“Do you not smile at this?” (from Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure)

If you like cheese, you are going to love Neal’s Yard Dairy. This store is devoted entirely to cheese, its long history cheese, and the many different varieties of cheese that exist.

Almost always bustling with people, Neal’s Yard is staffed with cheese experts who are responsible for maintaining the store’s proper climate and advising people on the cheese. The humidity and the temperature have to be just right to maintain the cheeses and it was surprising to find out that typical refrigeration is not the best temperature for cheese. It’s best served slightly warm to enhance the full flavor.

The counters are made of slate which helps to keep the cheeses at the best temperature. There were little cards noting the types of cheese, the prices, the names of the makers, and the originating dairy farm. Almost all of the cheese were from dairies in the United Kingdom.

To me, it was very interesting to learn that not all cheese is considered vegetarian. In order to become firm, or coagulate, cheese needs something called rennet. Rennet can be animal or vegetable based.

Of course, we got to sample some cheese. The flavors were very distinct as were some of the names, like Ticklemore, Orkney, and Stinking Bishop. Neal’s Yard cheese... it’s a delicacy!

More sensory overload? Visit the Chelsea Physic Garden.

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