Being a big fan of cheese I had the recent fortune of taking part in an impromptu Cornish cheese tasting around a friend’s kitchen table with some extremely good claret to keep proceedings lively. Cornwall’s artisanal cheese making industry is booming and here are a few favourites that are well worth a try.

Blue Horizon

Made by Treveador Farm on The Lizard, Blue Horizon is divine. It’s relatively new so over the past months Treveador Farm has meticulously tweaked it in pursuit of perfection. They’re not far off! One of only two Cornish blue cheeses, Blue Horizon is deliciously soft with a distinctive blue appearance. Sitting somewhere between a brie and mild Camembert the flavour is intense and rich but never overpowering.

Cornish Yarg

Made with Holstein and Friesian milk Cornish Yarg is easily the most striking of Cornwall’s cheeses. It is also one of the tastiest. Wrapped ornately either in nettle leaves or wild garlic, Cornish Yarg is fresh and creamy with a subtle flavour akin to Caerphilly. The Wild Garlic Yarg won the tasters vote; the garlic leaves give it a wonderful edge and it’s a perfect match with a spiced chutney.

Cornish Blue

Ok, so another blue cheese but this is one not to miss. Matured for 12-14 weeks, Cornish Blue is distinctly different to typical English blue cheeses such as Stilton. Moist and sticky like a dolcelate or gorgonzola its pungent strong flavours offer a real kick so a must for those who like cheese with impact. Made on Bodmin Moor by The Cornish Cheese using milk from their farm, Cornish Blue is a winner of numerous awards.

Village Green

How exciting to find such an unusual goats cheese. Consensus round the table was goats cheese can be a bit samey but Village Green is showing others how it’s done when it comes to creating something innovative, spicy and full bodied. It’s all about maturation. Village Green is cased in vibrant green wax and left for six months, which is ample time for these mouth-watering flavours to develop.

Joss

Tags: Cheese, Cornish Cheese

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 1st, 2009 at 3:58 pm and is filed under Cornwall, Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.