Caerphilly cheese
Encyclopedia
Caerphilly is a hard, white cheese
that originates in the area around the town of Caerphilly
in Wales
, although it is now also made in England
, particularly in the South West
and on the English border with Wales. It was not originally made in Caerphilly, but was sold at the market there, hence taking the town's name.
Caerphilly is a light-coloured (almost white), crumbly cheese made from cow's milk, and generally has a fat
content of around 48%. It has a mild taste, with its most noticeable feature being a not unpleasant slightly sour tang.
It is rumoured that the cheese was developed over time to provide the coal miners
of the area with a convenient way of replenishing the salt lost through hard work over ten hour shifts underground and so was a staple of the diet of the coal-miners.
Real Farmhouse Caerphilly production died out during World War II as all milk had to go to the Cheddar factories to help the war effort. After the war these factories started making their version of Caerphilly (initially to help their cash flow as Caerphilly matures quicker than Cheddar), which is how it is mostly known today, dry and crumbly. However, there are now two or three farms making original Caerphilly which is dry in the middle and creamy around the edges.
The town of Caerphilly holds a three day festival annually to celebrate the cheese entitled The Big Cheese . Also in Caerphilly, there is a sculpture of a cheese.
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
that originates in the area around the town of Caerphilly
Caerphilly
Caerphilly is a town in the county borough of Caerphilly, south Wales, located at the southern end of the Rhymney Valley, with a population of approximately 31,000. It is a commuter town of Cardiff and Newport, which are located some 7.5 miles and 12 miles away, respectively...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, although it is now also made in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, particularly in the South West
South West England
South West England is one of the regions of England defined by the Government of the United Kingdom for statistical and other purposes. It is the largest such region in area, covering and comprising Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. ...
and on the English border with Wales. It was not originally made in Caerphilly, but was sold at the market there, hence taking the town's name.
Caerphilly is a light-coloured (almost white), crumbly cheese made from cow's milk, and generally has a fat
Fat
Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and generally insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are triglycerides, triesters of glycerol and any of several fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature, depending on their structure...
content of around 48%. It has a mild taste, with its most noticeable feature being a not unpleasant slightly sour tang.
It is rumoured that the cheese was developed over time to provide the coal miners
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
of the area with a convenient way of replenishing the salt lost through hard work over ten hour shifts underground and so was a staple of the diet of the coal-miners.
Real Farmhouse Caerphilly production died out during World War II as all milk had to go to the Cheddar factories to help the war effort. After the war these factories started making their version of Caerphilly (initially to help their cash flow as Caerphilly matures quicker than Cheddar), which is how it is mostly known today, dry and crumbly. However, there are now two or three farms making original Caerphilly which is dry in the middle and creamy around the edges.
The town of Caerphilly holds a three day festival annually to celebrate the cheese entitled The Big Cheese . Also in Caerphilly, there is a sculpture of a cheese.