glossary

a.o.c.

Appellation d'Origine Controlee, (a.o.c.) is a French body, armed with laws to protect place of origin, type of milk used, production methods and aging for agricultural products using a particular name. Essentially it is a quality and authenticity guarantee. Since the formation of the EU, a.o.c. has become one of seven designations that recognize traditional origin or quality.

AACC

Provincial Fine Foods believes in supporting Canadian artisan cheeses. We know one when we see one, but does the general public? The AACC is a certification concept being explored by Provincial Fine Foods. Look for more details as the program develops.

The proposed requirements would include: • Independent, 3rd party certification
• Independent audits of farms and dairies through site visits
• Humane and ethical treatment of animals
• Made from 100% pure Canadian milk, no MMI (modified milk ingredients)
• Free from additives (colours, binders, etc.)

The certification represents:
• Quality, and verifies Canadian origin, regardless of milk type
• Identified by the AACC seal of approval (above)
• Sets the standard for term “artisan”
• Defines and describes production levels (farmhouse, craft, co-op, high volume)

Results in:
• Empowered consumers know to buy and can easily identify artisan Canadian cheese
• Supports small farms and environmentally sustainable production

acs

American Cheese Society, www.cheesesociety.org

affinage

The art of aging and ripening cheese. Cheeses can be produced by a farmer or cheesemaker and then sent to the affineur in order to age. The affineur’s skill is often equal to the cheese maker's. The affineur selects the temperature and humidity, and may wash, bath in wine, smoke, pack in wine must or other leaves in order to bring out the best qualities of the cheese. When the cheese is correctly aged, the cheese is released for sale.

aged

As the name implies, this is a cheese that has been aged, often but not always referring to goat cheeses. As the cheese ages, it often becomes dryer and harder, with deeper, more pronounced flavours.

artisan

Artisanal cheeses are among the rarest and highest quality cheeses that can be found. An artisanal cheese is one which is made by hand, in small batches and produced using the most traditional methods, such as hand ladling the curd into the moulds to prevent excessive moisture loss, and turning each cheese by hand during the ripening stage. Artisanal cheeses have the most balanced flavours, the best textures and most captivating aromas of any being produced. They are the products that the highest level of cheese savvy consumer is looking for and become a sign of quality for any cheese counter.
Benefits of Canadian Artisanal Cheese
- Cheese that is made locally has traveled the least distance to market; therefore there is little deterioration of flavour and texture due to excessive handling. It also has a smaller carbon footprint.
- The fresher the milk, the better the cheese. Artisanal farmhouse cheeses use milk from herds raised on the same farm where the cheese is produced, thereby optimizing freshness and quality.
- Supporting local Canadian artisanal cheesemakers directly benefits our local economy as well as promoting sustainable agriculture methods to preserve our natural environment and ecology.

ashed rind

An ashed rind cheese is one whose rind is covered in vegetable ash. The ash is tasteless and is meant to be eaten. It helps hold humidity and gently protects the outside of the cheese.

bloomy rind

White, fuzzy rind cheese. The white exterior is a mould growth of Penicillium Candidum that grows on the exterior of the cheese. Traditionally, eating this is a matter of preference, but many people find that it adds both flavour and texture to the interior of the cheese. Usually bloomy rind cheeses are soft ripened and the mould spoors help transform the interior cheese curds from a firm to a liquefied state. A popular example would be brie or camembert. You can gauge the ripeness of a bloomy rind cheese by pressing it. If it is firm - it is young. if it gives - is well ripened. Bloomy rind cheese need not be pristine white, as they age the ribs may become exposed and take on an orangish colour. Extreme ammonia aroma or flavour are signs of over-ripeness.

blue cheese

Blue cheeses generally have a loosely formed curd structure allowing air pockets to form where the blue mould (often Penicillium Roqueforti) can grow. Blue cheeses are often pierced with needles in order to increase the air pockets for mould growth. These cheeses can belong to several categories of cheese. They often have visible veins of blue or green throughout the cheese.

british empire cheese competition

Annual event held in December, hosted by the Central Ontario Cheesemakers Association.

canadian cheese grand prix

Bi-annual cheese contest held by the Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC). Because it is sponsored by DFC, the contest is for cow milk cheeses only.

