A creamy blue cow’s-milk cheese from Tipperary, soft enough to spread on soda bread. Jane and Louis Grubb began making it in 1984; it was Ireland’s first farmhouse blue and it led the country’s artisan cheese revival.
Growing Penicillium roqueforti through a cheese needs the culture, needle piercing at the right moment and a ripening room held at controlled temperature and humidity for months.
What goes into it
- milk from the farm’s own herd
- Penicillium roqueforti
- rennet
- salt
How it is made
The milk is set with rennet and inoculated with blue mould spores, the curd drained gently and moulded without pressing, then salted. After a few days the young cheeses are pierced with needles so air can reach the mould and the blue veins can spread through the paste. They ripen in a cold humid room for several months, wrapped in foil for the last stage.
How long it takes: three to six months
How it is eaten
At room temperature on soda bread, crumbled into salad, or melted into a sauce for steak.
History
Made by Jane and Louis Grubb in County Tipperary from 1984, it was Ireland’s first farmhouse blue cheese and led the artisan revival.
Frequently asked questions
What is Cashel Blue?
Cashel Blue is a cheese & dairy from Ireland: creamy blue cow’s milk cheese from Tipperary, spread on soda bread. Made by Jane and Louis Grubb in County Tipperary from 1984, it was Ireland’s first farmhouse blue cheese and led the artisan revival.
How is Cashel Blue made?
The milk is set with rennet and inoculated with blue mould spores, the curd drained gently and moulded without pressing, then salted. After a few days the young cheeses are pierced with needles so air can reach the mould and the blue veins can spread through the paste. They ripen in a cold humid room for several months, wrapped in foil for the last stage. It takes three to six months.
Can I make Cashel Blue at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. Growing Penicillium roqueforti through a cheese needs the culture, needle piercing at the right moment and a ripening room held at controlled temperature and humidity for months.
What goes into Cashel Blue?
Milk from the farm’s own herd, penicillium roqueforti, rennet, salt.
How is Cashel Blue eaten?
At room temperature on soda bread, crumbled into salad, or melted into a sauce for steak.
