Tymsboro

Producer

Sleight Farm

Country

United Kingdom

Region

Avon

Size

2.75 ins sq bse, 1.5 ins sq top, 3 ins high

Weight

8 oz

Website

Milk

Goat

Classification

Semi Soft

Rennet

Animal

Rind

Mold Ripened

Mary Holbrook gave up a career in archaelogy in order to farm and make cheese at Sleight Farm in the Mendip Hills, located near Bath in the west of England. The unpasteurized milk for her cheese comes from her 90 goats - a mix of British Saanen, British Alpine and Anglo Nubian.

The goats browse untreated pasture that is rich in nettles, thistles and other vegetation, which contribute largely to the high quality milk. The goats are only milked between spring and autumn, when they have access to this pasture.

Milk for the cheese is handled very gently and the process involves a slow, lactic fermentation, after which the curds are drained and salted with a charcoal ash.

After a short spell in the drying room, the young cheeses are transferred to a maturing room where the bloomy, white candidum mold begins to grow, slowly covering the ash coat underneath.

Tymsboro has a similar shape to a Valencay, as well as the identical light coating of salted charcoal powder, overlaid by greenish-white penicillium molds. The interior is bright white.

Flavors range from fresh and lemony to quite intense and goaty, depending on the time of year, the goats' diet and the age of the cheese.