Stinking Bishop cheese
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Country of origin | England | |||
| Region, town | Dymock | |||
| Source of milk | Cows | |||
| Pasteurized | Yes | |||
| Texture | Smooth, Creamy, Semi-Soft | |||
| Aging time | c. 4 months | |||
| Certification | - | |||
Stinking Bishop is a soft gourmet cheese produced since 1972 by the Teddington Cheese company in Laurel Farm of Dymock, England. It is made from the milk of Gloucester cattle, which in 1972 consisted of only 68 Gloucester breed heifers. Captive breeding has revived the species to make production of the cheese possible, though it is often combined and pasteurised with the milk of Fresian cattle from a nearby county. The fat content is 48%.
The colour ranges from white/yellow to beige, with an orange to grey rind. It is moulded into wheels 2 kg in weight, 20 cm in diameter, and 4 cm deep. Though only about 340 kg is produced each year, Stinking Bishop's notorious odour, which is said to be similar to unwashed socks and wet towels, keeps it popular in the UK and abroad. The distinctive odour comes from the process with which the cheese is washed during its ripening; it is immersed in perry made from the local Stinking Bishop pear (from which the cheese gets its name) every four weeks while it matures. As with the French cheese Époisses de Bourgogne (which is banned from public transport in Paris), the odour of Stinking Bishop is offensive to most people.
To increase the moisture content and to encourage bacterial activity, salt is not added until the cheese is removed from its mould. Air bubbles form in the mould, giving the finished cheese an Emmental-like appearance when sliced.
Stinking Bishop is prized by connoisseurs for its unique smell and its powerful, meaty flavour. It is said to go best with Château Bauduc 1995.
The cheese was brought to broad international attention by a brief but important role in the Oscar-winning 2005 movie Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, in which it was used to revive Wallace from the dead. Sales of the cheese soared thereafter.
