I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not." in Reply To.

"James Silverton" > wrote in message
...
> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it contains
> 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a British
> poster might explain this apparent paradox?

I'm not personally familiar with it but this is what Wiki has to say:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorset_Blue_Vinney

--
--
http://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/shop/

"Ophelia" wrote:
>"James Silverton" wrote:
>
>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it contains
>> 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a British
>> poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>
>I'm not personally familiar with it but this is what Wiki has to say:
>
>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorset_Blue_Vinney

Mo
http://dorsetblue.moonfruit.com/#/hi...dbv/4545324582

On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?

It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.

On 5/3/2013 3:22 PM, dsi1 wrote:
> On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>
> It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
> the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.

I believe you're absolutely correct. It's made with the cream skimmed
from the top of the milk. Not what we in the U.S. consider "skimmed"
(aka) non-fat milk.

Jill

On May 3, 3:28*pm, jmcquown > wrote:
> On 5/3/2013 3:22 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>
> > On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
> >> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
> >> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
> >> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
> >> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
> >> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>
> > It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
> > the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.
>
> I believe you're absolutely correct. *It's made with the cream skimmed
> from the top of the milk. *Not what we in the U.S. consider "skimmed"
> (aka) non-fat milk.
>
> Jill

Don't think so. It's what's left after the cream has been skimmed
off.

htp://www.richardfisher.com

On Saturday, 4 May 2013 00:20:52 UTC+10, James Silverton wrote:
> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?

You found: 15% fat
Cheese.com, http://www.cheese.com/dorset-blue-vinney/ : 40-46% fat
A/the producer ("we are the ONLY producers of the genuine Dorset Blue Vinny", http://dorsetblue.moonfruit.com/#/hi...dbv/4545324582 ): 3.3%

Old-style skimmed milk, where the cream was skimmed off the top of milk that had stood to let the cream rise, kept quite a bit of its fat. I've seen estimates of 1-2% fat content, but the 2% person thought they could do better. Modern "skimmed" milk has had its fat removed in a centrifugal separator, which removes a much larger portion of the fat (like almost all of it). I don't know whether "hand-skimmed" included hand-cranked centrifugal separators these days.

Even if you keep all the protein when you make the cheese, you lose most of the sugar, so the fat content will increase by about 15 times (whole milk) to 20 times (skimmed milk) if you get rid of the water. 15% fat cheese from skimmed milk is quite plausible.

On 5/3/2013 4:43 PM, Helpful person wrote:
> On May 3, 3:28 pm, jmcquown > wrote:
>> On 5/3/2013 3:22 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>
>>> On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>>>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>>>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>>>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>>>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>>
>>> It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
>>> the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.
>>
>> I believe you're absolutely correct. It's made with the cream skimmed
>> from the top of the milk. Not what we in the U.S. consider "skimmed"
>> (aka) non-fat milk.
>>
>> Jill
>
> Don't think so. It's what's left after the cream has been skimmed
> off.
>
That's what *I* call skimmed milk. But the butterfat skimmed off the
top of the milk is apparently used to make this cheese. Read the posts,
this does not sound like nor does it purport to be a "low fat" cheese.
It's all in the wording.

Jill

On 5/3/2013 5:19 PM, jmcquown wrote:
> On 5/3/2013 4:43 PM, Helpful person wrote:
>> On May 3, 3:28 pm, jmcquown > wrote:
>>> On 5/3/2013 3:22 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>>>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>>>>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>>>>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>>>>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>>>>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>>>
>>>> It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
>>>> the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.
>>>
>>> I believe you're absolutely correct. It's made with the cream skimmed
>>> from the top of the milk. Not what we in the U.S. consider "skimmed"
>>> (aka) non-fat milk.
>>>
>>> Jill
>>
>> Don't think so. It's what's left after the cream has been skimmed
>> off.
>>
> That's what *I* call skimmed milk. But the butterfat skimmed off the
> top of the milk is apparently used to make this cheese. Read the posts,
> this does not sound like nor does it purport to be a "low fat" cheese.
> It's all in the wording.
>

I'm not arguing about whether the cheese is fatty or otherwise and I
think the explanation that the milk is hand skimmed is probably correct.
I have a suspicion that the fat-free and skim milk sold by the local
Giant are identical apart from packaging; certainly, the price is identical.


--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not." in Reply To.

