Blog

Cheese of the week: Cave-aged Farmhouse, Orb Weaver Farm

10/3/2011

When we visited those lovely ladies at Orb Weaver Farm in New Haven, Vermont recently (see below), we joyfully brought back a couple wheels of their Cave-aged Farmhouse Cheese with us and are happy to share it with you this week as our cheese of the week.  Though owners and cheesemakers Marjorie Susman and Marian Pollack humbly say their cheese is “just cheese- nothing fancy” we think it deserves greater explanation, especially when it comes to this cave-aged version.  Using reserved wheels taken from their batches of farmhouse cheese, this raw Jersey cow’s milk cheese is set aside to age in their limestone, hillside cave.  Over the next several months, the wheels are regularly turned and scrubbed to evenly distribute the weight of the cheese and encourage the good mold growth which becomes the edible rind.  Only two wheels from each make go through this process since so much weight is lost during aging, making it a special cheese indeed.  When it’s ready to be eaten, it’s a firm cheese with a smooth yet crumbly nature; it has a robust flavor with nutty and grassy notes.  And talk about versatility: it has enough depth to be enjoyed on its own but also melts wonderfully.  For recipe ideas, we recommend looking at Orb Weaver Farm website and perusing the recipes created by the famers themselves: www.orbweaverfarm.com Enjoy!