The Taste of Britain. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

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СКАЧАТЬ the Vale of Berkeley, in the south, became very important. Possibly the local Gloucester breed of cattle, whose milk is particularly good for cheese-making, contributed to the excellence of their cheese.

      At first, Gloucester was a coloured cheese made from the full-cream milk of a single milking. These were known as ‘best’ until Double Gloucester was recognized as a separate type at the end of the eighteenth century. The cheeses continued to have a high reputation, although disease reduced the population of Gloucester cattle and they were replaced by ‘improved’ breeds from the Midlands. Cheese production became factory-centred in the twentieth century. A little farmhouse cheese survived and renewed interest in old breeds led to the revival of Gloucester cattle and the use of their milk in cheese from the 1970s onwards.

      Several folk customs are associated with cheeses in this region. One is the ‘cheese rolling’ on Whit Monday at Cooper’s Hill, between Gloucester and Cheltenham. Four cheeses are rolled down the hill and chased by an assembled crowd. A similar merriment was recorded at Randwick.

      TECHNIQUE:

      Current practice is to make Double Gloucester from the whole milk of 2 milkings. It is heated to 28°C and starter is added. Annatto is mixed through the milk and then rennet is added and the milk left 45-60 minutes. The curd is cut into cubes of about 3mm and stirred for 20-40 minutes whilst the heat is raised to about 37°C. Stirring continues until the correct acidity is reached. The curd is allowed to settle and the whey drained off slowly. It is cut into fairly large blocks, piled and turned every 15 minutes as the acidity develops. Milling is through a fine curd mill; then salt is added (about 750g for each 45kg), stirred in thoroughly and allowed to dissolve. The curd is placed in moulds lined with cheese-cloth. Pressing continues for 2 days; the cheese is removed and turned once during this time, and increasing pressure is used on the second day. The cheese is ripened at 8°C and turned daily; then matured for 3-8 months.

      REGION OF PRODUCTION:

      WEST ENGLAND, GLOUCESTERSHIRE.

      Single Gloucester Cheese

      DESCRIPTION:

      PRESSED, COW’S MILK CHEESE, ORIGINALLY MADE IN A WHEEL 6.5CM THICK, ABOUT 40CM DIAMETER, WEIGHING ABOUT 7KG. Now MADE IN VARYING WEIGHTS, 900G-3.5KG. COLOUR: PALE LEMON. FLAVOUR: MILD, SWEET-SHARP, WITH CREAMY FINISH.

      HISTORY:

      Single Gloucester became distinct from the closely related Double Gloucester (see the entry above) at the end of the eighteenth century. Patrick Rance (1982) said that they were praised by William Marshall in 1796, who considered them equal to ‘whole-milk cheeses from counties with poorer soil and less admirable cattle,’ even though they were made partially from skimmed milk. Single Gloucester evolved as a lower-fat cheese, smaller in size. Unlike Double, it was not coloured. The making of Double Gloucester flourished in the Vale of Berkeley, whilst the Single was made on farms in the north and east of the county. They were more seasonal, some only made during the spring, and they were only matured for 2 months. They have never been as widely marketed as Double Gloucester and for much of the twentieth century only small amounts were made. Interest was renewed in the 1970s and it is now on sale again. Awarded Protected Designation of Origin.

      TECHNIQUE:

      This cheese uses a mixture of whole and skimmed milk. It is heated to 19°C and starter added, followed by a vegetarian rennet. The curd is left to set for about 1 hour and 40 minutes. The curd is cut, stirred to break it up further, and the heat is raised to 34°C. The curd is drained, cut into relatively small squares and turned. It is recut and turned at least twice more to make very small pieces. It is then sliced and milled through a Cheshire mill, and salt is added. It is filled into cheese-cloth-lined moulds. Pressing is for 48 hours, during which the cheese is removed, turned and put back in the cloth, then given a final pressing for 2 hours without the cloth. Maturing: 3-12 weeks.

      REGION OF PRODUCTION:

      WEST ENGLAND, GLOUCESTERSHIRE, DEVON.

      Sharpham Cheese

      DESCRIPTION:

      MOULD-RIPENED, SOFT, UNPASTEURIZED COW’S MILK CHEESE IN 3 SIZES. WEIGHT: 250G; 500G; OR 1KG. FORM: THE SMALLEST CHEESE IS SQUARE; THE LARGER ROUND. COLOUR: WHITE MOULD CRUST WITH STRIPES FROM STRAW MAT; DEEP RICH YELLOW-CREAM. FLAVOUR AND TEXTURE: SHARP AND CHALKY WHEN YOUNG, RIPENING TO A SOFT CREAMY TEXTURE WITH MILD MUSHROOM FLAVOUR.

      HISTORY:

      Sharpham cheese belongs to the new cheeses which have arisen during the last 40 years as the artisan side of the industry began to revive from the damage inflicted by rationing during and after World War II. Several craftsmen have become well established in Devon, a county traditionally famous for dairy produce - in the early eighteenth century, the traveller Celia Fiennes noted that the dairy market in Exeter occupied 3 streets.

      Experiments were carried on for some years at Sharpham House, near Totnes, before the present recipe was evolved. The particular type of milk used - from Jersey cattle - has a high butterfat content. Much background research was undertaken in France and, eventually, a Coulommiers type (widely taught in Britain and popular with small cheese-makers throughout the last century) proved successful. Sharpham has been sold since the early 1980s.

      TECHNIQUE:

      Milk from the Sharpham Estate Jersey herd is first flash-heated and cooled. Starter is added, and the milk ripened, vegetable rennet and a penicillin strain are added. The curd is cut by hand and separated from the whey; some of the whey is scooped off after a few minutes and the curd cut again; then it is hand-ladled into moulds and drained. The cheeses are turned, drained further and salted. Maturing is at a relatively warm temperature for about a week; then they are left for the mould to develop. They are wrapped and transferred to cooler temperatures to finish ripening.

      REGION OF PRODUCTION:

      SOUTH WEST ENGLAND, TOTNES (DEVON).

      Vulscombe Cheese

      DESCRIPTION:

      SOFT GOAT’S CHEESE, IN ROUNDS 6CM DIAMETER, 4CM DEEP. WEIGHT: ABOUT 180G. COLOUR: WHITE. FLAVOUR: CREAMY, DENSE, SLIGHT LEMON TANG, VERY MILD GOAT FLAVOUR. VARIANTS ARE FLAVOURED WITH HERBS AND GARLIC, OR WITH CRUSHED BLACK PEPPERCORNS.

      HISTORY:

      This is one of many goat’s milk cheeses which have become so important in British artisan manufacture during the last 40 years. Before, with the exception of a few families who kept milking-goats as a hobby or to provide milk for children allergic to that of cows, not many paid attention to making goat’s cheese and none reached the market place. During the 1960s and 1970s, interest in self-sufficiency and small-holding led to the greater popularity of goat’s milk products. This was given extra momentum by changes in agriculture and the necessity for diversification in the 1980s. There are now many well-established makers of goat’s cheese, spread throughout Britain, with concentrations in Kent and Sussex, North Yorkshire, Cumbria and the Scottish Borders. Though receiving little support from government and small in volume, this is a СКАЧАТЬ