On 5/3/2013 5:19 PM, jmcquown wrote:
> On 5/3/2013 4:43 PM, Helpful person wrote:
>> On May 3, 3:28 pm, jmcquown > wrote:
>>> On 5/3/2013 3:22 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>>
>>>> On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>>>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>>>>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>>>>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>>>>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>>>>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>>>
>>>> It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
>>>> the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.
>>>
>>> I believe you're absolutely correct. It's made with the cream skimmed
>>> from the top of the milk. Not what we in the U.S. consider "skimmed"
>>> (aka) non-fat milk.
>>>
>>> Jill
>>
>> Don't think so. It's what's left after the cream has been skimmed
>> off.
>>
> That's what *I* call skimmed milk. But the butterfat skimmed off the
> top of the milk is apparently used to make this cheese. Read the posts,
> this does not sound like nor does it purport to be a "low fat" cheese.
> It's all in the wording.
>

I'm not arguing about whether the cheese is fatty or otherwise and I
think the explanation that the milk is hand skimmed is probably correct.
I have a suspicion that the fat-free and skim milk sold by the local
Giant are identical apart from packaging; certainly, the price is identical.


--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not." in Reply To.

"Sqwertz" > wrote in message
...
> On Fri, 03 May 2013 15:28:56 -0400, jmcquown wrote:
>
>> On 5/3/2013 3:22 PM, dsi1 wrote:
>>> On 5/3/2013 4:20 AM, James Silverton wrote:
>>>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>>>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>>>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>>>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>>>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>>>
>>> It might be that back then, skimmed milk used to be milk skimmed from
>>> the top of cow's milk i.e., cream.
>>
>> I believe you're absolutely correct. It's made with the cream skimmed
>> from the top of the milk. Not what we in the U.S. consider "skimmed"
>> (aka) non-fat milk.
>
> Not even close. They mean the low-fat milk left after skimming.
> Cream has already been cream.

For some reason they are trying to pretend that skim milk
and cream are identical. Amazingly idiotic, particularly given the
large number of references they have gone through, all saying the
opposite of what they want the answer to be. Skim milk (US) =
Skim milk (Great Britain.)

pavane

James Silverton > wrote:

> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?

I am not a British poster, but I'd say that the real paradox is that the
cheese is still getting mentioned at all. Here is a long and funny
quotation from the Time-Life Books series "The Cooking of the British
Isles" by Adrian Bailey.

Victor

<quote>
If Stilton and some of the other great cheeses are a bit difficult to
obtain nowadays, there are still others of considerable repute that are
even more difficult to find -- blue vinny, also called blue Dorset, for
example, a hard, fat-deprived cheese made from hand-skimmed milk. It is
perhaps the last of England's rare, local cheeses. If you possess the
pioneering spirit of Vasco da Gama, have the scientific tenacity of
Louis Pasteur and the deductive capacity of Inspector Maigret, you
might, only _might_, get to taste some.

"Dorset", I was told, "is where you will find blue vinny. Try
Sherborne, or try Dorchester."

I went to Sherborne. "Blue vinny? Well, sir, you might find someone as
sells it, but not here. If I were you, I'd go to Dorchester."

"Blue vinny?" they said in Dorchester. "Place to go for that is
Puddletown, Tolpuddle or Piddlehinton. That's where they make blue
vinny."

At Piddlehinton a villager said: "Bloo vunny? Ar. I'd goo over t'
Cerne Abbas. Ask they in the pub." "Ar," exclaimed other villagers,
and they exchanged little secretive smiles.

At Cerne Abbas I went into the pub. "Yes," said the landlord, "I can
get you some blue vinny, but I can't tell you where, it's a secret, see.
They won't even tell me, because I am not a local, I'm Lancashire, so I
have to go and contact a middleman."

"Why," I asked, "won't they tell you, and why does blue vinny have to be
such a damned great secret?"

"I don't know," said the landlord, "maybe it's because so little is made
that they will only supply it to folk who live in the area, or maybe the
way it's made has to be kept secret. Who knows?" The landlord climbed
into a white MGB sports car and accelerated up the village street on his
errand of mercy and mystery to the unknown destination and the source of
blue vinny cheese. He returned some 10 minutes later bearing a 10-pound
cheese wrapped in newspaper.

"That's a blue vinny?" I inquired.

"It is," he said. "And I'm afraid that you will have to buy the whole
cheese. They refuse to cut it up."

I asked him if it was a good one.

"I have no idea, but you could always try asking them at the Cheese
Grading Centre in Wells. It's about 40 miles away."

I didn't have much time left, but I went to Wells anyway. At the
government's Grading Centre I showed my cheese to one of the graders.

"I have here a blue vinny," I said.

