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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Ireland, Co. Tipperary

Cashel Blue

Cashel Blue is a semi-soft blue cheese made on a Tipperary farm since 1984 from pasteurised cow milk, a starter, Penicillium roqueforti and vegetarian rennet. The soft curd drains in moulds for a few days, is salted and pierced with needles so air reaches the mould, and ripens for about two to three months before it is wrapped in foil. Made in 7 steps over 58 days – 59 days. The longest step, pierce and ripen, takes at least 56 days (Bord Bia (Irish Food Board)). Lactic starter cultures and Penicillium roqueforti do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 56 daysReported[bordbia-guide]Pierce and ripen
Temperature32 °CReported[cooksinfo]Warm the milk and add starter and blue mould

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe makers publish no amounts. The process times below come from a secondary account of the farm's method; the ages, size and character come from Bord Bia's guide.
Pasteurised whole cow milk · Over half from the Grubbs' own Holstein-Friesians, the rest from nearby herds[bordbia-guide][cashelblue-bio]
Starter cultures[cashelblue-bio]
Penicillium roqueforti · Added to the milk[cashelblue-bio][cooksinfo]
Vegetarian rennet · A small amount made with traditional rennet is sometimes available[bordbia-guide]
Salt[cashelblue-bio]
Starter: starter cultures (not named) with Penicillium roqueforti; vegetarian rennet

Total time across the recorded steps: 58 days – 59 days

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
32 °Cshapes, not to countPenicillium roqueforti

What changes: Starter and blue mould spores go into the warm pasteurised milk

Step 1 of 7
Warm the milk and add starter and blue mould
Time
Not documented
Temperature
32 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Penicillium roqueforti

Output: inoculated milk.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Cashel Blue is a small farmhouse blue made from pasteurised cow milk with vegetarian rennet. It is sold from about 8 weeks old, and as it ages its chalky, mild centre turns into a soft, buttery paste with a stronger blue taste.

Size
About 1.4 kg wheels, also sold as 350 g and 175 g sections
Ripening
From 8 weeks for young wheels; 12 to 14 weeks and more for extra mature
Milk
Pasteurised cow milk

Related ferments

Variants

  • Young Cashel BlueFrom about 8 weeks; chalky and mild.
  • Mature Cashel Blue12–14 weeks and more; soft, rich and more strongly blue.

Safety

Made from pasteurised milk.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Louis and Jane Grubb returned to Beechmount Farm in 1979 and bought a herd of 90 cows. Jane began making cheese in 1980, in an old copper brewer's vat, and the first Cashel Blue was ready in 1984; the makers call it Ireland's first farmhouse blue. Their daughter Sarah and her husband Sergio Furno took over the maturing in 2004, and a new dairy was built in 2011.

  1. [bordbia-guide] Bord Bia (Irish Food Board), Your Guide to Irish Farmhouse Cheeses, Cashel Blue profile, p. 61 (undated)gov
  2. [cashelblue-bio] Cashel Farmhouse Cheesemakers, A short biography of Cashel Blue (maker's site)web
  3. [cooksinfo] CooksInfo, Cashel Blue cheese (citing RTÉ 2007, The Observer 2003 and the Limerick Independent 2008)web