I thought Quickes Farmhouse Cheddar would be a slam-dunk. I love cheddar, I love raw-milk cheeses, I love aged cheeses. But I didn’t love this raw-milk, aged cheddar.
A disappointing cheddar
The Quicke family has been farming in southwest England for more than 450 years, and the dairy has been in operation for 25. Its cheeses and butters have brought in accolades from all over the world. So I was surprised to find my slice of Farmhouse Cheddar to be bland and chalky. No cheddary tang, no pleasing mouthfeel. After tasting the cheese on its own, my husband and I sliced it for grilled-cheese sandwiches, but it didn’t improve by melting. I’m hoping that it’s just that I got an abnormally bad piece (if so, Surdyk’s, I expect more from you!) and Quickes Farmhouse Cheddar isn’t a lost cause.
Don’t let my experience turn you away – give it a try yourself! Serve the cheese with a big glass of red wine and some crackers. And be sure to let us know how it tasted.
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Quicke’s Cheddar has great potential, but is one of the few cloth bound cheddars that is often shipped vacuum sealed rather than paper wrapped. In my experience, this often concentrates the earthiness to a point of unbalance and leads to a somewhat chalky texture. While I’d be willing to bet an un-sealed Quicke’s would be quite good, Keen’s, Montgomery’s, Isle of Mull, and Cabott Clothbound all come wrapped in cloth and paper, and typically have better balance of flavor and texture. Quicke’s does send some of their cheese cloth wrapped: Traditional Red Leister and Double Gloucester; both are quite good compared to their mass produced English counterparts.
Thanks for the info, Josh. It definitely had that chalky taste I don’t prefer. I’ve had both the Cabot Clothbound and Isle of Mull and liked both very much, so it very well could be due to the plastic seal. I’ll have to come by the shop to pick up the Double Gloucester and see how it compares.
Try wrapping it in greaseproof paper and leaving it for up to a fortnight. We have found that this improves the flavor considerably.
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