"Have you now," said the grader, "it's a long time since I've seen a
blue vinny." He had the flat accent of someone from the Midlands,
Nottingham perhaps, or maybe Leicester. Reverently he unwrapped the
cheese from the newspaper. He went away and returned a few minutes
later with a cheese iron, which he thrust into the side of the cheese,
extracting a long plug of white, blue-veined cheese. He broke a piece
off and rubbed it between his fingers. Then he took a piece and tasted
it. "The word vinny," he said, "comes from the old English word
'vinew,' which means mold."

"Is it what a blue vinny should taste like?" I asked. "Is it a blue
vinny?"

The grader gazed at the cheese iron, then at me.

"No," he said. "No."

"What do you mean, no?"

"No, it isn't what a blue vinny should taste like, because it isn't a
blue vinny at all -- it's a substandard Stilton." He pronounced
"substandard" so that it sounded like "substundud". I began to feel at
the end of a very long, drawn-out joke, in which the whole of Dorset,
the landlord and the cheese grader had played their parts to a carefully
written script.

"It would appear," continued the grader in grave tones, "that there is a
smuggling route of second-grade Stiltons from Melton Mowbray to Dorset.
I am afraid that you've been had." Now I knew what all the secrecy was
about. "Blue vinny cheese," said the grader, "was never worth much
anyway. It's a poor, deprived cheese that they made from skimmed milk.
Bournemouth used to be a butter-making area, and they skimmed all the
fat from the milk by hand. What was left was to make blue vinny. It
was dead white and would turn as hard as a rock. You had to eat it soon
after the mold had taken. I remember an old man here in Dorset who told
me, 'You can do a hard day's work on a lump of Cheddar cheese, bread and
beer, but nobody ever did a day's work on a lump of blue vinny."

"You see," the grader went on, "everything's too clean these days, and
vinny used to be made from inferior, fatless milk, dirty milk even.
Some people used to start their cheese with an old leather harness that
was never washed, but hung in the shed, gathering mildew. When the
cheese started to shrink, it cracked and let in the mold -- that's why
it turned blue."

I have never been back to Dorset, because I cannot spare the time. But
one day I shall renew my search for blue vinny cheese. I don't care if
it is hard, fat-deprived and poor, I want to try some for myself, even
if I roll Dorset up like an old carpet and blue vinny cheeses drop out
at both ends.
</quote>

