Give me a chunk, a big blue chunk! (Stilton)

Name: Bilbo Baggins

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Product:	Stilton
Date:	18/04/01 (73 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Delicious.

Disadvantages: Not for sensitive tongues.

The only smelly thing to make your mouth water.

The best cheese by far is Blue Stilton. Ok maybe ‘by far’ is a bit of an exaggeration. A close second is Danish Blue. But Blue Stilton you see takes the biscuit, it’s smoother and creamier than you would expect. As a boy I used to hate the smell of the Stilton my uncle was always offering us round the Christmas dinner. That and pickled Walnuts were enough to turn my stomach. I now realise now that small boys know little about culinary delight. Your tongue is too sensitive as small boy. One has not drunk enough alcohol to burn out some of those sensitive taste buds as small boy. That is my theory anyway, the more taste buds that kick the bucket, the better the Blue Stilton tastes (as do pickled Walnuts but you will have to wait for the upcoming op on that). As more of my taste buds collapse under the strains of adulthood so too does my desire to eat other cheeses such as the rubbery tasteless Gouda or Edam ball and crumbly Cheshire, the safe kiddies cheese that I once loved can go crumble itself down into a crumble down mound for all I care.

So what’s the history behind the wonderful Stilton slice and how do they get them blue bits in it? Blue Stilton is traditionally English and is handmade exclusively from centuries old recipes in the counties of Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire from local milk. Not many places have a licence to make it because it’s so hard to make which allows the legend to live on without being diluted by disgusting doppelgangers. It’s even got it’s own trademark which is unique in British cheese manufacturing. Rumour has it that eating the rind of Blue Stilton is bad for the heart because it increases it’s rate and causes hyperactivity.

It’s made with pasteurised milk and vegetable rennet. The high temperature that the milk undergoes kills all the harmful bacteria and then when it is cooling
a started organism (like you get in yoghurt) is added. This acidifies the curds during this 24 hour production stage. The veg rennet separates the curds from the whey and then the curds are used to make the Blue Stilton, the maturing of which takes weeks. The Stilton blocks are turned every day until it leaves the factory and covered with buttery stuff to prevent air entering and prematurely bluing the cheese. Later it blues and it’s ready for my consumption.

Long live Blue Stilton.

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