the cheese blog

Bayley Hazen Blue

I was at Di Bruno Bros and was looking for a desert cheese and as I was eyeing the blue cheese selection, I saw Jasper Hill Bayley Hazen Blue and new I had to try it based on all the positive, nay, glowing, reviews.

Bayley Hazen Blue is a Stilton-style blue cheese made with raw Ayrshire cows milk (morning milk to be specific). It has a rough, natural rind. The aromas are of earth and nuts, without any sharpness or acidity. The interior is absolutely gorgeous. The piece I had was vanilla colored and riddled with mold that ranged from shapphire blue to algae green to hazy gray. It was so pretty I almost couldn’t eat it.

The texture was firm, slightly crumbly, but with a nice buttery mouthfeel. I was struck by how mellow the taste was, especially with so much interior mold. It wasn’t very salty and the sharpness from the acidity was quite low too. The flavors were all over the place. This is quiet a complex cheese. There was the salt in the background, but upfront there was some earthiness and then some roasty flavours (bitter chocolate?) and then the toasted nuts (hazlenuts, almonds) notes came through at the end.

Overall, I was really impressed by this cheese. I think it’s the kind of blue that you could serve to someone who isn’t into blue cheese and it would likely change their perceptions of what a blue cheese can deliver.