Over 100 years of cheesemaking have gone into Kāpiti’s newest cheese, the Kāpiti Kahotea Extra Creamy Brie. Silky smooth with a creamy body that becomes even softer and more decadent as it matures, it’s guaranteed to be the new favourite on your cheeseboard.
Hand-crafted goodness
It takes a lot of skill to craft a premium cheese such as this. In fact, the journey of the Kāpiti Kahotea Extra Creamy Brie goes back over one hundred years, when the team at the Bridge St factory first started making cheese.
“We use local pasture- fed cow’s milk delivered fresh every morning and grow our starter cultures on site. The cheesemakers work their way through the various recipe steps until they are satisfied with the curd texture,” explains Kāpiti Master Cheesemaker Cathy Lang. “From there, the curds are placed into moulds, pressed and salted by hand, after which they are taken to the maturation rooms to be ripened to perfection.“
Along with selecting the finest ingredients, the secret to Kāpiti’s award-winning cheeses is their careful approach of crafting by hand.
“We have two small cheese teams that look after every step in this process, which means there is a huge amount of care and time put into perfecting our cheeses,” says Lang. “We may be referred to as a factory, but we are actually a team of cheesemakers that hand- craft the Kāpiti cheeses you see in store!”
Pairing perfection
While most immediately think of wine when it comes to cheese pairings, for something a little different, Lang recommends a pilsner beer. “It’s a more delicate yet crisp beer which matches the delicate flavour notes of this creamy Brie along with the carbonation helping to lift from the palate and help enhance the flavour.”
This cocktail by MiNDFOOD Master Sommelier Cameron Douglas is another excellent pairing for the Kahotea Extra Creamy Brie.
Cocktail: The Marjorie
This drink from the American Midwest has a gentle , creamy quality from the sugar syrup, but also displays fruity , earthy attributes to marry nicely with the creamy richness of the cheese.
1½ measures of pear vodka
¾ measure of sloe gin
¾ measure of simple syrup
¾ measure of lemon juice
Shake all ingredients and strain over a rocks glass filled with ice, and garnish with a lemon twist.
To discover more delicious Kāpiti cheeses, visit tastekapiti.co.nz
MiNDFOOD Promotion
