Chef at 04:41, 1 October 2020

2020-10-01T04:41:30Z

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|title=Charles Martell's Single Gloucester cheese suppliers, pictures, product info
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|description=Single Gloucester cheese is a PDO cheese which can only be produced in Gloucestershire and whenever possible, the milk of the Gloucester
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[[Image:Single Gloucester cheese (Charles Martell).jpg|300px|thumb|right|Charles Martell's Single Gloucester cheese]]
Single Gloucester cheese is a [[PDO]] [[cheese]] which can only be produced in Gloucestershire and whenever possible, the [[milk]] of the Gloucester breed of cow must be used. There are only 5 producers of the cheese, Charles Martell of Dymock being one of them.

Charles Martell's Single Gloucester is a full fat pasteurised [[cows’ milk]] hard [[cheese]] made with natural [[rennet]]. Softer and with a more open texture than most English hard [[cheeses]]. It is uncoloured and has a natural mouldy rind due to the high moisture content of the [[cheese]]. The [[cheeses]] are traditionally made thinner than a [[Double Gloucester]], they also tend to have a lower [[fat]] content, hence ‘Single’ rather than ‘Double’ (as in single and double [[cream]]). A mild and slightly lactic flavoured [[cheese]], it is eaten young, and goes well with a glass of perry. It makes an excellent toasting [[cheese]]. The [[cheese]] is wrapped in waxed paper. It is produced in 2 sizes: 2.25kg (21.5x7cm) and 700g (12x5cm).

The [[cheese]] won a Bronze Medal in the 2011 and 2012 British Cheese Awards.
==An extract from the application for PDO==

'''Reference: [https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/quality/door/registeredName.html?denominationId=664 The European Commission]'''

© European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/en/editorial/legal_notice.htm#droits

Single Gloucester was first mentioned in ''The Rural Economy of Gloucestershire'' by William Marshall, 1792 and was produced until 1939. In 1978 it was revived by Charles Martell & Sons who continue to make it to this day.

'''Brief description of product''':

Full fat hard cheese - uncoloured. Made from pasteurised or unpasteurised cows' milk produced in Gloucestershire, which must include milk obtained from Gloucester cows maintained within the defined area.

'''The cows''':

The long tradition of dairying in Gloucestershire which was associated with the Gloucester breed of dairy cow is still maintained. Farms producing Single Gloucester Cheese run a herd of registered Gloucester cattle. The Gloucester cow is now a rare breed and, as is often the case with such traditional breeds, tends to milk better in summer months and can become dry in the winter. On occasion, therefore, it is necessary to supplement the Gloucester's milk with that obtained from other breeds on the same farms.

'''The principle characteristics of the cheese and how these relate to the geographic area''':

Flat disc shape; rind clean (if vacuum-packed) or moulded if not. It was traditionally made in a flat circular disc shape because the moulds, which the cheese was pressed in, were turned on a lathe from a solid block of elm, a tree which was notably plentiful in the dairying vale areas of Gloucestershire.

Single Gloucester Cheese was traditionally made flat for ease of storage on shelves in farmhouse lofts. Many farmhouses in Gloucestershire today can still be seen to possess their original louvered vents into their old cheese lofts.

The second world war, and demand for liquid milk, largely killed off the
Gloucestershire farm cheese industry which in 1850 "... was computed to produce annually from a thousand to twelve hundred tons of these unrivalled
cheeses."

Typically the cheese is 58% fat in dry matter. A further feature of the cheese has been that it can be low fat, at the discretion of the cheese maker. This is always indicated on the label.

* Smell - lactic, particularly in young cheese.
* Taste – mild, lactic and buttery.
* Texture - smooth and creamy.
* Body - yields under hand pressure.

'''Method of production''':

* Pasteurised or unpasteurised milk put into vat.
* Starter culture added and temperature raised to 30°-32°C.
* 45 minutes after addition of starter, 1ml of rennet (or non-animal coagulants) per 3.5-5 litres of milk is added.
* Curd sets in from 25 minutes - 1 hour.
* Curd cut for 10-20 minutes.
* Curds and whey scalded for 20-30 minutes, up to 32°-35°C.
* Whey is run off and drained.
* Curd milled and salted (1.4 - 5 gms salt per initial litre of milk, depending on moisture of curd).
* Mould and press.
* Cheese turned in moulds same evening or next day. Cheese out of press next day or up to 5 days later.

'''The defined area''':

Gloucestershire, the defined geographical area, is bisected by the Severn estuary, and bounded to the west by the hills of the Forest of Dean and to the east by the Cotswold Hills. The geology of the area gives rise to the brown earth soil type and together with warm moist prevailing winds from the Gulf of Mexico give the ideal climate for dairying for grass production. The grazing season is from March until October; in the winter conserved grass made from the same pasture as is grazed in the summer is fed to the cows. To date no imported feeding stuffs are used for the production of this cheese. The consistent type of grass produced results in taint free milk with the low acidity levels necessary for Single Gloucester cheese production. The ambient conditions created by this climate allow the cheese making to be made in the dairy without any air conditioning, this results in the traditional type of cheese which is hard but not dry.

{{CheeseContact}}
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Charles Martell's Single Gloucester cheese - Revision history

Chef at 04:41, 1 October 2020