Point Reyes is a farmhouse blue cheese.
It is very creamy and not crumbly, with no rind. The cheese body is white, with sparse bluish-grey mould, veining it. The taste has a bit of a tang because the starter cultures, give it a tang like buttermilk, but otherwise the taste is very mild. Consequently some say this is a good introduction to blue cheese for those who are unsure of it.
It is made by Bob Giacomini and his wife Dean Giacomini and their family at Point Reyes, Tomales Bay, California. They use only their own milk from their own herd of 250 Holstein cows. The cows eat grass from the farm year round (they graze when they can be at pasture; in winter, they are fed silage composed of grasses from the farm.) The cows are milked starting at 2 am, and the milk is piped directly into the cheese-making plant at 5:30 am, so that it’s used within hours of being produced.
The family homogenizes the milk, but doesn’t pasteurize it. They then add Penicillium Roqueforti, salt, vegetarian rennet and a starter culture. The milk is allowed to curdle, then the whey is drained off. The curds are formed into 6 1/2 pound (3 kg) wheels, which are rubbed with salt for the next 3 days.
Holes are poked into the wheels, then the wheels are allowed to sit in a cool place for 3 weeks. The cheese is then wrapped in foil to prevent a rind forming, and aged a minimum of 6 months.Nutrition FactsPer 1 oz (30 g)
AmountFat8 gProtein6 g
History Notes
The cheese company was founded in 2000, and Point Reyes Blue Cheese was their first cheese. Bob and Dean have had the dairy since 1959. Their four daughters encouraged them to do it, as they didn’t want take over a farm that did just milk.