Types of Cheese...

The boring stuff... but essential information for our journey through the Kingdom of Cheese!

On our journey we will find there are lots of different types of cheese, but no standard way of classifying them.  Not to confuse you some more cheeses also fall in to more than one category.  They can be classified by age, country of origin, fat content, dairy content, manufacturing methods, texture and special characteristics.  Through my travels and talking to people who dedicate their life to the humble curd, all cheeses are found in at least one of the following categories:-

• Fresh
• Soft ripened
• Washed rind
• Natural rind
• Blue veined
• Uncooked, pressed
• Cooked, pressed
• Processed

Fresh cheeses are the most basic.  They're uncooked, immature and sometimes still contain whey (the watery part of milk).  They won't keep very long and therefore need to be eaten soon after they're made.  This category includes mozzarella, cottage cheese, ricotta, cream cheese, mascarpone and queso fresco.  Fresh cheese is characterized by its soft, creamy texture and normally mild taste.

Soft ripened cheeses are semi-soft in texture and sometimes have a white or "bloomy" rind.  This is created with the application of moulds (not going to bore you with how, so I will come back to this later).  Soft ripened cheese are usually a little stronger and more buttery than fresh cheeses but saying that they're still very mild.  Camembert and Brie are examples of this type of cheese.

Most varities of "whiffy" cheese, like Limburger, are washed rind, or if you like to impress your friends, "monastery cheese".  These cheeses tend to have reddish-orange rinds and the 'whiff' comes from being washed in a liquid, such as salted water / wine / beer, during the ripening phase.  The washing brings on the growth of both bacteria and/or mould, which gives the cheese a very strong smell and taste.

Some cheese have rinds that form naturally, without the introduction of moulds or bacteria.  These natural rind cheeses are usually aged and are heavier than other types of cheese.  Many of them are made from raw milk and are usually unpasteurised.  Two fine examples are Stilton and chevre.

Blue veined cheeses resemble marble, with bluish green veins crossing through the cheese.  The veins consist of mould, which is introduced during the cheese making process.  Depending on the type of cheese, the mould may give it a very strong flavour.  Maytag Blue, Blacksticks Blue, Gorgonzola and Roquefort are other examples of blue-veined "Mouldy Old Cheese" and without question are my favourite types of cheese.

Cheddar, one of the most renowned cheeses, is an uncooked, pressed cheese alongside the well-known Wensleydale, Red Leicester, Caerphilly, Double Gloucester (to name just a few).  This means that the curds have not been heated and the cheese has been pressed to give it a very compact, dense texture.  Parmigiano Reggiano, Gruyere and Emmenthal are all cooked, pressed cheeses.  Within this category, there are cheese such as Scamorza, Provolone and Provoleta, in which the curds are stretched...

Still awake? That's good - just one more category to go!

Finally, processed cheese - technically this isn't really cheese - more of a by-product of the cheese making process.  It may be made with scraps of cheese, but processed cheese can include whey, cream, water, dyes, gums and other ingredients (yum!).  It has a long shelf life, melts easily and can be made in spreadable varieties   Most families tend to stock some form of processed cheese - kids love it!  The most renowned spreadable processed cheese has to be Dairylea, other similar cheeses are Laughing Cow (in France "La Vache Qui Rit") and over the pond in the USA, there's Cheez Whiz, Velveeta and even Easy Cheese - a spray cheese!

So there you go... my window in to the Kingdom of Cheese..... and the different varieties available....

Onwards dear friends.... onwards!!