Cornish Yarg

Producer: Lynher Dairies Ltd.

Location: Truro, Cornwall

Style: Semi-Hard

Milk Type: Cow

Milk Treatment: Pasteurised

Tasting Notes: Yoghurt, Citrus, Mushroom

Vegetarian: Yes

A semi-hard handmade cheese produced by Lynher Dairies, based in Ponsanooth near Truro, Cornwall. The cheese was first produced in the 1980s by Bodmin Moor farmer, Alan Gray after he found a 17th Century recipe for a nettle wrapped cheese in his attic. The cheese needed a name and Yarg was born; Gray spelled backwards.

Cornish Yarg is wrapped in wild nettle leaves, that are foraged from local fields and hedgerows in spring, and then frozen. By the time they are placed around the cheeses, they no longer have their sting, but have plenty of flavour. 

Matured for around 6 weeks, the cheeses develop a dusting of bloomy white moulds across their rinds. A relatively mild cheese, fresh and yoghurty, with mushroom flavours and a slightly crumbly texture.