Fine Cheeses

Cheese is a solid food made from the curdled milk of various mammals - most commonly cows but sometimes goats, sheep, or buffalo. Rennet is often used to induce coagulation in the milk, although some cheeses are curdled with acids such as vinegar or lemon juice, or with extracts of various species of Cynara (sometimes called vegetable rennet). Rennet is an enzyme traditionally obtained from the stomach lining of bovine calves, although sometimes a microbiological (laboratory-produced) substitute is used. Bacteria are added to cheese to reduce the pH, alter the texture, and develop flavour, and some cheeses also have molds, either on the outer skin or throughout.

There are hundreds of types of cheese. Different styles and flavours of cheese are the results of using different species of bacteria and molds, different levels of milk fat, variations in length of aging, differing processing treatments (cheddaring, pulling, brining, mold wash) and different breeds of cows, sheep, or other mammals. Other factors include animal diet and the addition of flavouring agents such as herbs, spices, or smoking. Pasteurisation of the milk may also affect flavor.

At Staffords, we are likely at any one time to have up to a hundred different cheeses in stock. Usually about 70% of these will be Australian cheeses and the rest cheeses imported from overseas including from England, Italy, Switzerland and (of course) France. Our stock covers the full gamut of cheese types and styles, but what they have in common is that they are cheeses of quality - fine cheeses. We don't specialise in mass-produced, commercial cheese products. Rather we look for and make available to you products crafted by artisans who aspire to make truly great cheese.

For your browsing convenience, we have divided the online descriptions of our stock into:

Australian Specialty Cheeses and Imported Specialty Cheeses.

On this site, we also use a series of icons to denote three aspects of a cheese.

Milk Source

Cow's Milk Sheep's Milk Goat's Milk Buffalo's Milk
3.7% fat content. 9.0% fat content. 70% higher in calcium. Good for people with lactose intolerance. 6.0% fat content 6.0% fat content

Consistency

Soft Semi-Soft Semi-Hard Hard
Includes brie, feta, fresh chèvre, brillat-savarin, camembert, ricotta and pont l'evêque. Includes gouda, tilsit, mozzarella, provolone, haloumi, port salut, bel paese and taleggio. Also called semi-firm. Includes aged chèvre, cheddar, cheshire, colby, edam, gruyère, emmental, gloucester, leiden, raclette, jarlsberg, red leicester, swiss and wensleydale. Also called firm. Includes grana padano, parmesan, pecorino, reggiano and romano.

Production Method

Fresh Stretched
Curd		 White
Mould		 Washed
Rind
Fresh, moist curd cheeses with a short shelf life. They are not ripened and have no protective rind. Usually high in moisture (whey) to give them the soft texture and subtle flavour. Includes cottage cheese, ricotta, mascarpone and feta. Originally produced in Italy, these cheeses are made by working the curd in hot water and stretching and moulding it into shape. Includes mozzarella, provolone and bocconcini. White mould cheeses that mature from the outside to the centre. The interior is mild in flavour and creamy to taste. The white mould is edible and adds to the flavour. Includes brie, camembert and brillat-savarin. Natural, soft curd cheeses that ripen from the outside in. The rind is formed by washing of the exterior with a brine solution, which is also responsible for the smell. The interior of the cheese is generally rich, golden and soft. Includes limburger, pont l'evêque, tallegio and port salut.

Blue Cheddar Uncooked
Pressed		 Cooked
Pressed
Fresh, soft or firm cheeses with a network of blue veins of mould growing through the cheese. Mould ripened cheeses mature from the inside out. The three main groups of blue cheese are natural rind, scraped rind and blue/white mould. Includes stilton, roquefort and gorgonzola. The name comes from the process of cutting, stacking and hand turning the curd to evenly distribute acidity. Low in moisture and with a long shelf life. Aging affects flavour from mild (1-3 mths) to semi-matured (6-9 mths), mature (9-12 mths) and vintage (12-16 mths). Not as firm as cooked pressed cheeses, these are often sweet and fruity when young, and develop a more earthy and grassy flavour as they age. Includes cantal, tommes de savoie and morbier. These cheeses are pressed to remove moisture, and then soaked in salt and aged. The curds are then cooked to expel even more moisture. Often have hard rinds, sometimes coated with wax. Includes gouda, edam, gruyère, emmental and jarlsberg.

On the Australian and Imported pages, along with these indicators, you'll find extensive tasting notes for each cheese. You can also download a summary of cheese terms in pdf format here.

How to Order

Browse the website and decide what cheeses you'd like. Be prepared, this could take a while.

It's important to note that our stock availability fluctuates according to production and distribution factors. Our prices will also fluctuate according to product availability and market influences - somtimes on a daily basis, depending on the cheese.

For this reason, we don't supply prices on the website (we don't want you thinking a cheese costs one price when it actually costs another), and we can't claim that the website accurately reflects stock availability (we don't want you rushing to the shop for a specific cheese only to find out it's out of stock).

We strongly recommend that when you have identified the cheese you want you make contact with us by phone on 02 9564 2642 or email at cheese@staffords.net.au to establish product availability and current price.

If we have it and the price is right for you, we're happy to put a cheese order aside for you for 24 hours until you can pick it up. We can't hold it longer than that as there is often strong demand for specific cheeses, and sometimes people forget to pick up their orders.

Do you know someone who would appreciate a gift of fine cheese? Consider buying them a Staffords Gift Certificate, available in values of $25, $50 or $100 - the perfect indulgence. You can organise this by phone on 02 9564 2642 or email cheese@staffords.net.au.

Browse the Australian Specialty Cheeses.  Browse the Imported Specialty Cheeses.

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