4 h CHeíSEVARíerlí^ and Descriptions U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, AGR. HANDBOOK NO. 54 Preface This handbook is a complete revision of and supersedes Department Bulletin 608, Varieties of Cheese: Descriptions and Analyses. It was prepared to answer the questions of the many people who ask the Bureau of Dairy Industry for general information on the characteristics of differ- ent cheeses and the methods of production. It is not intended as a guide for making cheese, or as documentary evidence to use in a court of law; rather, it is an effort to describe each cheese so that consumers may be better able to recognize the various kinds by name. Descriptions of the cheeses are based on information obtained from many sources, including a study of the literature (foreign literature as well as the literature of this country), information obtained from cheese manufacturers and research workers, and first-hand observations. The author wishes to express his appreciation to the many people who helped him in the laborious task of assembling the information on the various cheeses and in the preparation and review of the manuscript. Although every effort was made to obtain complete and accurate de- scriptions, in many cases only fragmentary information was obtained, and some of the descriptions may contain inaccuracies. The author will appreciate advice from authorities on cheesemaking who have additional authentic information on any cheese, for use in any future revision of the handbook. Cheese Varieties and Descriptions By GE:ORGE P. SANDERS, Division of Dairy Products Research, Bureau of Dairy Industry, Agricultural Research Administration CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Description of cheeses 4 Selected references 141 Index 145 Washington, D. G. Issued December 1953 260172*'—53- Introduction Cheese is a highly nutritious and palatable food. It is of value in the diet because it contains in concentrated form almost all the protein and usually most of the fat, as well as essential minerals, vitamins, and other nutrients, of milk. Cheese is made wherever animals are milked and produce more milk than the people use in fluid form. Most cheese is made from cow's milk, simply because cows are milked more generally throughout the world than other animals. Smaller quantities are made from the milk of goats and ewes. Cheese is also made in some countries from the milk of other animals, such as camels, asses, mares, buffaloes, and reindeer. People all over the world like and eat cheese. People in the United States are no exception. Although we do not eat nearly so much cheese per capita in the United States as do people in some countries, we eat nearly twice as much now as 20 years ago, or about 10 pounds (all kinds) per capita per year. This increased consumption is the result, at least in part, of improvements made in recent years in the quality and uniformity of many kinds of cheese. No one knows who made the first cheese, but according to an ancient legend it was made accidentally by an Arabian merchant. The merchant put his supply of milk into a pouch made of a sheep's stomach when he set out on a long day's journey across the desert. The rennet in the lining of the pouch combined with the heat of the sun caused the milk to separate into curd and whey. He found at nightfall that the whey satisfied his thirst and the cheese (curd) satisfied his hunger and had a delightful flavor. Thus, according to the legend, the making of one of our most useful foods was begun. According to ancient records, cheese was used as a food more than 4,000 years ago. It was made and eaten in Biblical times. Travelers from Asia are believed to have brought the art of cheesemaking to Europe. Cheese was made in many parts of the Roman Empire when it was at its height. Then cheesemaking was introduced to England by the Romans. During the Middle Ages—from the decline of the Roman Empire until the discovery of America—as well as later, cheese was made and improved by the monks in the monasteries of Europe. Gorgonzola was made in the Po Valley in Italy in 879 A. D. and Italy became the cheesemaking center of Europe in the 10th century. Roquefort was mentioned in the ancient records of the monastery at Conques, France, in 1070. The Pilgrims included cheese in the ship's supplies when they made their famous voyage to Araerica in the Mayflower in 1620. Until the middle of the 19th century, however, cheesemaking was a local farm industry. Housewives made cheese from the surplus milk produced 1 2 AGRICULTURE HANDBOOK^ U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE on the farm. In 1851 the first cheese factory in the United States was built by Jesse Williams near Rome, Oneida County, N. Y. Herkimer County, which adjoins Oneida County, was the center