Wensleydale: a surprisingly cheesy cheese



So, Saturday at Sainsbury I saw they had cheese in the deli section, so I asked the woman there to cut me a small piece of Wensleydale with cranberries (I didn't see any plain Wensleydale, and I generally like cranberries, so it wasn't too risky). It is both soft and a little crumbly, sort of like very cold butter. The flavor is mild, too, somewhat like butter, but sour, since it's cheese. The mild flavor does make a good cheese to pair with fruits, and indeed this seems to be how it is often found (e.g. the embedded cranberries).

One thing I am noticing so far is that all the British cheeses I've tried so far (mild Cheddar, mature Cheddar, Red Leicester, Double Gloucester, and now Wensleydale) taste like, well....cheese! There's a definite family resemblance among the cheeses; they all taste a little familiar, like Cheddar, Jack or Colby. Now stop laughing at me for a minute. Think of a Swiss cheese (e.g. Gruyere or Emmentaler)--they taste really different, even though they're also hard cheeses! Similarly, Gouda. But Swiss cheese and Gouda and Brie (and I think Edam, though I need to confirm this) are all continental cheeses, not British cheeses, though there are now British versions of Brie and Camembert. I am sure, of course, that Stilton will be distinctively different, but aside from that, do all British cheeses taste cheesy? Maybe it's just that I've been picking hard cheeses that will melt and that, of course, I'm frightened of frightening cheeses. I thought Wensleydale would be different, though, since the texture is different. Hmm. Not sure what is next on my list to explore.

Labels: British cheese, cheese, food

- posted by k @ 8:29 AM