From the Archives: Isle of Mull Cheddar

Happy New Year! While Jill’s beloved Badgers may not have been victorious in last weekend’s Rose Bowl, Wisconsin can take solace in knowing its cheeses are still tops.  We look forward to bringing you many more cheese winners in 2011. But first, while we’re detoxing from our holiday cheese (over)consumption — and working on a fresh new look for 2011 — we’re going to bring you a few of our favorite winter snacking cheeses from years past. After all, it’s January. It’s cold, and all we want to do is curl up in front of the tv and watch some football…

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I know that the Scots probably don’t care much about American football, but it seems to me that their Isle of Mull Cheddar was made for the Super Bowl. A cheddar with flavors of mustard and malt? Score.

The mustardy flavor of Isle of Mull Cheddar makes it an ideal match for pretzels – and football.

What gives Isle of Mull Cheddar its distinctive flavor? The cheese’s island namesake, located off the western coast of Scotland, is home to the Tobermory malt whiskey distillery. The cows that supply the milk for this aged raw-milk cheese feast on the distillery’s leftover fermented barley, which in turn give the cheese a Scotchy taste. Once brought to room temperature, the Isle of Mull Cheddar has a mustardy aroma that intensifies with each bite. Bring on the pretzels!

As you might expect, Isle of Mull Cheddar is a natural match for Tobermory Scotch, but for those of you who aren’t planning on breaking out the hard stuff during the game, consider serving the cheese with a Pinot Noir or, as Jamie Forrest of Curd Nerds suggests, a California Chardonnay. But let’s be realistic – you’ll be serving it with beer for the Super Bowl. In that case, DiBruno Bros. suggests an ale.

Special note: Isle of Mull Cheddar has also been toddler-approved. My 1-year-old son couldn’t get enough when he spotted some on the counter yesterday.

— originally posted by Jill, 01/23/09

 

Rose Bowl Cheese Face-Off: Hook’s 7-Year Cheddar vs. Green Hill

Happy new year, cheese lovers! The start of a new year is always exciting, but Jan. 1, 2011 is particularly thrilling for me since my beloved Wisconsin Badger football team is facing Texas Christian University in the Rose Bowl this afternoon. Of course, it won’t really be a contest – Wisconsin is known for kicking major booty during previous Rose Bowl games – but it’s a great excuse to get together with fellow Badgers and cheer on our team. While eating cheese, of course.

In honor of this year’s Rose Bowl competitors, I’ll be serving a cheeseboard with two regional favorites. Wisconsin will be represented by Hook’s 7-Year Cheddar, and since I couldn’t find any Texas cheese at my local shop, Green Hill will stand in for the South. (And I really wanted an excuse to buy a fresh wheel of Green Hill, anyway.) We’ll have my favorite Carr’s whole wheat crackers on hand, as well as gluten-free rice crackers, and lots of beer and other appropriate beverages.

Since both cheeses are amazing, our taste buds will win no matter which team comes out victorious, but you all know my bias. Go Badgers!

 

Bubbly-Worthy Cheese Pick #1: Kunik

With all the times we’ve mentioned this cheese over the past year, is our No. 1 bubbly-worthy pick any surprise?

This triple-cream cheese from New York’s Nettle Meadow Farm is made from 75 percent goat’s milk and 25 percent cow’s milk, and the result is 150 percent spectacular. Read more.

Happy new year! May 2011 be the cheesiest year yet.
Colleen+Jill

 

Bubbly-Worthy Cheese Pick #2: Truffle Tremor

After two days of creamy cows-milk cheeses, we turn today to the equally luscious goats-milk cheese from California’s Cypress Grove: the multi-award winning Truffle Tremor. This earthy, rich cheese is always a delight.

Truffle Tremor and its fans (with cheesemaker Mary Keehn)

To really impress your guests, go all out and serve a truffle-themed cheese board with a trio of Truffle Tremor, Tartufo salami from Creminelli, and truffle honey. Add two more cheeses, perhaps Rogue River Blue and Beecher’s Flagship Cheddar, to cut the richness (and round out your West Coast cheese trilogy). Serve with a dry sparkling wine from California.

It’s hard to imagine a more decadent way to ring in the New Year … but we’ll try with tomorrow’s #1 bubbly-worthy cheese pick, so stay tuned!

disclosure: I received free samples of Creminelli salami. No other compensation was received, and as always, all opinions and reviews are strictly our own.

 

Bubbly-Worthy Cheese Pick #3: Moses Sleeper

Is there another champagne-friendly cheese more appropriate to follow Green Hill than the one called “Green Hill on steroids“? We think not.

You’ll definitely like Moses Sleeper if you’re a Green Hill fan, but the two cheeses aren’t totally similar. Both have the thick texture of a triple-cream cow’s-milk cheese, but whereas Green Hill tastes warm and buttery in your mouth, Moses Sleeper feels more subtle and cool. Read more.