cheddar

Cheddar is not only a cheese, but it is a cheesemaking process. Cheddar style cheeses are unique because they undergo the cheddaring process. For a complete description of the cheddar making process, visit Ile-aux-Grues cheddar.

cooked curd

Many firm to hard and longer aged cheeses fall into this category like Gouda, Gruyere and Parmigiano Reggiano. After the curds are formed they are heated, a process that removes more whey.

crute fleurie

French see bloomy rind cheese.

crute lavee

French see washed rind cheese.

curds and whey

When milk is processed into cheese, the first step after an initial curdling is to separate the curds and the whey. Curds are a semi-solid gel that entrap most of the proteins and fats of the milk, while whey is mostly water containing lactose, some whey proteins, and some nutrients and fats that have escaped the curd. Curds are transformed into the majority of cheeses on the market (or enjoyed as-is). Whey is made into Ricotta or whey butter, or is used in processed foods and animal feeds.

d.o.

Denominacion de Origen - see protected designations.

d.o.c.

Denominazione di Origine Controllata - see protected designations

eyes

Holes in the interior of the cheese.

farmhouse cheese

When the milking herd is raised on the same farm that the cheese is made, the cheeses are said to be farmhouse or fermier cheeses. The advantage of farmhouse cheeses is that the cheese maker has total quality control over every aspect of the process, from what the herd is grazing on and their living conditions, to how the milk is stored. This care, attention and dedication shown by producers of artisanal and farmhouse cheeses results in a finished product of unparalleled quality.

fat content

It is often assumed that the soft triple-creams contain far more fat than the hard mountain cheeses. Due to its high moisture content, 10 g of a triple-cream cheese can contain only 3.8 g of fat, while 10 g of a hard mountain cheese can contain 3.2 g of fat, making the fat intake approximately the same. Concern over fat content sometimes lets consumers overlook the fact that cheese is extremely nutritious, providing calcium, vitamins, protein and energy in a compact, easily digestible form.

firm cheese

Some of these cheeses are cooked, such as gouda, making them even firmer. These cheeses age well and hold up well after cutting. examples are: Cheddar, Gruyere, Raclette, Gouda

fresh cheese

Just as it sounds, these are cheeses that are ready to eat when they are fresh. Often there is no rind and shelf life is days to two weeks. Examples of this would be cream cheese, chevre, and St.John.

hard cheese

These cheeses are cooked, pressed and usually aged for a long period of time. Examples are: Asiago, Parmigiano Reggiano, Pecorino, Manchego

hybrid bloomy/washed rind cheese

these cheeses start out as bloomy rind cheeses and then, at a certain point, the rind is washed. See bloomy rind and washed rind cheese.

industrial

There are many delicious industrial cheeses. Simply, industrial cheese is made in a factory using a blend of technology and traditional methods to produce cheeses that are unvarying in taste and texture. We include some of these cheeses in the definition of artisan because the goal of the finished product is much like an artisan cheese. While the production level is "high volume" and parts of the production process are mechanized, they are still not commodity cheeses.

lactose

Lactose is a sugar present in all types of milk. Many adults are lactose-intolerant, as the human organism was designed to produce lactase (a protein that breaks down lactose into digestible sugar) only during childhood. However, some people from Europe, the Middle East, India and East Africa have developed a gene that continues to produce lactase throughout their lives.

milk type

The milk of three ruminant animals dominates the world of cheese making- cows, goats, and sheep. Water buffalo are a close forth, their milk used predominantly for fresh mozzarella. Reindeer, yaks, and even camels provide milk for cheese in some regions.
- Cow (vache): Cows produce a huge proportion of the world’s milk. Many breeds of cow contribute to the Canadian dairy supply, including Holstein, Ayrshire, and Guernsey, Swiss Brown and Canadienne among others.
- Goat(chèvre): More cultures around the world use goat’s milk than cow’s milk. Goat’s milk is easier to digest and that is why some people who can’t eat cow’s milk cheeses can eat cheese made from goat’s milk. A common expectation of goat’s milk is that it is smelly and bitter, but animals that are properly cared for produce sweet, delicious milk that can be made into wonderful cheese.
- Sheep (brébis): While less than 2% of the world’s milk output comes from sheep, its composition makes it more nutritious than cow’s milk, and easier to digest.

moule a la louche

French hand ladled - curds that are delicately hand ladled, so as not to break them, often yields very soft and delicate cheeses, like Figaro and Chaource.

