The ABC of Cheese


A	Annato, the natural yellow colourant obtained from the seeds of the Bixa orellana tree and used to colour some cheeses.
B	Breybibacterium linens, the mould sprayed on the surface of washed rind cheeses such as Munster and Livarot to develop the reddish orange colour and characteristic flavour.
C	Cendré, vine leaf ash used to cover some goat's milk cheeses such as Valencay to give it a bluish hue.
D	Dolcelatte, (sweet milk) the milder version of Gorgonzola, containing 50% more milk fat, and made from the milk of one milking.
E	Epoisses, the smelliest of French cheese which originates from Burgundy.
F	Fermier, French term for cheese produced on farms according to traditional methods.
G	Grana, generic term for Italian hard grating cheeses such as Parmigiano-Reggiano and Grana Pedano.
H	Hokkaido, the first indigenous cheese made in Japan and still the most popular.
I	Italico, a decree made by Mussolini in 1941 which designates a range of Italian soft cheeses such as Rabiola and Robbiolini.
J	Jack, the nickname for Monterey Jack cheese of which Americans eat 106 million kilograms per year.
K	Karpaïtski, the most popular cheese in Ukraine.
L	Lunebeg, made in the Voralberg province of Austria and the only cheese in the world flavoured and coloured with saffron.
M	Manchego, Spain's oldest cheese made from sheep's milk and Don Quixote's favourite.
N	Nielsen, the surname of Hanne who invented the most famous Danish cheese, Havarti.
O	Ost, the Scandinavian word for cheese.
P	Parmesan, the term used for grating type cheeses which do not have the quality of the original Pamegiano Reggiano made around Parma.
Q	Queso, the Spanish word for cheese.
R	Rennin, the milk-curdling enzyme in rennet, found in the stomach lining of ruminants and used in cheese making to coagulate the milk.
S	Starter, the everyday word for the cultures added to milk to "start" the process of fermentation in cheese making.
T	Turophile, a person who loves cheese.
U	Ulloa, a traditional Galician cheese and the only cheese in the world which name starts with a "U".
V	Vat, the most important piece of equipment in cheesemaking, usually made of stainless steel and surrounded by a hollow jacket filled with water or steam.
W	Washed curd cheese, developed in New York whereby the curd of hard cheese is washed before salting, resulting in a moister, open and softer cheese.
X	Xaintray, the original goat's milk cheese in France, made in the town with the same name.
Y	Yunnan, China's oldest cheese made in the high plateaus of the Yunnan province.
Z	Ziegenkäse, ziege being the German word for goat, helped to create the generic name for all goat's milk cheeses in Austria, Switzerland, Lichtenstein and Germany.