The Big Cheese

Nick:
The most exciting purchases I ever make at the grocery store come from the cheese case. We are lucky enough to have a Murrays' Cheese Shop in our local grocery store, which is like having one of Jesus' apostles preaching at your local church. Having a bit of money to play around with today we picked up a large variety of cheeses for our munching pleasure. Needless to say we sampled our newly acquired treasures of dairy and mold as soon as we walked in the door. Here are a few of our purchases from today's excursion and our thoughts about each of them.

Irish Cheddar 12 Months
Cost: $5
Milk: Cow
Upon viewing this cheese is milky white and is firm, yet moist. It is a smooth cheese with notes of grass and finishes with a familiar cheddar flavor. While not spreadable by any means, it would also not be very fit for crumbling. Great by itself, with beer, or with sausages or salamis.

Don Juan Manchego
Cost: $5.70
Milk: Sheep
This cheese has a tannish colored rind with black markings. It is firm and well suited to crumbling. The interior is off white in color and has a very rich flavor with a hint of sweetness. Great pairing with fruit or wine.

Gorgonzola Dolce
Cost: $5.46
Milk: Cow
White rind with a creamy white interior. Perfect for spreading with a smooth creamy taste full of familiar gorgonzola flavours. Our cheese specialist at Murrays' let me sample this particular cheese on a crispy cracker with a drizzle of honey, and it was delicious.

Shropshire Blue
Cost:$4.40
Milk: Cow
Hard, earth toned rind with a beautifully veined cheddar yellow interior. If cheddar and blue had a baby, this cheese would be the offspring. It is amazingly complex, with the familiar flavors of cheddar streaked with bursts of blue cheese heaven. One of my favorites.

We purchased several other cheeses as well as other great items today, but we will delve into that in a future post. Have a good night and don't forget to try new things!