A cheese lover's glossary

• Acid  A slightly sour flavour.
• Ammoniated  Some overripe cheeses (especially soft ones like Camembert and Brie) develop this 'Janola' smell..
• Annatto  A South American plant dye used to colour many cheeses..
• Aroma  The smell of a particular cheese, from lightly aromatic to ferociously overpowering. Though not always, strong smelling cheeses are usually strongly flavoured..
• Barnyardy  The best example of this aroma and taste is probably goat's cheese.
• Bleu  French name for blue veined cheeses.
• Bloomy or Flowery rind  A light 'down' of mould - a result of the cheese being cultured with a light spray of penicillium candidate spores.
• Brushed  By machine or hand, the brushing of the rind on naturally rinded cheeses for moisture and flavour.
• Casein  The milk protein that solidifies once coagulation (setting) takes place.
• Cellar  A room, usually underground, where cheeses ripen. (Roquefort is ripened in caves).
• Cheddaring  Stacking and turning curds at the bottom of the vat every 10 -15 minutes for 11/2 hours.
• Close  Smooth, unblemished texture, free of holes or cracks.
• Cooked  All hard cheeses are cooked by being heated.
• Cream  Milk fat.
• Creamy  Yielding texture and rich taste.
• Curdling  Coagulation of the milk by introduction of rennet.
• Curing  Maturing by leaving to ripen.
• Crumbly  Condition of cheese that breaks away when cut - fetta & blues.
• Dry Matter  What remains once moisture is removed - Parmesan is largely dry matter, Camembert is still 50% moisture.
• Earthy  Distinctive characteristic of monastery cheeses.
• Fat Content  Indicated on the packaging. Ranging from 4% to 75% but on the average about 33%.
• Fresh Cheese  Unripened cheese e.g. Cottage, Ricotta and Cream Cheese.
• Gruyere  One of the best known Swiss cheeses. Also general name for large French cheeses eg: Beaufort, Emmentaler.
• Hard  Cooked cheeses.
• Holes or Eyes  Caused by cultured bacterial activity, these round holes give distinctive character to Gruyere and other Swiss types.
• Lactic  Milky aroma, and sometimes flavour of certain cheeses.
• Micro-organisms  Yeasts and fermenters naturally present in milk and milk curd.
• Moulds  Use of penicillium candidate results in exterior mould while penicillium glaucum or roqueforti create internal moulds used to create blue vein.
• Mushroomy  Flavour and aroma of soft and semi- softs eg: Camembert and Brie.
• Nutty  Usually a hazelnut flavour and aroma.
• Open  Cheese with openings or holes in it.
• Paraffin  Wax protective outer coating. eg: Edam.
• Pasteurisation  Heating of milk to sterilise and kill bacteria.
• Paste  Interior of a cheese.
• Pronounced  Descriptive term for dominant flavour or aroma in a cheese.
• Persille  Bleu cheese made from sheep milk - Roquefort is the only example of this.
• Piquant  Sharp tasting.
• Rennet  Substance which contains a milk coagulating enzyme. Found in calves' stomachs or as a vegetable extract.
• Rind  Natural or artificial external surface of cheese designed to protect the paste, allow it to ripen and develop to the desired flavour.
• Skimmed milk  Milk from which part or all cream is removed.
• Starter  Bacterial culture which produces lactic acid - tastes like yoghurt.
• Supple  Firm but not hard texture, pliable and resillient.
• Tangy  Sharp, distinctive, flavoursome.
• Texture  Largely dependent on moisture content. Harder cheeses have less moisture, softer cheeses more.
• Washed rind cheeses  Regular rind washing of some varieties while being ripened, with washes as varied as brine and brandy. This keeps the cheese moist and supple and contributes to the final flavour of the cheese. Some of the strongest smelling and flavoured cheeses have washed rinds.