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Say Cheese

Posted on April 4, 2007
Filed Under Food and Drink, Vocabulary | 5 Comments

Last time I was in Uruguay I meant to conduct a broad tasting of Uruguayan cheeses, but ran into some problems. Unfortunately, I didn’t do any prep work and ended up a little confused. As a result I didn’t get to complete my mission the way I had intended. The things that got in the way were … well, let me explain by way of a comparison.

In France where small cheeses abound, a cheese ignoramus can walk into a shop, point at something faintly resembling a cheese and proceed to take the whole thing home. Later, at leisure, he/she can figure out whether it was cheese, butter or a door stop. Hmm, I must admit to having employed this technique. But that was before I learned French. Anyway, I was counting on using it again on a large scale to save time. Unfortunately Uruguay did not cooperate with my plan. There, the most popular cheeses are of the large type, sold in wedges (fraccionado). This means that you need to take a number at the deli section and ask for what you want. No biggie right? Were it not for the fact that in most delis there are relatively few types of cheeses but MANY brands of these same cheeses. And like everywhere else, the handwritten notes on the slabs, meant for the initiated, were terse and capricious. They sometimes referred to the type, sometimes to the brand, sometimes the characteristics of the cheese.

In spite of these minor hurdles, I was bold enough to order cheese a number of times, but not in an organized fashion. Most of what I tried were variations of the Colonia type. And I must say I liked them all, but I can’t recall the brands. As I said, I was thrown off.

When I came back to the US, I felt I needed to do a little more research to make sure I would cover more ground next time. What follows is my feeble attempt at imparting some order to this complex subject. Please note that I chose to focus on cheese made in Uruguay, rather than what might possibly be purchased in Uruguay.

Water Content
Uruguayan cheeses fall into four main categories: muy blandos (very soft, spreadable), blandos (semisoft), semiduros (firm) and duros (hard). Cheeses in the muy blando category are the requesón and the quesos blancos. These are spreadable, sometimes runny cheeses used on top of bread or crackers. They are also used as an ingredient in some dishes. Since they are pasty, they come in glass or plastic containers. In the blando category, the Port Salut, the Magro and the Cuartirolo seem to be more commonly encountered. The category of semiduros includes a large number of cheeses, among them the: Danbo, Colonia, Emmenthal, Gruyère, Cheddar and the Provolone. Cheeses such as the Gouda and the Fontina can sometimes be semisoft or firm. The duros are cheeses normally consumed grated or in small chunks like the: Goya, Parmesano, Sbrinz, Reggianito and the Sardo (made with sheep’s milk).

Processing of the Curd
The cheeses de masa cocida (heated to 45-58º C ): Gruyére, Sardo, Sbrinz and the Reggianinto. De masa semi-cocida (heated to 38-45º C ): Gouda, Cheddar, Edam and the Fontina. De masa lavada (washed with hot water): Danbo. De masa hilada (stringy): Muzzarella.

Ripening
Most Uruguayan cheeses are of the bacteria-ripen-from-the-inside type, like the: Sardo, Cuartirolo, Colonia, Sbrinz. Cheeses with superficial mold such as the Camembert and Brie can be found, but are not nearly as common. Cheeses with internal mold such as the Roquefort, Gorgonzola can be found without much difficulty. The fresh or unripened cheeses are the: Ricotta, the Mozzarella and the Feta.

Fat Content
Doble Crema (very high fat content) such as the mascarpone; Grasos (made with whole milk), such as the Cuartirolo, Muzzarella and the Cremoso; Semi-grasos (some of the fat was removed) are the Holanda, Danbo and the Parmesano. Quesos Magros are cheeses with at least 25 % less fat that quesos grasos. They are sold in with or without salt varieties.

You may want to know that the quesos para sandwich (also known as queso en barra) are processed cheeses. Also the queso parrillero used for grilling in the parillas is the provolone, usually in a round format. So often you will see advertised simply as queso parrillero. Of the cheeses described earlier, the one found in every deli of the country is the Colonia. I guess it is no accident that it is quite good. You’ll see it as Colonia, Colonia Artesanal, Colonia Especial preceded or followed by the name of the maker. For example Colonia Especial Los Rumbos or Conaprole Colonia Artesanal etc. Keep in mind that like elsewhere the same type of cheese can taste quite different among brands. In my limited tasting, I found a good correlation between price and quality.

Cheese types made in Uruguay, gathered from Uruguayan web sites (surely not exhaustive):

Brie
Cabra
Camembert
Cheddar
Colonia
Colonia especial,
Colonia artesanal
Cuartirolo
Danbo
Edam
Emmenthal
Feta Griego
Fontina
Gouda
Goya
Gruyere
Holanda
Mascarpone
Muzzarella
Reggianito
Provolone
Parmesano
Port Salut
Queso blanco
Queso fresco
Queso magro
Queso procesado
Requeson
Ricotta
Roquefort
Sardo

Vocabulary:

Ahumado – Smoked
Cáscara - Crust
Contenido de grasa - Fat content
Cuajada - Curd
Doble crema – Double cream (high fat content)
Feta Griego - Feta cheese
Fetas - Slices
Fraccionado - In wedges (meaning it is sold by weight)
Maduración - Ripening
Moho – Mold
Muzzarella con morron – Mozzarella with red peppers
Muzzarella con aceitunas – Mozzarella with olives
Parmesano - Parmesan
Queso – Cheese
Queso blando – Semisoft cheese
Queso descremado – Low fat cheese
Queso de cabra – Goat’s cheese
Queso de oveja - Sheep’s milk
Queso duro – Hard cheese
Queso fundido – Processed creese
Queso parrillero - Provolone cheese (usually round) used for griling in the parrilla
Queso rallado – Grated creese
Queso untable – Spreadable cheese
Rallado - Grated
Rallado fino – Finely Grated
Rallado grueso – Coasely Grated
Suero - Whey
Trozo de queso para copetin - Cheese cube for appetizers
Untable – Spreadable
Whisky – Say Cheese (in UY photographers ask people to say whisky to make them smile)

Names of a few cheese brands in Uruguay:
Conaprole, Parmalat, inlacsa, Sandri, Bavaria, Farming , Talar, Claldy, Lacmer, Los Rumbos, Granja Pocha, Del Rey, Kasdorf, La Estela, Silvana, Calcar, Cerros del Este, Santa Rosa, Adler, Trebol, Veronica, Dairyco, Alpa, Banil, Dispnat, La Pataia, Maia, Brassetti, Milky, Lactosan

Other posts in Food and Drink

• Tipping Custom in Uruguay
• Uruguayan Mate Custom
• Overview of Uruguayan Dulce de Leche
• An Overview of the Uruguayan Beer Market
• Overview of the Jams and Jellies Available in Uruguay
• Review of Milk Types Available in Uruguay
• Comparison Between Regular Coffee and Café Glaseado
• An Overview of Inexpensive Table Wines of Uruguay
• Where to Buy the Best Uruguayan Empanadas
• Fresh Fruits Available in Uruguay

Other posts in Vocabulary

• Car and Driving Spanish-English Glossary
• Uruguayan Spanish Conjugation
• Uruguayan Spanish Real Estate Terminology
• Uruguayan Mate Custom
• Marijuana Legal Status in Uruguay
• Things to Consider Before Hiring Household Help
• Uruguayan Knife Sharpener
• Observations on Pricing in Uruguay
• Uruguayan Banking Vocabulary
• Banners Commonly Seen in the Streets of Montevideo

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