Blue Cheeses

STICKY TO CRUSTY RIND ∙ STREAKED WITH BLUE MOLD ∙ SPICY TANG

Blue molds are members of the penicillin family but, unlike white molds, they grow inside a cheese. They create a seemingly endless array of wonderful cheeses from dense, buttery Stilton to sweet Gorgonzola with its luscious, gooey texture and spicy tang. Ewe’s milk blue cheeses such as Roquefort retain the sweet, burnt-caramel taste of the milk that offsets the sharp, salty, steely blue finish.

Most European blues are wrapped in tin foil, ensuring their rinds remain damp and sticky and develop a multitude of molds layered on them, while traditional British blues have rough, dry, crusty, orange-brown rinds, often splashed with blue and gray molds.

Blue cheeses - defining features blue cheese
Blue cheeses – defining features blue cheese

Defining features blue cheese

There is extraordinary variety in taste and texture, but blues all have a spicy, slightly metallic tang, often taste saltier than other cheeses, and attract a rainbow of colorful molds that exude a powerful aroma. The moist interiors of wet rind blues develop wide uneven streaks and pockets of blue, whereas dry rind blues have a dense, compact texture that develops thinner, longer streaks and looks like shattered porcelain when cut. There are also soft white blues, which have white rinds and patches of blue.

Texture cheese

Blues vary greatly in texture; they can range from dense and compact to creamy and sticky.

Age blue cheese

Usually considered ripe from 1–6 months.

Rind blue cheese

This ranges from wet with gray, blue, and white molds, to dry, rough, and crusty.

Flavor blue cheese

Some are creamy and mellow, others are sweeter, and more herbaceous, while high acid, high moisture blues are often gritty and have a salty finish.

Fat content blue cheese

They typically have a fat content of 28–34 percent per 3.5oz.

Moisture

Most blues have a moist interior, which encourages the mold to develop.

Color

There are various strains of blue mold, each of which give the cheese its own distinct appearance.

STREAKS

Erratic lines and intense pockets of mold typify these cheeses.

Streaks - Erratic lines and intense pockets of mold typify these cheeses
Streaks – Erratic lines and intense pockets of mold typify these cheeses

How They’re Made

Cheeses were once ripened in caves, stone cellars, or barns, which were havens for blue molds in particular. they made their way into the warm interior through cracks in the rind and grew in the gaps in the fresh curd. today, the blue mold is added to the milk in powder form, then the young cheese is pierced to allow air to enter and the mold to turn blue. Soft white cheeses must be injected with molds, as they are too creamy and dense for the mold to spread naturally.

Along with the starter culture, penicillin mold is added to the warm milk or sometimes, as shown here, to the freshly formed curd.
Along with the starter culture, penicillin mold is added to the warm milk or sometimes, as shown here, to the freshly formed curd.
Blue cheeses are never pressed. The curd must remain loosely packed, leaving space for the blue mold to grow and spread.
Blue cheeses are never pressed. The curd must remain loosely packed, leaving space for the blue mold to grow and spread.
After two or three weeks, the sides of most types of blue cheese are scraped smooth to cover any cracks before being rubbed with salt.
After two or three weeks, the sides of most types of blue cheese are scraped smooth to cover any cracks before being rubbed with salt.
After a few weeks the young cheese is pierced with rods to create tunnels in the curd. Exposed to air, the blue mold flourishes in these gaps.
After a few weeks the young cheese is pierced with rods to create tunnels in the curd. Exposed to air, the blue mold flourishes in these gaps.
To check the texture and the even spread of the blue mold, a grader will remove a plug of cheese with a cheese “iron” and then replace it.
To check the texture and the even spread of the blue mold, a grader will remove a plug of cheese with a cheese “iron” and then replace it.

How to enjoy

UNCOOCED

Blue cheeses are essential on any cheese platter and, with the exception of the brie-style blues, also add another dimension to salads especially when crumbled over flageolet beans, walnuts, and peppery arugula dressed with a honey vinaigrette. Walnut bread is especially good with blue cheeses, and a drizzle of honey brings out the subtlety of the cheese.

COOKED

Stir small amounts into pasta, soups, and sauces to elevate dishes into classics like celery and Stilton soup; pasta with pinenuts and Gorgonzola; or grilled steak with blue cheese sauce.

WITH DRINKS

Try a vintage or latebottled-vintage (LBV) Port rather than the sweeter, less complex tawny or ruby Ports, as they tend to overpower the majority of blue cheeses. if Port is not to your taste, a sweet or dry riesling can make a perfect partner. Match the dessert wine Sauternes only with the very sharp, salty, steely blues, such as roquefort, with its sweet undertones.

Excellent Examples

Stilton

This cheese has the dry rind typical of many British blue cheeses. The dense buttery interior forces the blue mold to develop as thin broken streaks.

Read more

Roquefort

The famous ewe’s milk blue has a loose, moist interior, allowing Penicillium roqueforti to grow en masse as thin streaks and large scattered pockets.

Read more

Gorgonzola

Thick, blue-green streaks and scattered patches fill the interior. Its thin wet, sticky rind, finely dusted with mold, typifies traditional European blues.

Read more

Bavaria Blu

This is a soft white-style blue. Pockets (rather than streaks) of blue result from injecting blue mold directly into this creamy, dense cheese.

Read more
Scroll to Top