Superb line-up of Carrigaline Farmhouse Cheeses
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| The Original: from the local limestone |
“I love the smoked cheese”,
declared Padraig O’Farrell during our visit to Carrigaline Farmhouse Cheese today (Thursday). “It is indigenous to Carrigaline. The milk is local,
and the wood, old beech, is local. And we smoke it out the back.” We all loved
the award-winning Smoked.
And it, and indeed all the
lovely Carrigaline cheeses, underline a point made on the Discover FarmhouseCheese website : Farmhouse
Cheeses are some of the most bespoke, hand-made foods in the entire world! Buy
a farmhouse cheese and you get the rarest of things – each cheese has a
narrative, each one is telling the story of the cheese maker and of the farm
where it was made. The cheeses speak quietly about the good things, about pure
food, about fine milk, and content animals, about sharing and hospitality, and
the creativity of a determined individual on a small farm, stamping every
cheese with the signature of their personality.
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| In the brine
The Carrigaline narrative began
over twenty five years ago when Ann and Pat, Padraig’s parents, first produced
their semi-hard cow’s milk cheese from their own herd, after Pat had undertaken
a six month cheese course at UCC. Now the family process six varieties of cheese
“based on our own unique recipe for both the national and international market.
All of our cheese is handmade and available all year round”.
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The O’Farrells no longer
have their own herd but they get a consistent supply of great milk from
neighbour Flor O’Riordan.
The local Supervalu is a great
supporter of the cheeses and you‘ll find it in all the majors and in many fine
food stores. Padraig likes to see the reaction of customers at first hand and
sets up many tasting sessions. He enjoyed the recent trip to Kinsale where the
Dillisk was the star and also to last Wednesday’s food fair at the County Hall
where the natural cheese emerged as the favourite.
The operation, on the farm,
right next to the house, is all done by hand, including the packaging. The cheeses
are held for 4-8 weeks aging before being released to the shops. Five full time
staff are employed and others on a part time basis according to the demands of
the season.
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| The waxing begins... |
Our tour took us through the delivery
of the milk, then to the pasteurisation
process, to the separation of the whey from the curds, to the brining and
ripening room and then to the waxing and packaging. The different types of
cheese are coated with a different coloured wax; for instance, the yellow wax
is used for the original (Natural) cheese and the green for the Garlic and
Herb.
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| Co-founder Pat O'Farrell (left) talking to a well-dressed visitor! |
The magnificent six:
Natural: this is the original
cheese, semi-hard. Creamy with an incredibly satisfying piquant finish.
Garlic and Herbs: The garlic,
not overbearing, brings a savoury twist.
Beech Smoked: This, tinged “with a baconesque flavour”, has
won many international awards over the years.
Dillisk Seaweed: The Dillisk
from the Atlantic combines with the milk from the limestone soil to give the cheese a “must taste” combination, and gained many new friends at the
recent Kinsale Gourmet Festival.
Cranberry Cheese: A modest percentage
of cranberries is used and the interaction changes the cheese. “The result is a
far more sophisticated cheese than one may expect.” It is well worth a try and
highly recommended as indeed are all the cheeses.
Blueberry Cheese: This really
delivers “an explosion of brilliant Blueberry flavours to the palate!”. If you
enjoy fruit with your cheese, then this power-packed combination is for you.
And you’ll also enjoy the blueberry aromas. Again the percentage of berries is
small and nicely judged!
Padraig, who has no shortage of
restaurant and wine experience from his days in the US, enjoys matching his cheeses
with various wines. Wine making is not (yet!) possible in Carrigaline but he also spotted a demand for a cheese biscuit. So now Carrigaline
offer you three varieties of handmade Irish Oat Cheese Biscuits: Natural,
Garlic and Herb and Chilli and Cheese.
No excuse now, so off you go and try some of the magnificent six.
No excuse now, so off you go and try some of the magnificent six.
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