Caerphilly
Region of Production: South Wales; South-West England
Pressed cow's milk cheese. Caerphilly cheeses arc made in a wheel or millstone shape, a flat cylinder which is shallow in proportion to its diameter. 'This was about l8cm diameter and 6cm high; sizes are now variable according to weight, which is generally in the range 400g-4kg. Colour: white. Flavour and texture: acidic, with slight lemon note and a flaky texture.
Caerphilly is a town which has given its name to the only Welsh cheese which has become well-known outside the Principality. Other cheeses were made in Wales in the past. Rance (1982) speculated that Caerphilly cheese supplanted an earlier type from a region known as Eppynt, which was a similar shape but was kept for 2-6 months before being eaten. He states that Caerphilly cheese, 'was widely available for Welsh miners from the farms of Glamorgan and Monmouth between the early 1800s and 1914,' and that small-scale farm cheese production seems to have been common. Demand began to exceed supply with the growth of cities during the 1800s. Since that time, the cheese has also been associated with Somerset. Caerphilly, a small cheese intended to be eaten young, offered commercial advantages over Cheddar, which requires months to mature. Somerset Caerphilly was sold at Highbridge market, whence much was exported to Wales. Under terms imposed by the Ministry of Food during l939-45, production ceased as it was not long-keeping. When it resumed, in Wales it was concentrated in creameries. Some farm production continued in Somerset, where it is made to this day. Traditional farmhouse methods at about the time of the First World War were recalled by Arthur Jones in an article written in the 1950s. Recently, Caerphilly has been revived in South Wales, where it is now produced on several farms. Occasionally, an aged Caerphilly is available from cheese shops. The makers of Caws Caernarth Caerphilly have applied for Protected Designation of Origin.
Craft method: 1-2 per cent starter is added and the temperature gradually raised from 2l to 31°C; then it is renneted and cut into 5mm cubes. It is stirred for l5 minutes. Stirring continues as the temperature of the curd is raised to about 33°C and the particles break cleanly without being soft in the centres. Then the curd is allowed to settle in the whey for l0-l5 minutes before the vat is drained. After the whey has run off, the curd is cut and piled into half-cone-shaped masses, then cut in wedges and piled at the back of the vat. The curd is cut into 2.5cm cubes, salted, and put into moulds. It is lightly pressed for about l8 hours, then drained for 24 hours and kept 4-5 days. Creamery production is a similar proccss up to the stage at which the whey is drained; then the curd is cut and piled along the sides of the vat in a smooth bank, gradually draining the whey and allowing the acidity to develop for the next stage. The curd is passed through the mill once, salted, and packed into moulds. Pressing, brining and ripening are carried out in a similar manner to craft production.
