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GENERAL BOARDS => Introductions => Topic started by: masopa on September 29, 2009, 12:01:55 PM

Title: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: masopa on September 29, 2009, 12:01:55 PM
Well, technically not Stilton country as I grew up in Lincolnshire which, although in the East Midlands, is not one of the three counties permitted to make Stilton.

I am already underway with my first cheese which is, unsurprisingly, a blue stilton.  I will post some pics in the relevant forum area in due course.

As for now, I've been living in the West of Scotland for over 6 years but there are still some great cheeses around these parts as well as certain other attractions (whisky!)
Title: Re: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: zenith1 on September 29, 2009, 03:38:19 PM
welcome to the forum masopa! You certainly are jumping right in by starting with a Stilton. Most start with something a little less daunting like the soft cheeses. How about a Caboc . I tasted it once and found it really nice. I think it has oats in it if I recall correctly. Anyway welcome once again.
Title: Re: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: whichwhey? on September 29, 2009, 11:18:32 PM
Welcome.
Title: Re: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: Cheese Head on September 29, 2009, 11:27:09 PM
Hello and welcome to the forum, quite a few people here have made Stilton! In the blue board there's quite a bit of info, have fun!
Title: Re: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: DeejayDebi on September 30, 2009, 02:33:58 AM
Welcome masopa! I have been searching for information on Scottish farmhouse cheeses with little info available. You may be the ticket.
Title: Re: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: Sailor Con Queso on September 30, 2009, 03:17:35 AM
Stilton is not considered a beginner's cheese, but I find it easier than a lot of others. It also doesn't usually require very much equipment. I do a pressed Stilton that makes a fabulous grating cheese.
Title: Re: Hello from Scotland (via Stilton country)
Post by: masopa on September 30, 2009, 09:28:26 AM
Thanks for the welcome, folks.

I've been doing a bit of digging for a while (during which time I was waiting for my rennet to be delivered!) and jumped to the, perhaps foolish, conclusion that Stilton might be a middle-of-the-road cheese in terms of difficulty.  Therefore, I thought I'd learn more from trying to make that than I might with a neufchatel or similar, but stood a higher chance of having something that might turn out non-poisonous and possibly even edible than a camembert or parmesan etc.

Certainly the cheese looked pretty good after I'd taken it out of the mould after a week, although only limited blueing.  It then fell over (my fault!) so I had to remould, although think I managed to do this with only slight disruption to the existing structure as it fell into two fairly neat pieces.  I suspect I might get a lot of blueing across what was the fault line...

I will wait a few more days and perhaps post a picture or two in the blue forum.

Regarding Scottish cheeses, I find the biggest problem is locating them - even for me living here.  There is an excellent cheesemonger in Edinburgh (the other side of the country), Iain Mellis, so under the premise of research I shall have to increase the frequency of my visits and report back on any particularly interesting cheeses!

Cheers

Paul