There are many kinds of cheeses available on the market today. You can get just about any type of cheese that’s in line with your specific preferences. While some people may have unusual choices when it comes to cheese, the most common ones are parmesan, mozzarella, cheddar, blue cheese, etc.
Aside from the popular ones, the cheese industry also has some uncharted kinds of cheese that only a few people know about. If you’ve just delved into the world of cheese and want to know more about all the experiences out there, you’re in for a treat! There are pungent, sweet, sour, and other memorable varieties that the local store might not even have on offer.
That’s why we are here to give you a list of the less popular but equally delicious and mouthwatering kinds of cheese. Cheese lovers, you better hold on tight to your seats and wallets, because what you’re about to read will make you crave these yummy cheeses. They also don’t come cheap, so you might have to save up a bit before you can experience one of these little-known cheeses:
Muenster Cheese
When one is reading or sampling the usual kinds of cheese, they may not even come across this Muenster of a cheese. This is a semi-soft cheese that originates from the United States but has several other variations as well. It is often tagged as the imitation of the Alsatian Munster Cheese, which was brought over to America by German immigrants. Incidentally, many cheese connoisseurs usually find the French version of Muenster cheese to be the best one.
Muenster Cheese is made from cow’s milk and has a smooth texture with a pale color and orange rind. It’s usually described as a washed-rind cheese, which means that it’s softened or moistened by salty water during the curing process. This makes for a savory, yeasty flavor and provides a breeding ground for bacteria. For this reason among many others, you want to make sure that your Muenster cheese comes from a trusted and experienced supplier.
The rind gets is orange color from annatto, a seasoning that has a sweet and nutty taste. It is usually used with cheddar, Mimolette and Colby cheese to add more flavor and color. Muenster has a smooth and soft texture that is matched by a mild flavor. When it is properly aged, this cheese can develop a pungent smell and strong flavor. It is often served as an appetizer, but it is also used in meals like quesadillas, cheeseburgers, macaroni and cheese, and pizza.
American Muenster cheeses are usually pale in color and have a bland taste. These might not make for a very flavorful addition to your cheese platter. However, they are good for using if you want to add a cheese-like texture to your dish without interfering with the taste of the existing ingredients. The French and German varieties can vary from pungent to sharp tastes, similar to Monterey Jack cheese.
Overall, the Muenster cheese is suitable for consuming directly from a platter or cheese board. It’s also very easy to melt, so adding it to various recipes shouldn’t be an issue. The rind could end up smelling a bit strange, but that doesn’t really affect the actual cheese inside.
Roccolo
This cheese originated from northern Italy. It has a washed rind and is made from cow’s milk. Roccolo is a pliant cheese that is brined in saltwater and cave-aged on pine boards for about six months. This process allows the cheese to have a creamy, rich, and salty taste.
Literally, the name ‘roccolo’ means ‘bird snare’. This is because its appearance resembles certain tall buildings in Portugal. These buildings were usually covered in plants and used as bird traps. With the natural rind on roccolo cheese, the name must have rung a bell with the natives.
The experience of roccolo cheese is usually smoky and even somewhat meaty. This makes us think that it would be an especially good option to serve at barbeques.
Any Cheese from Portugal
When we think of cheese from foreign lands, the furthest we might get is Swiss cheese. There’s no doubt that Switzerland is known for its cheese, chocolates, and watches. However, Portugal isn’t too far behind in the cheese game. If you’re feeling adventurous for different and unique types of cheese, this country might be the next stop on your world food tour!
Portuguese cheese like Amarelo, Serra, Serpa, and Curado is often made from sheep or goat’s milk and sometimes is a combination of both. These cheeses are either dry or oozy, with flavors that are just too good to believe.
Capriole O’ Banon
This Indiana cheese is made of goat’s milk and is wrapped in bourbon-soaked chestnut leaves. That gives this cheese its tannic sweetness.
The taste of this cheese is an attraction for most, but the appearance is nothing to ignore either. Its presentation can make it suitable for a gift basket, or even for a gift by itself. If it’s possible, try to find a manufacturer that uses a hand-ladling process for this cheese. This will give you a creamy, cloud-like paste inside the leaves, perfect for spreading on bread or using as a dip.
