Mould Rind Cheese and How Best To Store It

11th December 2020

Cheese rinds form during the process of aging the cheese and there are three types, bloomy, washed and natural. Bloomy is the white, soft to the touch cheeses like Brie or Camembert, these cheeses are coated with edible mould. Washed rind cheeses are those with an orange outside and are very fragrant, like Taleggio, they start as bloom rind cheese and are then washed with brine or alcohol. Natural rind is a cheese with a rind formed from salting and air circulation, such as Comte or stilton, these are left to produce naturally in the right conditions.

Bloomy ripened rind cheese gets its great taste from the natural flora and is still ‘alive’. Flavour is developed through the total of its shelf life, unlike processed cheese which remains dormant. Therefore specific attention is needed during storage and transportation of the cheeses, to ensure they stay as fresh as possible.

Wrapping your cheese, although necessary for transport, in any kind of plastic wrapping can prevent it from breathing. Preventing these cheeses from breathing builds moisture and encourages cultures to develop ammonia, the natural by-product of cheese. So whether the plastic wrapping, such as pallet wrap, is going around a pallet in transport or storing ‘work in progress’ in plastic containers, you may be doing the cheese more harm than good.

When the cheeses arrives at your site, following these simple steps will ensure your cheese stays at the top quality through its life with you:

• Remove all delivery pallet wrap (as more is used in transport to support pallets)
• Split the pallet in half, if possible, for storage
• If it is necessary to rewrap the pallet, do so with minimal mesh pallet wrap
• Monitor the cheese quality though life, and if nou note any deterioration or a rise in temperature of the cheese, split the pallet down further
• Store cut and work in progress cheese in wax paper

If you follow these simple steps, our great product will remain in great shape through its time with you.