A blue cheese that is made on a farm located a few hours from the city of Trondheim, in Norway, has just become the best in the world after winning the World Cheese Awards 2023, which were held last Friday in the Scandinavian country.
Nidelven Blå is the name given to this cheese produced by Maren and Ole Gangstadt, the third generation of a family of farmers and owners of Gangstadt Gårdsysteri. It is made by hand with cow's milk and then aged for six to nine months, and it is the best-selling product from this farm that has already received other international awards.
A jury made up of renowned experts in the sector was in charge of choosing the best of the 4,502 cheeses from 43 different countries that were presented at the competition this year. "A record number," the organizers have assured.
They included cheese industry professionals, as well as food journalists, retail buyers and experts in other food categories, to ensure products were rigorously evaluated.
Finbar Deery of the Sheridans Cheesemongers club in Ireland, one of the competition's judges, said he was "excited" by the interaction between the flavors of the milk and the blue of the winning cheese. "The texture was the first thing that caught my attention. It has a short creaminess and a very dense sweetness," he added.
Another of the strong points of this cheese, the jury admitted, is its slight bitterness, "which with such a rich texture, manifests itself and keeps the whole show going," states the competition's press release.
It is the third time that a Norwegian cheese has won this prestigious competition, which was founded in 1988 and which this year celebrated its 35th edition. “It is a testament to the care and effort put in by artisanal cheese makers in Norway,” said Guild of Fine Food CEO John Farrand.
During the first part of the judging process, cheeses were scored based on taste, aroma and texture, and were given a score out of 100, determining whether they were worthy of a bronze, silver or gold medal.
The Nidelven Blå achieved a score of 102 points, very close to the figure achieved by the Belgian cheese factory Balihof Kaas in Zuivelboerderij Jabbeke, which obtained 100 points with its cheese Balihof Houtlandse Asche kaa.
Other of the best-rated cheeses in the contest were the Eberle würzig seit 5 Generationen produced by the Swiss cheese factory Käserei Muolen, with 97 points; or the Eleftheria Brunost from Vivanda Gourmet, in India, with 95 points.
A hundred cheeses have achieved the highest recognition of the competition, the Super Gold medal (17 are Spanish). About 350 have achieved the gold award, 731 have received the silver award and 943 have received the bronze award.
The award for best Spanish cheese went to Capricho Homenaje from the Valencian cheese factory Granja Rinya, a soft pasteurized cow's milk cheese that is made with vegetarian rennet and matured between 0 and 2 weeks.
