The Top 4 Cheese Tasting Tips

The Top Tips for Cheese Tasting

Do you consider yourself a cheese expert? These top tips for best cheese tasting in hunter valley can help you sound more professional when entertaining guests with a cheeseboard.

Follow your nose

The majority of our taste is determined by smell. While our tongues can only detect five sensations (sweetness, sourness, bitterness, saltiness and umami), the noses have thousands of different smells! It’s important to give your cheese a good sniff before eating it. This will help you to identify its main characteristics and aid in the analysis of it.

All in your rind

The rind of cheese is often avoided by many people, particularly for strong varieties such as stilton. This can be the most flavorful part of a cheese, so to ignore it would be a real disservice. The only rind you should avoid is the waxy one. This was added after production and has no effect on the taste. All other rinds are fair game, and you should give them a taste to experience the cheese’s full flavour.

Enjoy the Seasons

You shouldn’t be surprised to find out that cheese, like other natural products, is constantly evolving. Its taste, texture, and quality can change dramatically from week to week. By letting the seasons determine the cheese you choose, and choosing the most seasonal ones, you can be sure to sample the best products available at the time. You can order any cheese you want at any time, thanks to today’s advanced production methods. But if you are serious about your choice of cheese, you will defer the wisdom of Father Time.

Learn the cheese vocabulary

It’s not enough to try all these delicious cheeses, but you must also be able to speak the cheese language to properly describe them. Experts use the following terms to describe cheese flavors:

• Earthy – reminiscent of the outdoors – whether it’s a riverbed or a newly ploughed farm
• Grassy – is similar to earthy but emphasizes the meaning of a freshly cut lawn or a pile of hay
• Barnyard – is also linked to Mother Nature. A musty cheese can have a positive smell, even though it may sound like a negative term.
• Lactic – with a hint of tang like you would find in tart sourcream or similar
• Fruity – used to describe cheeses with a strong aroma and that evoke a sweet and ripe feeling.
• Nutty – can be specific to one nut like hazelnut or almond, or it could just be a general nutty taste and aroma
• It’s the taste you can’t get rid of with a glass of wine or an apple. It stays on your tongue for several minutes or longer
• The aging of cheese produces a flavour that is almost meaty.
• Rounded – A rounded flavor is full-bodied and appealing. This is a word that’s often used to describe vintage Organic cheddar.

Enjoy your Cheese Tasting!

That’s only the beginning! You can become an expert cheese taster in no time if you learn to identify the subtleties of smell and taste within each cheese variety.