Even with the crappy cell phone picture, what you are seeing here is one of the best Stinky Cheese Tuesdays that we have ever had, despite the fact that this was the first time that I actually saw someone spit out a chunk of cheese into their hand immediately after popping it into their mouth.  You know who you are…

The first thing that you’ll notice is that there are five cheeses today.  I only brought in three of them and the other two were lovingly provided by Pastor Barb and Ignacio, one of our grossly under appreciated building and grounds guys.

Pastor Barb’s contribution was the lovely Snowdonia Cheese Company Ginger Spice Cheddar.  This was pretty much the favorite of the day.  Much more sweet than biting, the ginger is definitely the star of this cheese.  It is present in such abundance that the cheddar actually has a crumbly texture with the ginger bits being quite numerous.  If you don’t mind your cheese a bit on the sweet side, this one should be on your list!

Ignacio’s gift was Petacones Duro Blanco Con Loroco, a cheese from El Salvador.  Loroco is a vine found in Central America that is used like cilantro in a lot of dishes.  This particular cheese was like an herbed feta, with the high salt content, crumbliness, and texture where it has moisture held between the pressed, dry curds.  This was a favorite for the guys in the Refectory, but also the one that somebody really didn’t like.  Personally, I loved it, and need to find some loroco somewhere that I can experiment with.

The first of my cheeses was Somerdale’s Wensleydale with Cranberries.  Most Wensleydale’s that I’ve had with either blueberries or cranberries have been sweetened to the point that they taste like a cheesecake.  Somerdale believes in keeping their cranberries tart, giving this one quite the complex flavor.  As with the ginger cheddar, the cranberries are the star of the show, while the cheese serves as more of a stage for it to be displayed on.  This one is always a croud pleaser.

Next is the Van Kaas Mediterranean Gouda, a very creamy and soft gouda with garlic, olives, sun dried tomatoes, oregano, and some other herbs and spices that I couldn’t quite wrap my taste buds around.  This is an intense cheese.  The gouda flavor is certainly there, but it dances with the others.  The Mediterranean flavors are huge, and don’t shy away from letting themselves be known.  This was yet another great, awesome cheese.

Lastly, and my favorite, is El Pastor de la Polvorosa Iberico.  This is a semi-cured cheese that tastes like an immature Manchego.  Just the right amount of salt, sharpness, butter, and nuttiness makes this a solid choice for a table cheese.  Known in Spain as Hijos de Salvador Rodríguez S.A., El Pastor de la Polvorosa has been making cheese for almost 70 years and is one of Spain’s largest cheese makers.  Their years of experience really show with this Iberico.

Thanks again to Pastor Barb and Ignacio for helping to make this one of the best and most raved about Stinky Cheese Tuesdays yet!

Stay Cheesy!