Name: Moody Blue
Brand: Roth Kase USA
Place of Purchase: HyVee Foods in Ames, Iowa
Country/Region of Origin: Wisconsin
Price in Iowa: $9.99/pound
Milk: pasteurized cow buttermilk
Processing: 60 days to 120 days of aging, the cheese is smoked over fruit-wood for flavor
Texture: Semi-soft
Color: Straw yellow with bleu veining
Rind: Natural
Aroma: Smoky and mild dairy
Taste: Smokey, piquant bleu, tart and fruity notes
Mouth feel: A moist, crumbly paste
Notes:It seems like every bleu cheese that I try is stronger than the next. This buttermilk bleu is enhanced by smoking the cheese over fruit wood smoke. This intensifies the bite of the bleu, as well as adds fruity and smoke flavors to the cheese. The flavor profile is complex and intense. I think that this cheese would be best employed in a salad, or as a melt for a burger or sandwich. On its own it is way too powerful for most palates.