culture: the word on cheese, Best Cheeses of the Year 2015 issue
I contributed four pieces covering the cream of the crop from Australia and New Zealand.
I contributed four pieces covering the cream of the crop from Australia and New Zealand.
culture: Best cheeses of the year 2015
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Rowefords Blue
In 2007, cheesemaker Barry Charlton made a bold move. He’d been producing soft, bloomy-rind cheeses for a large manufacturer for 17 years and yearned to branch out on his own. So he decided to specialize in blue cheese—even though he’d never made the style before. The gamble paid off: Today, Berrys Creek Gourmet Cheese is recognized as one of Australia’s best blue makers. Charlton crafts and ages half a dozen different blues on his farm in Gippsland; in early 2012, after perfecting several cow’s milk versions, he added the goat’s milk Rowefords Blue to the line. It clinched the Champion Goat’s or Sheep’s Milk Cheese title at the Australian Grand Dairy Awards (AGDA) in both 2014 and 2015. Rowefords Blue retains some of the chalkiness of a young goat’s milk cheese after about 12 weeks of aging, but at peak maturity of four months its texture softens and a slightly sweet finish balances spicy flavors. “For a blue cheese, it’s relatively mild,” says AGDA deputy chief judge Russell Smith. “But it’s beautifully balanced with complex nuances of flavor that dance across the tongue.” FLAVORS: Salty, spicy, savory PERFECT PAIRING: On a hot day, Charlton likes a chunk of Rowefords Blue with a frosty glass of Natural Blonde from nearby craft brewery Grand Ridge—but any citrus-tinged Belgian-style wheat beer will do. Warby Red
“This is a cheese you want to keep coming back to,” said Australian Grand Dairy Awards chief judge Neil Willman, after Warby Red won the Champion Washed Rind at the 2015 contest. Indeed, it’s a little cheese with a big, funky flavor profile, balanced savory notes, and a creamy finish. Cheesemaker Ken Cameron comes from a long line of dairy farmers, and along with his wife, Margi, established Boosey Creek Cheese in 2007 on a farm owned by his parents. “Boosey Creek Cheese started as a hobby, so to now have a product that’s among the best in Australia is really exciting,” he says. It’s a true farmstead operation, with all of the milk coming from the family’s herd of more than 400 pasture-raised Holstein Friesian cows. While Warby Red is made year-round, it really comes into its own during late winter Down Under (July–September), when the humid weather helps create a moist rind and spreadable paste that’s oh-so-smooth. FLAVORS: Butter, meat, savory PERFECT PAIRING: Enjoy Warby Red with golden raisins and sourdough bread, or do as Cameron does: Smear it on fruit toast for a true breakfast of champions. Smoked Gouda
Thanks to an influx of Dutch migrants in the 1980s, New Zealand has a thriving Dutch cheesemaking tradition and plenty of friendly rivalry among expats for the country’s top cheese awards. Brothers and second-generation makers Miel and Geert Meyer carry on the business their parents started in 1984—this year, they scooped up the Champion Cheesemaker accolade at the New Zealand Champions of Cheese Awards. They also took home a Champion Flavored Cheese trophy for Meyer Smoked Gouda. After some early experimental batches—“the fire got out of hand, and Dad ended up with a pile of melted cheese,” Miel says—Smoked Gouda hit shelves two years ago. Geert handpicks the thinnest wheels from each batch of Amsterdammer (the youngest gouda in the company’s collection), smokes them slowly for three days, and matures them eight to 12 weeks. Determined to use natural wood smoke, not liquid smoke flavoring, the brothers came up with a combination of native Manuka and applewood chips blended with American Hickory. The result: cheese with a subtle bacon flavor and creamy, supple texture. FLAVORS: Cream, smoke, savory PERFECT PAIRING: This smoky cheese is stellar in a toasted sandwich: “Smoked gouda with onions and ham—you can’t beat it,” Miel says. Buffalo Boysenberry Yogurt
Growing up, Helen Dorresteyn loved to eat boysenberry ice cream in the summer, and today it still reminds her of sitting in a hot, sticky car returning home from the beach. This childhood treat inspired her husband, Richard, to mix boysenberries from Hawkes Bay into their lightly sweetened buffalo’s milk yogurt. Launched in 2014, the new variety was an instant success—so much so that it took the yogurt crown in this year’s New Zealand Champions of Cheese Awards. The Dorresteyns were the first New Zealanders to import water buffalo, specifically to make fresh cheeses. “A lot of people here still don’t know there are buffalo in the country, so to win the top yogurt award proves it really is beautiful milk,” Helen says. “We take tremendous care to make yogurt that isn’t overly sweet—the way it feels in your mouth is divine. It’s quite light, but at the same time rich and velvety, because the buffalo milk is high in fat.” Cheese Awards deputy chief judge Russell Smith agrees, noting the yogurt’s superb balance between acidic tang and clean fruit flavors and its deliciously thick texture. FLAVORS: Fruit, cream, tangy PERFECT PAIRING: “Just rip off the top and eat it,” Helen says. Or, for a more decadent breakfast, spoon it atop your muesli or granola. |