On 5/4/2013 1:00 AM, Victor Sack wrote:
> James Silverton > wrote:
>
>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>
> I am not a British poster, but I'd say that the real paradox is that the
> cheese is still getting mentioned at all. Here is a long and funny
> quotation from the Time-Life Books series "The Cooking of the British
> Isles" by Adrian Bailey.
>
> Victor
>
> <quote>
> If Stilton and some of the other great cheeses are a bit difficult to
> obtain nowadays, there are still others of considerable repute that are
> even more difficult to find -- blue vinny, also called blue Dorset, for
> example, a hard, fat-deprived cheese made from hand-skimmed milk. It is
> perhaps the last of England's rare, local cheeses. If you possess the
> pioneering spirit of Vasco da Gama, have the scientific tenacity of
> Louis Pasteur and the deductive capacity of Inspector Maigret, you
> might, only _might_, get to taste some.
>
> "Dorset", I was told, "is where you will find blue vinny. Try
> Sherborne, or try Dorchester."
>
> I went to Sherborne. "Blue vinny? Well, sir, you might find someone as
> sells it, but not here. If I were you, I'd go to Dorchester."
>
> "Blue vinny?" they said in Dorchester. "Place to go for that is
> Puddletown, Tolpuddle or Piddlehinton. That's where they make blue
> vinny."
>
> At Piddlehinton a villager said: "Bloo vunny? Ar. I'd goo over t'
> Cerne Abbas. Ask they in the pub." "Ar," exclaimed other villagers,
> and they exchanged little secretive smiles.
>
> At Cerne Abbas I went into the pub. "Yes," said the landlord, "I can
> get you some blue vinny, but I can't tell you where, it's a secret, see.
> They won't even tell me, because I am not a local, I'm Lancashire, so I
> have to go and contact a middleman."
>
> "Why," I asked, "won't they tell you, and why does blue vinny have to be
> such a damned great secret?"
>
> "I don't know," said the landlord, "maybe it's because so little is made
> that they will only supply it to folk who live in the area, or maybe the
> way it's made has to be kept secret. Who knows?" The landlord climbed
> into a white MGB sports car and accelerated up the village street on his
> errand of mercy and mystery to the unknown destination and the source of
> blue vinny cheese. He returned some 10 minutes later bearing a 10-pound
> cheese wrapped in newspaper.
>
> "That's a blue vinny?" I inquired.
>
> "It is," he said. "And I'm afraid that you will have to buy the whole
> cheese. They refuse to cut it up."
>
> I asked him if it was a good one.
>
> "I have no idea, but you could always try asking them at the Cheese
> Grading Centre in Wells. It's about 40 miles away."
>
> I didn't have much time left, but I went to Wells anyway. At the
> government's Grading Centre I showed my cheese to one of the graders.
>
> "I have here a blue vinny," I said.
>
> "Have you now," said the grader, "it's a long time since I've seen a
> blue vinny." He had the flat accent of someone from the Midlands,
> Nottingham perhaps, or maybe Leicester. Reverently he unwrapped the
> cheese from the newspaper. He went away and returned a few minutes
> later with a cheese iron, which he thrust into the side of the cheese,
> extracting a long plug of white, blue-veined cheese. He broke a piece
> off and rubbed it between his fingers. Then he took a piece and tasted
> it. "The word vinny," he said, "comes from the old English word
> 'vinew,' which means mold."
>
> "Is it what a blue vinny should taste like?" I asked. "Is it a blue
> vinny?"
>
> The grader gazed at the cheese iron, then at me.
>
> "No," he said. "No."
>
> "What do you mean, no?"
>
> "No, it isn't what a blue vinny should taste like, because it isn't a
> blue vinny at all -- it's a substandard Stilton." He pronounced
> "substandard" so that it sounded like "substundud". I began to feel at
> the end of a very long, drawn-out joke, in which the whole of Dorset,
> the landlord and the cheese grader had played their parts to a carefully
> written script.
>
> "It would appear," continued the grader in grave tones, "that there is a
> smuggling route of second-grade Stiltons from Melton Mowbray to Dorset.
> I am afraid that you've been had." Now I knew what all the secrecy was
> about. "Blue vinny cheese," said the grader, "was never worth much
> anyway. It's a poor, deprived cheese that they made from skimmed milk.
> Bournemouth used to be a butter-making area, and they skimmed all the
> fat from the milk by hand. What was left was to make blue vinny. It
> was dead white and would turn as hard as a rock. You had to eat it soon
> after the mold had taken. I remember an old man here in Dorset who told
> me, 'You can do a hard day's work on a lump of Cheddar cheese, bread and
> beer, but nobody ever did a day's work on a lump of blue vinny."
>
> "You see," the grader went on, "everything's too clean these days, and
> vinny used to be made from inferior, fatless milk, dirty milk even.
> Some people used to start their cheese with an old leather harness that
> was never washed, but hung in the shed, gathering mildew. When the
> cheese started to shrink, it cracked and let in the mold -- that's why
> it turned blue."
>
> I have never been back to Dorset, because I cannot spare the time. But
> one day I shall renew my search for blue vinny cheese. I don't care if
> it is hard, fat-deprived and poor, I want to try some for myself, even
> if I roll Dorset up like an old carpet and blue vinny cheeses drop out
> at both ends.
> </quote>
>
That was a fun read! Thanks, Victor

