New to Zuercher from Neal’s Yard Dairy

We have added two new cheeses to our Neal’s Yard Dairy Selection.  Many of you may remember Durrus, the Irish washed-rind cheese, which is returning after an extended period of unavailability.  The sample wheel we recently received was a bit young, but very flavorful and full of potential.  We’re excited to have it back.  The next cheese is new to Zuercher – Tunworth.  While this Camembert-style cheese won much of our office over with its rich flavor, we do have to introduce it with a caveat.  As a small retail-sized soft-ripened cheese with the accompanying limited shelf life, combined with the longer logistical lead time from NYD to us, Tunworth arrives to us in a state very close to peak ripeness.  So if you’re interested in giving it a try, make sure you place an order so it ships to you promptly after arrival.  While fantastic when ripe, Tunworth develops a hot and assertive rind past its peak along with a room-clearing pungency.  Move it quickly!

Neal’s Yard Dairy – Tunworth

Tunworth is a Camembert-style cheese made in Hampshire, England for Neals’s Yard Dairy. Cheesemakers Stacey Hedges and Charlotte Spruce purchase Holstein milk from a neighboring dairy which enables them to work closely with the farmer to ensure milk quality.

Like other bloomy-rind cheeses, Tunworth displays a rich and creamy paste, but in-tact texture that doesn’t excessively ooze when ripe. What sets it apart from others is a fantastically vegetal flavor explosion on your palate. At Zuercher, our team tasted Tunworth and discovered that it reminded many of green or cruciferous vegetables such as asparagus, cabbage or broccoli with cheese sauce. Tunworth can run a bit salty, but when paired with a crisp, herbaceous white, such as a Sauvignon Blanc-based wine, the combination is heavenly.

Tunworth is available as a 12/8-ounce case.

Neal’s Yard Dairy – Durrus

In the early 1970’s cheesemaker Jeffa Gill left the hustle and bustle of city life as a fashion designer, and settled in County Cork, Ireland to concentrate on her new craft:  artisan cheesemaking. Gill purchases local Holstein Friesian milk from a longtime and trusted neighboring farm. She is one of the few Irish cheesemakers producing unpasteurized washed-rind cheeses, and appreciates the relationship she has with them; quality and consistency are key in production.

Although fairly mild when young, we tasted a number of flavors. The paste has been described as semi-soft “sweet bread dough” with a bit of tanginess. Others noted woodsy, nutty (peanut or almond) and meaty notes. Many of us agreed that Durrus would probably be even better as it aged. We also think this would be fantastic with a fruity, but not overly-hopped pale ale.

Durrus is available as a 3-pound wheel.