Divine Dairy Blue

I've recently noticed a few new cheeses produced under the label of Divine Dairy appearing on the shelves of late so naturally I've brought one home to try.

Red Hill Granny's Blue

Back to the Mornington Peninsula for another cheese from Red Hill - this time it's a cows milk blue called Granny's Blue.

La Vera Adel-Blue

La Vera is based in the Adelaide Foothills and was started in 1984 by southern Italian cheesemakers. I most associate the label with ricotta, mascarpone and bocconcini so I was interested to try their blue, Adel-Blue.

South Cape Blue Cheese

Time for a change of pace - where previous cheeses are more the artisan type that can be a bit difficult to find, this next offering is much more readily available and found in most supermarkets. Produced by National Foods, this is South Cape Blue Cheese.


You can't miss it's distinctive blue wrapper - it's packaged as a 150 gram rectangle.


There's a slightly sticky rind on two of the long edges as well as the top and bottom, the cheese itself has a slightly mottled toning, moving from pale to dark cream.


I was actually quite surprised and pleased by the depth and variety of moulding, from crevices to deep dark holes. For something that is so commercial, it is good to see that they are trying to offer something with some character.


Tastewise, it is surprising good - it has bite coupled with creaminess and just enough saltiness to accentuate the flavour.

Berrys Creek Tarwin Blue

Here's another cheese from the recent Specialist Cheesemakers Show - Berry's Creek Cheese are located in Poowong, here in Victoria and they specialise in farmhouse cheese made using the milk from their own herd of Jersey cows.

What struck us when tasting their range was the uniform creaminess of all the cheese - a direct result of using the richer flavour of Jersey milk.



Cheese Maker: Berry's Creek Cheese
Cheese Name: Tarwin Blue



There are three blue cheeses in the Berry Creek range and Tarwin Blue sits in the middle. It uses a combination of three moulds that gives it quite a depth of flavour with only a light veining present. The cheese itself is exceptionally creamy and almost sweet, the mound introducing that pleasant and almost Parmesan like, tang.


I think the combination of texture and light veining will probably make even the blue-phobic at least try it and more than likely, really enjoy it. For those that have already been seduced by the power of blue cheese, this is one blue you should keep an eye out for.

Originally published here

Grandvewe Blue by Ewe

The people at Grandvewe must have a sense of humour going by their choice of names for their various cheeses - take for example this one, Blue By Ewe

Cheese Maker: Grandvewe Cheese
Cheese Name: Blue By Ewe
Location: 59 Devlyns Road, Birchs Bay Tasmania
Open:
September - June: 10am-5pm, 7 days excluding Christmas day
July - August: 10am-4pm daily except Tuesdays

Blue By Ewe is a Roquefort style cheese made using penicillium roqueforti and is hand salted with Murray River salt.

There's a good degree of marbling - deep green in colour.

It is a bit crumbly but not at all dry. The sheep milk brings a sweetness to the flavour - pleasantly creamy with a delicious tang.


Originally published on here

King Island Discovery Blue Rolle

Way back in August (and boy does that feel like a long time ago) I posted about a cheese called Brie Rolle, today I feature its blue sibling.



This is the King Island Discovery Blue Rolle

The exterior is a little more furrier than the Brie, its skin was more papery. The main difference of course is inside.

It's a firm blue without being crumbly and in the mouth, it is quite creamy with a pleasant blue bite. If I recall the blue rolle weighs in at around 110 grams - so even if no-one else but you eats blue it is small enough not to go to waste.

It also sat very nicely on our Christmas Cheese Board!



Originally published here

Maffra Glenmaggie Blue

Maffra Cheese Company is located in Gippsland, an area here in Victoria that is well known for its Cheese producers just as Jindi and Tarago River.

The cheese is made using only the milk from their herd of Holstein Friesian cows - this classes them as a farmhouse producer. Non animal rennets are also used.

Cheese Maker: Maffra Cheese Company
Cheese Name: Maffra Glenmaggie Blue
The dairy is not open to the public but contact information and details on where you can buy the cheese can be found on their website.

This is the Maffra Glenmaggie Blue named after Lake Glenmaggie that is located nearby. It's made in a "Stilton style".

