

dacookie wrote: »

Best cheese on a home made pizza lads?

Gabriel or Desmond from Schull, Cork (finely grated and sparse) or a hard Peccerio. And some decent Mozzarella only put on in slices a minute before the pizza is done.

Aard

I find goats cheese works well on pizza.

muckety

stepcodd wrote: »

Anybody know an online site to buy cheese fondue kits - the cheese not the hardware?
Thanks

I don't know of an online site selling a kit, but Fallon & Byrne or Sheridans both do good ranges of cheese for fondue. I like to try different combinations - gruyere and emmenthal as the main body and something a bit sharp (eg sprinz or similar).