| |
Frequently Asked Questions
How to care for your Northumberland Cheese.
Factory cheese is manufactured to taste predictable and it needs to be kept cold in the fridge. Farm cheese is different. It's hand-made and varies with each day's production. It also changes as it matures.
As a result, I'm afraid there are no simple rules for looking after farm house cheese. You need to look at the cheese regularly, touching and smelling it to see how it is behaving.
A general rule
Most cheese keeps best, and eats best, at its maturing temperature (usually between 50° - 60°F, 10° - 14°C). If you are keeping it too warm the cheese will sweat, ooze oil, feel pappy and smell too strong. The visual warnings are less obvious if it is too cold, but it will taste bland and inert. In the interests of flavour, you are almost always better off erring on the warm side of cheese storage. The cheese might look a touch scruffy but it will taste much better than a smooth over-chilled slab.
If you need to slow down the ripening in order to keep the cheese longer, store it in a cooler place (about 38° - 42°F, 5° - 8°C), having wrapped it well. However, don't forget to return the cheese to room temperature several hours before eating to allow the flavours to revive.
Wrapping
A piece of cheese wrapped in plastic film will become soggy and smelly. Left uncovered, cheese will dry out. We supply cheese in waxed paper, which seems to achieve the best balance between these two extremes; keep your cheese wrapped in it. You will find it is also handier than cling film for rewrapping
How much is the postage for my order?
We charge £5.95 per cheese delivery for UK mainland addresses (even if you order a cheeseboard of £200 we will still only charge £5.95 per delivery.) We subsidise some of our carriage charges from our internet profits - we certainly do not make money from our carriage charges.
Can you deliver outside of the UK mainland & Northern Ireland?
We can deliver cheese outside of the UK mainland & Northern Ireland, but delivery charges will vary. Typical delivery cost for a Cheese Gift box accross mainland Europe is approximately £6.00. Please contact us directly to discuss your order. You can contact us online or you can telephone us on +44 (0) 1670 789 798.
I'm having a cheese and wine party. How much cheese should I budget for?
We reccomend approximately 100g of cheese per person. We can put together a selection of what cheese is particularly good at the moment or you can choose each part of your order. Don't have too many small pieces of cheese, a few good chunks is always better. Vary the types and think about colour, strength and texture.
I'm pregnant, so which cheeses should I avoid?
The Chief Medical Officer suggests you avoid soft and blue cheeses, whether pasteurised or unpasteurised. All Northumberland Cheese Company products are made with pasteurised milk.
I have placed an order but have not received a confirmation e-mail from you. Why is this?
We always confirm receipt of orders but at least five per cent of our customers enter an incorrect e-mail address!
Can I send a cheese selection to a friend as a gift?
We have been surprised by how many people have sent cheese selections as gifts, to both people that live in the UK and those that live outside the UK. It may be worth checking, though, whether the recipients will be there to receive them - we did have one example where the recipient was sent abroad for a fortnight whilst the cheese perished in their local Post Office storeroom! Remember that we can include a personalised card with the message of your choice; enter this in the box marked 'Please enter the greeting you would like included in the order'.
Do you have a returns policy?
As our cheese is perishable they cannot be returned except where our cheese does not meet your quality expectations or is damaged in transit. Please e-mail us if you have a problem as we are committed to your complete satisfaction. |
|
|
| |
|