natural rind cheese

Natural rind cheeses, many times aged goat cheeses, have an un-treated rind that is sometimes brushed or rubbed during aging. The outside of the cheese becomes the rind as it dries over time. An example is Toscano.

ocs

Ontario Cheese Society,www.ontariocheese.org.

paste

The interior of the cheese.

pasteurized milk

This treatment involves either heating milk to a temperature of between 62-65C for 30 minutes, then cooling quickly, or heating to 72-74C for 12 seconds, then cooling quickly. Both processes kill almost all of the natural bacteria in the milk, so clever use of cheese cultures is required to produce a tasty cheese.

protected designations of origin

Cheese is a cultural and culinary artifact, expressing the historic and geographic context in which it is made and enjoyed. Taking France’s protection of wine and cheese as an example, many European countries have put in place a system to ensure that cheeses are made in accordance with quality standards and are from a designated area of production. They are designated as follows:
- France = AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) e.g. Brie de Meaux - Italy = DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) e.g. Parmagiano Reggiano
- Spain = DO (Denominacion de Origen Protegida) e.g. Manchego - Portugal = Denominao de Origem Controlada - EU = AOP (origin and quality), IGP (origin only), STG (quality only) - Quebec = IGP (origin) is the first jurisdiction in Canada to protected designations of origin.

raw milk

A.k.a unpasteurized milk. Warm milk coming from a cow is populated with bacteria, both good and bad. When that milk is heated in any measure, bacteria begin to be killed. The bacteria contain may interesting flavours and in well produced examples, can produce nuance and depth of flavour very difficult to achieve in pasteurized cheeses. Much of the bad bacteria may become a part of the milk after it leaves the udder. Stringently clean facilities are imperative for raw milk cheese operations. Raw milk cheeses have natural antibodies that help to fight off the bad bacteria. In Canada, raw milk cheeses are legal to be sold after they have been aged for 60 days, after which time it is deemed that the bad bacteria are no longer active.

rind

The exterior surface of the cheese.

semi firm cheese

Semi-firm cheeses are harder than semi-soft cheeses and softer than firm cheeses. When pressed, they have a little give. Cape Vessey and Hercule de Charlevoix are both examples.

semi-soft cheese

Firmer then soft ripened cheese. These cheeses can be unripened, interior ripened, and surface ripened. Examples are: Douanier, Mont Jacob, Comtomme, Frère Jacques

smoked cheese

Smoked cheeses were cold smoked originally to help preserve them and today to add flavour. Some of the first smoked cheeses were smoked because they were stored in chimneys through the winter. Just as smoking adds delicious flavour to meats, it does to cheese as well. Examples are Provincial Smoke and Blue Haze.

soft ripened cheese

Bloomy rind and washed rind cheeses fall into this category. Particular molds or bacteria grow on the surface of the cheese and it is either left alone (to give you a bloomy rind) or washed off in a salt and water bath. The flavour gets stronger as it ages. Examples are:
- Bloomy rinds: Brie, Camembert, Fleurmier, Riopelle
- Washed rinds: Magie du Madawaska, Sauvagine, Mi-Careme
- Mixed rinds start off bloomy, and are then washed such as Tomme-de-Grosse-Ile

terroir

A French term (some in Canada have created the term "somewhereness" as a more Canadian version) that represents the idea that an agricultural product produced at a specific site, by a specific variety has a particular flavour profile unlike all others. This is due to the minerals in the soil, the plants that grow, orientation to the sun, weather, altitude and the other physical attributes of the site and the decisions made by the people. An example would be that Chardonnay wine from Burgundy does not taste like Chardonnay wine from California even though it is produced from the same variety of grape.

thermalized milk

Also referred to as “heat treated” and some times, incorrectly as unpasteurized, this milk intends to preserve the taste of raw milk while approaching the bacteriological purity of pasteurized milk. Thermalization kills approximately 95% of micro-organisms, leaving more of the taste-producing constituents intact than pasteurization does.

viac

Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese, North America’s premier cheesemaking school.

washed rind cheese

Generally belong to the soft, semi-soft and firm category. These cheeses are washed in brine or other liquid (ie beer, wine) during the aging process which gives the cheese a unique flavour. Washed rind cheeses are often known as the “stinky cheeses”. The resulting flavour is usually more mild than the aroma suggests and is, many times, delightfully complex.