While it looks quite fierce it has a creamy texture that offsets its sharp bite. As it ages it will break down and more sweeter flavours will emerge.

I wouldn't recommend it for the bluecheeseaphobics, solely based on its appearance but if Blue Cheese is your thing, then do give this a try.


Originally published here

Tarago River Strzelecki Goats Blue

So far in this series I have only mentioned two blue cheese, both made with cows milk. Today I change that and present a Goat Blue - it's from Gippsland (which is here in Victoria) and the Tarago River Cheese Company well known for producing sublime blue cheese such as Paalo's favourite, Shadows of Blue.

Cheese Maker: Tarago River Cheese
Cheese Name: Strzelecki Goat's Blue
Location: 2236 Main Neerim Road, Neerim South, Victoria

The cheese is made in 2kg rounds and this is just of piece from that. As you can see it has quite a rustic look to the rind.

Maturation takes 8 weeks and as it ages the texture changes from being slightly chalky to a soft and creamy consistency.

The veining is distinct but well spaced - the colouring varies from a light to dark green.

On face value you might take it for a fearsomely flavoured blue but you'd be in for a surprise. It's not highly scented, the goat milk adds a sweetness to the cheese and the blue just brings in another flavour. It's quite sticky and creamy in the mouth, with a pleasant lingering flavour.

Besides enjoying it as it, this cheese is well suited to be added to salads.


Originally published here

Tarago River Shadows of Blue

Tarago River Cheese was started in 1982 by the Jensen and Johnston families with 250 acres and 300 cows. Today they have grown to more than 850 acres and 800 cows. The dairy is located on the main road that links Neerim South to Mt Baw Baw. In fact during winter, most weekends we'd stop over here on our way to Mt Baw Baw for some of their fabulous cheese. Unfortunately, the cellar door isn't open any longer - the space was needed as demand for their cheese increased.

The cheese I'm looking at today is one of Paalo's favourites - just its name is enough to send him misty eyed.

Cheese Maker: Tarago River Cheese
Cheese Name: Shadows of Blue
Location: 2236 Main Neerim Road, Neerim South, Victoria

Shadows of Blue as the name tells you, is a blue cheese, made in the style of a Blue Castello. Penicillium Roqueforti cultures are used to produce this creamy but mildly flavoured cheese. The photo below clearly shows the injection marks.

Even though it looks like it would be heavily veined, it isn't.

This really is the type of blue that even an avowed blue hater should be able to eat. The mould acts to break down the cheese structure and leave it wonderfully creamy and almost spreadable.

This cheese usually disappears fairly quickly on a cheese board - it's the type that should be served on crusty bread and in generous portions. Other uses - savoury tarts, pasta sauces, pizza toppings or a wonderful companion to Prosciutto and figs.


Originally published here

King Island Dairy Roaring Forties Blue

It's been quite remiss of me that in all the cheese I've shown so far, none have been blue cheese. What better way to redress the situation then to show the 2006 Champion of the 78th Annual British Empire Cheese Show held in Ontario, Canada. The cheese in question is the King Island Roaring Forties Blue.



This is the second cheese I've shown from King Island Dairy - if you'd link a reminder, just follow this link. I should add that the name "Roaring Forties" refers to the gale winds that lash King Island - the island itself is situated at 40° latitude.



Underneath the distinctive and knobbly blue wax you'll find a full flavoured rind-less cheese made from pasteurised cows milk and inoculated with Roquefort style moulds. After four to five weeks of maturation, the moulds have developed inside the cheese and it's then dipped in that dark blue wax. In it's oxygen deprived state, the moulds stop developing and the milks sweet and nutty characteristics appear.



When sliced you'll notice that it's not as heavily veined as a Gorgonzola - it's more the case of having pockets of blue. The cheese is quite creamy and not overly salty and has an excellent mouth feel - there's a good length of flavour in the palette.

I'd class this as the type of Blue you'd give to someone who is a bit unsure of the whole "blue cheese" thing. It's appearance isn't overly confronting and there's enough blue free bits to tempt the most cautious. It's certainly a cheese to consider for that Christmas cheese platter.

Originally published here