Exceptionally smooth in texture, the taste of Chevretta is creamy and sweet. It has been matured for up to six months on wooden boards.
- Pasteurised goat's milk
- Vegetarian rennet.
What is special about Chevretta Gouda?
Since the 1980s, the Truer Family have been making their range of Gouda cheeses in the Woerden region of Holland on the banks of the river Oude Rijn. Chevretta Gouda is a hard, pressed cheese made from high quality goat's milk sourced from local small-scale goat farms. The goats graze on a special diet of grass, linseed and straw to create the rich taste of the cheese. Its flavour is incredibly creamy with a delicate subtle sweetness particularly at the finish. It is easy to slice and grates well.Chevretta is an award-winning cheese which is lower in salt than many other goat cheeses and it is a delicious suggestion for those who prefer to avoid cow's milk. Goat's milk is lower in lactose than cow's milk and its fat globules smaller, making it easier to digest.
Chevretta is made to a traditional Gouda recipe and matured for up to six months. Wheels of cheese are aged on wooden boards to absorb moisture and they are turned regularly. During the maturation process the cheeses are sprayed with a wax-like coat that protects the cheese but still allows it to breath. This rind should be removed before eating.
Gouda (pronounced "how-da") is one of The Netherlands best-known cheeses. In 2016, total cheese production of the Netherlands was 730,000 tonnes, of which 60% was Gouda. Its name comes from the town of Gouda in Southern Holland which is home to one of Europe's largest cheese markets: Goudse Kassmart. Dutch Gouda is classified into one of six categories based on its age: "young" or "new" (aged 4 weeks) through to "very old" (matured over twelve months).
Similar to the techniques used to make English Cheddar, key stages in making Gouda are "scalding" and "pressing". Both drive out more moisture from the curds and make it a very durable cheese, well suited to export across Europe since the 12th Century. The milk-sweet fruity taste of Gouda comes from the scalding and washing of the curd when some whey is drained off, removing with it some of the lactose. This lowers acidity since the activity of lactic bacteria is reduced, leaving behind a sweeter, more elastic curd. Before maturing, Gouda wheels are stacked in vertical presses and lightly pressed for a period lasting between a few hours and a couple of days.
The Gouda name is not protected and this has led to many imitators. Farmhouse versions of Gouda had almost disappeared by start of 20th Century, but now there are 250 dairies producing an artisanal version known as "Goudse Boerenkaas". Currently only three of these dairies make it using raw (unpasteurised) milk. This farmhouse Gouda can be aged up to 5 or 6 years creating an incredibly rich, grainy paste and long finish. As is typical of raw milk cheeses its flavour differs from farm to farm.