Stichelton
This English blue cheese is just like Blue Stilton cheese. The only difference is that Stichelton cheese does not use pasteurized milk. It also doesn’t make use of factory-produced rennet. ForbesLife described Stichelton to have a succulent flavor that gives you a complex chain of flavors in your mouth. It has a buttery, fruity, salty, sharp, and creamy taste.
The most authentic process of making Stichelton cheese utilizes raw milk, hand-ladling, and rennet generated from the stomach of calves. Its production is fairly limited, especially as the milk is unpasteurized. The process is still ongoing thanks to a starter culture that was luckily kept alive for decades.
Green Valley Dairy Pennsylvania Noble Cheddar
Cheesemonger Dan Weiss says that this kind of cheddar cheese is the best choice for people who are looking to move from mass-produced cheese to artisanal cheese. This cheddar cheese is made from raw and organic cow’s milk and has a nutty, rich texture with a slightly sharp flavor.
Vento d’Estate
This cheese got its origins from Northern Italy. It is made of pasteurized cow’s milk and has herbs like mint and rosemary. This cheese is aged in barrels under mountain hay and has a rind that is covered in the same grass that cows eat, which gives the cheese an aesthetically pleasing look.
At first glance, the appearance of this cheese might give you a start. Since there’s actual hay mixed in with the rind, the appearance is not as smooth as one might expect. However, this is essential for the curing and final taste of Vento d’Estate cheese. You may rest assured that nothing harmful will reach the cheese inside as long as the manufacturers are careful and true to the process.
The cheese itself here is a dense paste, almost crumbly when you cut it. Its taste is milky, though a sharp tang is definitely present. You might also be overwhelmed by the smell, which can travel far and wide. Once you get over that, however, the cheese is definitely worth at least one trial.
Leonora
This cheese that originates from the Leon region of Spain is made of goat’s milk. The Leonora cheese has a creamy and cakey inside that tastes tangy, grassy and fruity. It is usually shaped into a large brick and has an ashy rind, which gives the cheese a smoky flavor. Some versions might have a white color, although this might vary according to different manufacturers.
Those who have tried out this cheese compare the texture to something like cheesecake or very dense ricotta. That certainly sounds delicious and versatile, as we can think about spreading this cheese on crackers, bread, and other sidelines.
While the rind of the Leonora cheese might be edible, we don’t recommend trying it out. The rinds of most cheese are safe for human consumption, but they simply don’t give you a very good experience. Leonora cheese rind, for instance, might taste far too peppery for proper enjoyment.
Juniper Grove Buche
This aged goat cheese has a dense, velvety texture with a sweet and grassy flavor. It has a golden stalk of wheat in the center. This cheese is usually made of raw goat’s milk using a traditional French cheesemaking technique.
The rind here is soft and wrinkled, not smooth like most factory-produced cheeses. Inside, you get a soft, fluffy, and somewhat moist cheese that grows runnier the more it ages. The center, however, gets much firmer with age.
Blackberry Farm Singing Brook Cheese
This aged, unpasteurized cheese is made of sheep’s milk and has a natural rind. It is usually made of concentrated milk of East Friesian sheep. The plants and grasses that the sheep eats during the summer months give the Brook cheese its light creamy texture with a hint of caramel richness.
Each wheel of this cheese is aged for a good five to six months. You can find several recipes using it online, including canapés and even a few desserts.
Sweet Grass Dairy Hill
Originally made by Jeremy Little from Thomasville, Georgia, this cheese has a clean but complex flavor that only pasture-grazed Jersey cows can give. It has a rich and buttery flavor with a downy white rind.
Conclusion
Now that we laid the list of less popular but delicious and flavorful cheeses, which of these would you like to taste first? It’s time for you cheese lovers to start the search for these unusual options. Once you have the most attractive choices before you, try pairing them up with different crackers, fruits, and other accompaniments.
If you’re interested in cooking, look up some delicious recipes for these cheeses to make your next dinner party a hit! The distinctive taste that only these cheese can provide will definitely be worth the extra effort. A word of warning, though: if you plan to consume cheese made from unpasteurized milk, it’s only wise to research the possible side effects later on. You may also want to warn your guests if you’re using such cheese in your recipes.