Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Cáis an teachín - Official Cheese Tasting

All waiting to be unwrapped



Yesterday was the day that my first homemade cheese was officially tasted in Fenn's Quay after 2 months of maturing. Mr T already loves the cheese but then he is bias. I wanted an objective taster and who better than a professional chef who has worked with cheese of all types.




Doesn't he look handsome
Kate was brave enough to volunteer (ok, I kinda begged) and we met yesterday in her restaurant where she took time out of her busy schedule. We cut the cheese in little wedges and I asked her to cut the rind off (although Mr T ate the rind and thought it was ok). The rind is dark yellow while the inside is pale cream. The texture was smooth and semi soft (guess it would get a lot harder if matured for longer). And then we had a bite - have you ever imagined how hard it is to describe the flavour of cheese?? It is very hard - we both agreed on creamy mild flavour with acidity towards the centre of the cheese, getting milder towards the rind but then images of cottage cheese, pineapple yogurt came up. The rind smelled earthy but when you broke the sliver of rind you could smell ripe apples. I think Kate liked the cheese - should have brought some chutney with me to see how it complimented each other - but it might not become her favourite cheese (still have Mr T).
Kate - The Brave One

I gave my boss a slice today and he described it as mild and creamy with a hint of Appenzeller - I take that as a compliment :-)

Making cheese is actually quite easy but you have to invest some time. Will post about the process another time - this time is all about Cáis an Teachín - named so by Pam Kelly of Nash19.

So, now I have to bake a bread that goes with the cheese ....that reminds me, new breadmaking classes coming up in April starting 12th April. Email me on biasasta@hotmail.com for more details.


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