Advice when buying cheese

 Always ask to taste a cheese – if you are in a reputable cheesemongers they will be happy to give you a taste of any or all of their cheeses (don’t however use this as a meal replacement trick, as they do catch on fairly quickly!)

•   Remember – cheese is a seasonal product, so look at the combination of what time of year you are buying it at, and how long the type of cheese should take to mature (see earlier classification for general guidelines). Fresher cheeses usually taste best in late Spring through to early Autumn – the milk used to make the cheese is usually at its best at these times, and you are less likely to encounter cheese made from frozen milk, which does detract from a cheese’s freshness on the palate.
• When buying cheeses matured up to 4-6 months, only buy as much as you will use over the following few days, as it does go off fairly quickly. Older cheeses can keep for longer in the fridge (wrap in parchment paper and then put into a sealed container – wrapping in cling-film isn’t the best treatment).
• Don’t be afraid to try out sheep’s cheeses – while goats cheese is not for the fainthearted, ewes milk is actually very mild and doesn’t have that strong ‘cows tail’ smell and taste that many cows milk cheeses have!
• Unpasteurized (raw) milk generally is said to produce a better cheese, and is usually very safe if sold through a reputable cheesemonger – the pasteurization process does take away some of the complexity of flavour.