Jill

On 5/4/2013 1:00 AM, Victor Sack wrote:
> James Silverton > wrote:
>
>> I recently read about a British cheese called Blue Vinney that is made
>> from skimmed milk. It allegedly was the writer Thomas Hardy's favorite
>> cheese tho' what that adds to its appeal is unclear. However, it
>> contains 15% fat and skimmed milk in the US is zero fat. I wonder if a
>> British poster might explain this apparent paradox?
>
> I am not a British poster, but I'd say that the real paradox is that the
> cheese is still getting mentioned at all. Here is a long and funny
> quotation from the Time-Life Books series "The Cooking of the British
> Isles" by Adrian Bailey.
>
> Victor
>
> <quote>
> If Stilton and some of the other great cheeses are a bit difficult to
> obtain nowadays, there are still others of considerable repute that are
> even more difficult to find -- blue vinny, also called blue Dorset, for
> example, a hard, fat-deprived cheese made from hand-skimmed milk. It is
> perhaps the last of England's rare, local cheeses. If you possess the
> pioneering spirit of Vasco da Gama, have the scientific tenacity of
> Louis Pasteur and the deductive capacity of Inspector Maigret, you
> might, only _might_, get to taste some.
>
> "Dorset", I was told, "is where you will find blue vinny. Try
> Sherborne, or try Dorchester."
>
> I went to Sherborne. "Blue vinny? Well, sir, you might find someone as
> sells it, but not here. If I were you, I'd go to Dorchester."
>
> "Blue vinny?" they said in Dorchester. "Place to go for that is
> Puddletown, Tolpuddle or Piddlehinton. That's where they make blue
> vinny."
>
> At Piddlehinton a villager said: "Bloo vunny? Ar. I'd goo over t'
> Cerne Abbas. Ask they in the pub." "Ar," exclaimed other villagers,
> and they exchanged little secretive smiles.
>
> At Cerne Abbas I went into the pub. "Yes," said the landlord, "I can
> get you some blue vinny, but I can't tell you where, it's a secret, see.
> They won't even tell me, because I am not a local, I'm Lancashire, so I
> have to go and contact a middleman."
>
> "Why," I asked, "won't they tell you, and why does blue vinny have to be
> such a damned great secret?"
>
> "I don't know," said the landlord, "maybe it's because so little is made
> that they will only supply it to folk who live in the area, or maybe the
> way it's made has to be kept secret. Who knows?" The landlord climbed
> into a white MGB sports car and accelerated up the village street on his
> errand of mercy and mystery to the unknown destination and the source of
> blue vinny cheese. He returned some 10 minutes later bearing a 10-pound
> cheese wrapped in newspaper.
>
> "That's a blue vinny?" I inquired.
>
> "It is," he said. "And I'm afraid that you will have to buy the whole
> cheese. They refuse to cut it up."
>
> I asked him if it was a good one.
>
> "I have no idea, but you could always try asking them at the Cheese
> Grading Centre in Wells. It's about 40 miles away."
>
> I didn't have much time left, but I went to Wells anyway. At the
> government's Grading Centre I showed my cheese to one of the graders.
>
> "I have here a blue vinny," I said.
>
> "Have you now," said the grader, "it's a long time since I've seen a
> blue vinny." He had the flat accent of someone from the Midlands,
> Nottingham perhaps, or maybe Leicester. Reverently he unwrapped the
> cheese from the newspaper. He went away and returned a few minutes
> later with a cheese iron, which he thrust into the side of the cheese,
> extracting a long plug of white, blue-veined cheese. He broke a piece
> off and rubbed it between his fingers. Then he took a piece and tasted
> it. "The word vinny," he said, "comes from the old English word
> 'vinew,' which means mold."
>
> "Is it what a blue vinny should taste like?" I asked. "Is it a blue
> vinny?"
>
> The grader gazed at the cheese iron, then at me.
>
> "No," he said. "No."
>
> "What do you mean, no?"
>
> "No, it isn't what a blue vinny should taste like, because it isn't a
> blue vinny at all -- it's a substandard Stilton." He pronounced
> "substandard" so that it sounded like "substundud". I began to feel at
> the end of a very long, drawn-out joke, in which the whole of Dorset,
> the landlord and the cheese grader had played their parts to a carefully
> written script.
>
> "It would appear," continued the grader in grave tones, "that there is a
> smuggling route of second-grade Stiltons from Melton Mowbray to Dorset.
> I am afraid that you've been had." Now I knew what all the secrecy was
> about. "Blue vinny cheese," said the grader, "was never worth much
> anyway. It's a poor, deprived cheese that they made from skimmed milk.
> Bournemouth used to be a butter-making area, and they skimmed all the
> fat from the milk by hand. What was left was to make blue vinny. It
> was dead white and would turn as hard as a rock. You had to eat it soon
> after the mold had taken. I remember an old man here in Dorset who told
> me, 'You can do a hard day's work on a lump of Cheddar cheese, bread and
> beer, but nobody ever did a day's work on a lump of blue vinny."
>
> "You see," the grader went on, "everything's too clean these days, and
> vinny used to be made from inferior, fatless milk, dirty milk even.
> Some people used to start their cheese with an old leather harness that
> was never washed, but hung in the shed, gathering mildew. When the
> cheese started to shrink, it cracked and let in the mold -- that's why
> it turned blue."
>
> I have never been back to Dorset, because I cannot spare the time. But
> one day I shall renew my search for blue vinny cheese. I don't care if
> it is hard, fat-deprived and poor, I want to try some for myself, even
> if I roll Dorset up like an old carpet and blue vinny cheeses drop out
> at both ends.
> </quote>
>

A very interesting story. I see it will be a long time before I try Blue
Vinny!

--
Jim Silverton (Potomac, MD)

Extraneous "not." in Reply To.