There’s been a distinct lack of ovine action on this blog so far and I think that’s partly because I didn’t realise just how many sheep’s cheeses were out there (remember, I did start this blog from the premise of ‘I am a cheese ignoramus’). In my defence, I think it’s fair to say that most people in the UK don’t associate sheep with cheese. In fact, let’s face it – given that almost a third of primary pupils think cheese is made from plants, they probably don’t associate cows with cheese either. But some of our favourite cheeses are derived from the woolly-backed beasts: Pecorino, Feta, Manchego and Roquefort, to name but a few.
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Tag Archives: unpasteurised
Spenwood
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Pablo Cabrito
From the name alone you’d be forgiven for thinking that I’m eating a Spanish number this week, maybe also nibbling on some Ibérico ham and washing it all down with a glass of Rioja. But in fact, Pablo Cabrito, a soft unpasteurised goat’s cheese, hails from the sultry climes of Shropshire.
I have a bit of a soft spot for goats. I grew up on a farm but always found sheep a bit dull once they grew past the cute lamb phase. Cows were okay but after a nasty run-in with a herd of post-natal Friesians and a barbed wire fence, they were off the Christmas card list. Goats though have always seemed both full of character and infinitely practical. I used to write about goats for a living so could bore on for several pages about their virtues and even reproduce some rather fetching pictures of me wearing combat trousers and petting a pony-sized Toggenburg…but, hey, onto the cheese.
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Burwash Rose
I was drawn to this cheese for the simple reason that it looked a bit like Brie. ‘Ah, this one is rind-washed,’ says the cheese-man behind the counter. ‘Do you know about rind-washing?’
This was my first venture to a proper cheese-shop and I was feeling awkward and amateur. I went to an Ann Summers shop once and felt the same way, gawping at shelves full of ‘what-the-hell-do-you-do-with-that’s?!’ When an assistant asked me what I was looking for, I legged it and went to get a cup of tea. Determined to be braver this time, I admitted my ignorance of rind-washing and fortunately the cheese-man was nice and not at all patronising. (As an aside, I suspect if you started talking about rind-washing in an Ann Summers shop, it probably means something quite filthy…) Continue reading
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Dorset Blue Vinny
It was always going to be hard to choose the first cheese to kick off my cheese odyssey. Where to begin? More than 700 British cheeses…at least 400 in France…Mauritanian Camel Cheese… Sardinian Rotting Maggot’s Cheese…
Dorset Blue Vinny won by managing to combine two of my favourite things: blue cheese (dribble) and Dorset, scene of many happy childhood holidays. It’s also a cheese that I’ve heard of but can’t remember ever tasting (I know, I know, but remember that I come to you if not a cheese virgin then certainly a cheese lover who’s only had a few fumbles with fromage).
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Fromage Homage 