Description
Country of Origin: England
Milk-type: Pasteurized Cow’s milk
Cheshire is one of the oldest named cheeses in recorded English history, mentioned in text as early as 1500CE. Cheshire is a medium dense, semi-firm cheese which crumbles easily and has a fairly mellow character. Related to a loose family of cheeses from Northern England which includes other traditional firm, crumbly farm style cheeses such as Lancashire and Wensleydale and shares with them a somewhat dry, almost chalky mouthfeel and a unique flavour that is relatively mild, but complex—expressing a delicately sour aspect, a balanced saltiness, and lactic piquancy.
Because Cheshire is a primarily savoury, pleasantly sour tasting cheese: it is particularly well suited to pairings with sweet foods, which it tends to balance well. A variety of fresh fruits, particularly apples, pears, and any sort of berry make for an especially delectable combination. The natural sweetness thereof counterpoints the salty and savoury aspect of Cheshire wonderfully, while any tart or tangy flavour draw out the “fruity” sour and piquant aspects of the cheese. Cheshire is, like Cheddar or Wensleydale, often enjoyed sliced alongside warm apple pie—some go so far as to consider a serving of the latter incomplete without a sharp, crumbly, lactic cheese on offer—or alongside densely sweet fruit cake.
