But seriously. What with Valdeon and it's scary big brother Cabrales, I'd put money on the Spanish winning a sheer intensity battle between any Blue cheese from anywhere. Today's Blue is wrapped in Sycamore leaves and sent off to do battle with the likes of Stilton, but how does it hold up?
Origin: Leon, Spain
Milk: Cow and Goat, pastuerized
Rennet: Animal
Affinage: Less than a month
Notes: Has protected status in Spain and won the 2003 Spanish national cheese competition for best Blue Cheese.
Thoughts: This blue cheese has an incredible bite that lasts throughout the taste and is both spicy and sharp. The intense veining actually has a bit of a crunch to it, though I'd say some of the flavor of the cheese is actually lost in the intense harshness. Good if an intense blue is what you’re looking for, but lacks the complexity and richness of a Stilton or Roquefort. The mixed milk notes that I was most hoping to see were notably crushed by the blue flavor and that, dear reader, is a tragedy.
Caution
If you're going to dive into a hobby 100% make sure you keep some sort of Inception-esq totem around to keep your perspective relatively level. I just called a cheese tragic. Red Flag, reach for the top.
No comments:
Post a Comment