White Cheese Ultimate Guide

Many cheeses are categorised based on colour. White cheese, blue cheese, and red cheese being the most common, with the latter being the rarest sight to see on shop shelves. If you find green cheese, it may have been left to age for a little too long!

Although cheese enthusiasts know and appreciate a lovely blue cheese wedge, there’s no denying that white cheese is the most popular by far. White stilton, cheddar, feta, and brie are all typical sights on a cheese board, and for good reason.

To help you pick out the best white cheese, either for yourself or to add to one of our cheese gift hampers, here’s an explanation of why white cheese is so popular, and how best to enjoy yours.

 

What is White Cheese?

When you picture a cheese wheel or wedge, most people will first think of a yellow or cream-coloured block free from any imperfections (unless it’s Swiss!). This is white cheese, which is simply cows or goats’ milk that has been heated and had a coagulant added to separate the curds and the whey. The valuable whey is drained off from the curds, and formed into mould to create the delicious cheese we know and love. Nothing goes to waste from the cheese making process and the liquid whey is used as an ingredient for energy drinks, butter, baking and because of the live cultures even sceptic tanks!

That’s a very simple explanation of the cheese making process, but the technique we use take a lot of expertise. Unlike factories, who care about quantity more than quality, we take our time to get things right, using the same traditional methods that have served us well for over a century.

For example, when our fresh cow’s milk is being pasteurised in the vat, we stir it by hand instead of using a machine. This stirring is essential to unlock as much flavour as possible, and by doing it manually we can ensure the perfect result every time. We add our own secret starter cultures during this process, which will affect the type and flavour of cheese we create, and each type requires unique stirring frequency to ensure it tastes as good as it should.

 

The Difference Between Blue and White Cheese

In a sense, all cheese is ‘white cheese’, as it takes special ingredients and measures to turn what would be a white cheese into a blue cheese.

Blue cheese is known for its iconic blue ‘veins’, which are lines of mould allowed to grow in a controlled manner, adding incredible flavour that white cheese simply can’t match.

To enable the veining to occur we add Roqueforte Penicillin starter into the mixture. The introduction of air from piercing the cheese with metal rods creates the blue veining. This intensifies during the ageing process.

For Stilton we do not use any pressing unlike firmer cheese like cheddar. We allow the cheese curds to set in their moulds, allowing all excess moisture to drip out of it slowly, instead of pressing the cheese to speed up the process the way factory-based cheesemakers do. This is why the best Stilton cheese has a crumbly consistency similar to Cheshire, Lancashire and Wensleydale Cheeses.

But we don’t let these veins form at random. We pierce the cheese manually at specific points so that the blue veining forms evenly, but still naturally as the oxygen allows mould to grow. Once again, this is a fine art. Leaving it to the machines leads to poor-ageing – which is common as most factories don’t age their cheese long enough to release all the flavour.

Now you understand how we make our cheese, it’s time to learn more about the individual cheeses we supply.

 

Why Choose White Cheese?

Some people consider white cheese to be ‘basic’. With our decades of experience, we say with confidence that this is incorrect. If the cheese you’ve experienced has been basic, it’s time to treat yourself to real artisan cheese.

White cheeses, despite looking fairly similar, vary greatly in flavour and texture. We have creamy, melt-in-your-mouth cheese but also crumbly cheese that is packed with sharp, tangy flavour. We also use our white cheese as the basis for some of our boldest creations – our Chocolate & Chilli Cheese and Smoked Tomato & Garlic are both varieties that use our iconic Peakland White as a base cheese for blending.

Here’s a list of the white cheeses we currently produce:

• Peakland White – One of our most popular cheeses, available in wedges, truckles, half-moon, and full cheese wheels!
• White Stilton – We’re the only true producer of artisan stilton, one of the nation’s favourites!
• Traditional Derby – An old-school cheese we recently reintroduced, showcasing the history of cheesemaking in Derbyshire.
• Hartington Squadron – A celebration of Great Britain with extra mature cheddar cheese.

And as we said, you’ll find that our Peakland White is the basis for many of our special cheese wedges, so they’re often a mainstay of our hampers and subscription boxes.

 

How to Enjoy White Cheese

Although a delight on its own, all cheese is at its best when paired with the right accompaniments.

Our recommendations include:

• Alcoholic Beverages – Wine, port, or ales help to cleanse the palette and enhance the flavour.
• Chutneys – Perfect for spreading on cheese to add some fruitiness.
• Pates – Similar purpose, but with a smoother texture.
• Biscuits – Mild flavours that add crunch and savouriness.
• Cured meats – To liven up a cheese-heavy cheese board.

This is a lot of options, and it can be tough to know which is best, even if you follow our best accompaniments for cheese guide. That’s why we recommend picking up a cheese gift hamper if you want to try a bit of everything. These aren’t set in stone either, you can still pick your favourite cheeses, chutneys, and biscuits so every bite will be a winner.

 

The UK’s Best White Cheese

The phrase ‘made with love’ appears on a lot of products, especially in the world of handmade food. But with our artisan cheese, you can really taste the passion and effort we put into the process. Pair this with our traditional methods that keep the art of cheesemaking alive, and you’re in for a treat no matter which cheese you decide to buy.

White cheeses should be an instant addition to any gift hamper, or separate order. If you’re planning on creating a cheese board for Christmas, make sure there are plenty of white cheeses that everyone will enjoy!

In the meantime, if you have any questions about us or our products, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We look forward to hearing from you!