Halloween is over, alas, so it's back to regular, non-scary themed posts. Today, I'll do yet another type of my favorite food in the world, cheese. Specifically, an Irish Castle Cheese, from Tipperary, which is imported from, obviously, Ireland.
As far as I can tell, "Irish Castle Cheese" is a variant that Tipperary made up. I'd love to provide a brief history about the castle where it was made, or at least the one that inspired the cheese, but, once again, I tried a food from a manufacturer who's evidently quite shy. I couldn't find out anything about the place in Ireland that actually created this cheese. There is some information about the importer and distributer though, which is Abbey Specialty Foods, L.L.C., out of Fairfield, NJ, in the U.S. Although even Abbey is quite limited on the company details. About all Abbey revealed on their official company website was that they specialize in importing and distributing cheeses and associated dairy products from around the world, and that the business started in 1999. I had to check several other online sources to even find out who runs the company. For the record, it's Tom Slattery who is the CEO, and he was reportedly educated at Seton Hall University. Anyway, besides Tipperary, some of the other brands Abbey works with include Bergader, Henri Hutin, Sorella, Carrigaline, Castillo Espanol, Swiss Castle, Lye Cross, and Abbey Farms, which judging by the name is evidently made by them. Tipperary mainly makes various kinds of cheddar cheese. Varieties include cheddars soaked in whiskey, red wine, or porter, cheddars that are white or colored, and some that are extra sharp or vintage. The brand also makes salted and unsalted butter, and the amusingly named Irish Swiss Cheese. In addition to Ireland, Abbey handles products made in the U.S., Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Holland, Germany, France, England, Denmark, and Austria. Finally, a business-themed website I consulted indicated that Abbey employs 2-10 people. Which seems absurdly low, but that's what it said.
Tipperary Irish Castle Cheese: Was a yellow-white color, and had a mild odor. Semisoft texture. I had some plain, and then some microwaved on a burger roll with ketchup, which is a quick and dirty cheese sandwich I like to make. The flavor was nice--pleasantly salty and tangy. Kind of a medium intensity. So, as always, I really enjoyed this cheese. It might have been slightly better melted on the roll, but plain it was more than solid, too. I would strongly recommend it--very good.
Tipperary is both a town, and a county in Ireland. Like probably many people, I associate it with the song, "It's a Long Way to Tipperary," a tune popular as a marching song for soldiers during World War I. (I'm not THAT old, but I have encountered the song in movies or books about that time period.) In looking into the song, there is a bit of controversy surrounding it. It was first performed in 1912 by Jack Judge. Initially it was credited as being written by Judge and Harry Williams. However, upon Williams's death in 1924 Judge claimed that he actually wrote the song pretty much entirely, and only gave Williams a co-credit due to kindness, and because of a debt owed. But, the Williams family disagreed, and said that Williams had written the music, and most of the lyrics to the song before 1912. Judge countered that Williams never claimed to have written most or all of it before he died, and even signed an affidavit confirming this. So, it appears that officially the song's creator is Judge, but some folks think this is incorrect. At least Williams' family still reportedly received royalties long after this time period.
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