Sharpham Cheese – Garlic and Chive
I could live without chocolate; I could live without wine (but I wouldn’t want to); and I could live without hair colour; but I could never have a complete and meaningful existence without cheese. Luckily, I have made the acquaintance of a company called Sharpham Cheese, so I won’t need to.
There is so much cheese out there and most of it is good. Some of it is excellent, and Sharpham produce outstanding cheese – and it’s British. I am not anti food products from beyond these shores, but in these tough times why would we not support more local companies who are offering cheeses every bit as good as the overseas competition and with far fewer miles from your own kitchen?
From 1981 the 18th century coachyard of Sharpham House was home to the creamery where the Sharpham range of handmade cheeses was produced. Using the rich milk from their Jersey cattle and vegetarian rennet, their unpasteurised cheeses have been a huge success. In April 2003 they transferred production to a new purpose-built creamery. The company still holds to the same traditional techniques, and their products are free of GM ingredients.
Herby and rich flavour and texture
I will happily taste my way through every Sharpham cheese style, but I am starting this series of reviews with their Rustic Garlic and Chive. It’s a semi-hard cheese and versatile. Try it first with some crusty white bread and savour the herby and rich flavour and texture. Allow its smooth character to contrast against the firm bread. Crumble some on hot pasta and mix in a beaten egg which will cook in the heat.
The chives and garlic are added before the cheese is formed. After hand-pressing into basket moulds, the cheese is drained for 48 hours before being dry-salted. As the cheese ages, it is rubbed by hand to form the thin, natural rind, and the cheeses are turned each week.
A full-size cheese will have a maximum shelf life of up to 2 months; the smaller cheeses have a shorter shelf life as they will ripen faster. The mini or medium cheeses will have a shelf life of 2-3 weeks from the date of dispatch.
This delicious cheese has achieved:
Gold – Global Cheese Awards 2017
Gold – British Cheese Awards 2016
Silver – Global Cheese Awards 2016
Bronze – British Cheese Awards 2015