of the cheese in- dustry in the United States for the next 50 years. For many years during this period the largest cheese market in the world was at Little Falls, N. Y.; there cheese from about 200 factories was sold, in addition to farmmade cheese. As the population increased in the East, and there was a cor- responding increase in the demand for market milk, the industry gradually moved westward, centering in the rich farm lands of Wisconsin. Cheese- making in the United States and in the other leading cheese-producing countries of the world is now largely a factory industry, only small amounts being made on farms for home use. More than a billion pounds of cheese is now made in the United States each year. About one-tenth of the annual milk production is used in making this cheese. Most cheese is "natural" cheese, that is, it is made directly from milk (or whey, in a few instances) as opposed to "process" cheese, which is made from a blend or combination of one or more kinds of natural cheese. Natural cheese is made by coagulating or curdling milk, stirring and heating the curd, draining off the whey, and collecting or pressing the curd. De- sirable flavor and texture are obtained in many cheeses by curing the cheese, that is, holding it for a specified time at a specific temperature and humidity. This bulletin contains descriptions of more than 400 cheeses, arranged in alphabetical order (pp. 4-143). Many cheeses are named for the town or community in which they are made, or for a landmark of the com- munity. Hence, many cheeses with different local names are practically the same in their characteristics. On the other hand, several different kinds are known by the same local name. More than 800 names are indexed (pp. 145-151). A typical analysis, based on data in the literature, is given for most cheeses. In some instances, the analysis includes figures of composition prescribed by the Federal Government (see Selected Reference 30, p. 141). It was not possible to obtain analytical data for all the cheeses. It is difficult, if not impossible, to classify the different cheese« satisfactorily in groups. Attempts to do so by other writers have not been entirely suc- cessful. There probably are only about 18 distinct types or kinds of natural cheese. No two of these are made by the same method; that is, the details of setting the milk, cutting, stirring, heating, draining, pressing, and ' salting the curd, and curing the cheese are varied to produce characteristics and qualities peculiar to each kind of cheese. The following cheeses are typical of the 18 kinds: Brick, Camembert, Cheddar, Cottage, Cream, Edam, Gouda, Hand, Limburger, Neufchâtel, Parmesan, Provolone, Romano, Roquefort, Sapsago, Swiss, Trappist, and whey cheeses (Mysost and Ricotta). Such a grouping, though informative, is imperfect and incomplete. Cheeses can be also classified as very hard (grating), hard, semisoft, or soft; and as ripened by bacteria, by mold, by surface micro-organisms, or by a CHEESE VARIETIES AND DESCRIPTIONS 3 combination of these, or as unripened. Following are examples of cheeses in these classifications : 1. Very hard (grating) : (a) Ripened by bacteria: Asiago old, Parmesan, Romano, Sap- sago, Spalen. 2. Hard: (a) Ripened by bacteria, without eyes: Cheddar, Granular or Stirred-curd, and Caciocavallo. {b) Ripened by bacteria, with eyes: Swiss, Emmentaler, and Gruyère. 3. Semisoft: (a) Ripened principally by bacteria : Brick and Münster. (b) Ripened by bacteria and surface micro-organisms: Lim- burger. Port du Salut, and Trappist. (c) Ripened principally by blue mold in the interior: Roquefort, Gorgonzola, Blue, Stilton, and Wensleydale. 4. Soft: (a) Ripened: Bel Paese, Brie, Camembert, Cooked, Hand, and Neufchâtel (as made in France). (b) Unripened: Cottage, Pot, Bakers', Cream, Neufchâtel (as made in the United States), Mysost, Primost, and fresh Ricotta. Accidental modifications or changes in one or more steps of the cheese- making process throughout the centuries were largely responsible for the development of the different kinds of cheese. These changes were little understood and difficult to duplicate because scientific knowledge of bac- teriology and chemistry was lacking. As a result, cheesemaking was con- sidered an art, and the making process was a closely guarded secret passed down from father to son. With increased scientific knowledge, especially since 1900, has come an understanding of the bacteriology and chemistry involved in the making of many cheeses. Thus it has become possible to control more precisely each step in the making process and to manufacture a uniform product. Now, cheesemaking is becoming a science rather than an art. DESCRIPTIONS OF CHEESES Abertam Abertam is a hard cheese made from ewe's milk in the region of Carlsbad, Bohemia.