Cheese review: Jarlsberg

Jarlsberg is described in it's own words on the packet that it is "A sweet cheese, perfect on toast or as part of a gratin CONSUME WITHIN 3 DAYS OF OPENING". A fair warning of things to come; 3 days of love, cheese and music, then it's OVER, back to the days of drudgery, back to the days without Jarlsberg.

I know I'm always saying that when it comes to cheese, it's quantity rather than quality, so for any of the cheeses I review I always try to eat as much as is humanly possible to get the full effect of the cheesiness, and then (and only then) I look at the quality, which is the bit you lot will be interested in.

For this review I prepared the jarlsburg on cheese topped batches from Tesco (which are pretty frickin' gorgeous themselves, I may review them separately sometime). I fed one to my girlfriend who was recovering from a massive hangover. In her words "Mmmm, the batches feel really fresh. The cheese has a slightly nutty flavor." I had to agree with her, not only for my safety's sake, but also because I felt the cheese had a nutty flavour too.

So yeah, it has a delicious, delicate flavour and one that I could eat all day long, makes a change from stronger flavours that I usually need to get a kick out of. Tesco have given this cheese a strength rating of 2, which is suitable for children of 10 years old or above 3 years old with adult supervision. It's a gentle cheese, with holes in, I'd feel safe bringing this cheese along for a tea party at my nan's house without causing too much of a disturbance. I can imagine myself walking alone over the hilltops with only a whole Jarlsberg cheese in my knapsack, stopping every few feet for another delicate slice, savoring the holes and responsibly disposing of the waxy skin in designated cheese wax bins along the way.

I know what you're all thinking though "Yeah, but what is it like on toast?!" I could hardly wait to get the grill pan out either! And the result? Very nice! Jarlsberg is a cheeky little number, almost contradicting it's delicate flavour when on bread, it has a much fuller (and fattier) flavour when on toast. Prepared on wholemeal bread without butter, it still tastes as good as a mature/mild cheddar on toast mix. I think Jarlsberg would make a good companion to mature cheddar when on toast, just giving that extra bang to give it a perfect 10/10. Don't be fooled by the texture of the cheese once it is toasted, as it looks as if it will go plasticy like edam does, but under that bubbled surface lies a treat that any seasoned Cheese Ranger would enjoy.

The full frontal scan tells you all you need to know: Delicious, but 3 days and the fun is over.

On toast or as part of a gratin (whatever the hell a gratin is), Jarlsberg won't let you down.

Cheap and lots of it; that's my philosophy when it comes to cheese.