How to Buy, Cut and Store Stilton at Christmas: Whole Round or Wedge

What makes a cheese Stilton

Stilton has protected designation of origin (PDO) status. Only cheese made in Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire, from pasteurised cow's milk and to the rules of the PDO, can carry the name. Stilton was granted PDO status in 1996. The curd is never pressed, which leaves the texture open enough for the blue to spread through it.

The cheese takes its name from the village of Stilton in Cambridgeshire, where it was sold rather than made. Because the village is outside the three counties, nobody there can legally make Stilton today.

Two raw-milk blues in the same style are worth knowing about. Stichelton is made by Joe Schneider and takes its name from the earliest recorded name of the village. Sparkenhoe Blue is the other. Neither can be called Stilton.

Colston Bassett and Cropwell Bishop are two of the best-known licensed Stilton dairies. Whichever you buy, check that the label carries the name Stilton and the PDO mark.

Whole Stilton or a wedge?

When a whole round makes sense

Some cheesemongers sell whole Stiltons for big celebrations. A whole round works if:

• you're feeding a crowd at several gatherings between Christmas and New Year
• you have room for it in the fridge or another reliably cold place
• you're happy to cook with what's left in January

Ask your cheesemonger which sizes they stock before you commit. Some sell smaller rounds as well as the full-size cheese.

When a wedge is the better buy

For most households, a wedge is the better buy. If Stilton is one of three or four cheeses on a board, allow roughly 30–50 g per person. Buy a little more if it's the main event. Aim to buy your wedge no more than a week or so before you plan to serve it.

What to look for

• Paste: ivory to pale cream, with blue-green veins that reach right out towards the crust, not just a few streaks in the middle.
• Texture: creamy and slightly crumbly. Avoid pieces that look dry, chalky or brown at the cut faces.
• Crust: rough, dry and brownish-grey, not slimy.
• Smell: savoury and mushroomy, with no sharp ammonia.
• Cut to order: a piece freshly cut from the round beats one that has sat in plastic for days.

Slice it, don't scoop it

There's an old habit of cutting the top off a whole Stilton, digging out the centre with a spoon, and sometimes pouring port into the hollow. Don't do it. Scooping leaves a shell with a large exposed surface that dries out and spoils faster. The firmer, stronger paste near the crust also goes to waste. And the port only makes the cheese soggy.

Cutting level slices keeps the exposed surface small. It also gives everyone the same mix of mellow, creamy centre and fuller-flavoured paste near the rind. That mix is the whole character of the cheese.

Cutting a whole round

1. Use a cheese wire or a long, thin-bladed knife. Dip the blade in hot water and wipe it dry between cuts.
2. Cut straight across the round to take off a level disc about 5 cm thick. Keep the cut flat so the rest of the cheese has an even top.
3. Lay the disc flat and cut it into wedges like a cake. Serve only what you need.
4. Cover the cut face of the round straight away (see below), and repeat the process next time.

Cutting a wedge

A wedge has a pointed tip, which was the centre of the round, and a rind along its curved back. Cut long, thin slices parallel to one of the cut sides, running from the tip to the rind. Each slice then gets a share of both. The worst thing you can do is slice off the creamy point and leave everyone else the crust. Cheesemongers call it "taking the nose", and it's considered bad form.

Stilton crumbles, so expect some crumbs. If the cheese is very soft, 15 minutes back in the fridge before cutting helps. Save the crumbs for cooking.

Wrapping and storing

• Wrap in paper first. Use waxed paper, greaseproof paper or proper cheese paper, pressed against the cut faces. Then put it loosely in foil or a lidded box. Cling film pressed straight onto the cheese traps moisture and can make it taste of plastic.
• Keep it cold and separate. The salad drawer of the fridge works well. Keep Stilton away from other cheeses, because blue mould travels.
• Rewrap with fresh paper each time you cut it.
• Eat it in good time. A cut wedge is best within about one to two weeks. A whole round you are cutting into is best finished within a few weeks. Check the cut faces each time. If they have dried or darkened, pare off a thin layer before serving.
• Freezing: Stilton freezes better than many cheeses, though it comes out more crumbly. Freeze it in well-wrapped pieces, thaw it slowly in the fridge, and use it for cooking rather than the cheeseboard.

Serving it

Take Stilton out of the fridge about an hour before serving and leave it wrapped until the last few minutes. Cold Stilton tastes muted; at room temperature the paste softens and the flavour opens up.

Port is the classic match, served in a glass rather than poured into the cheese. Tawny brings nutty notes and ruby brings fruit. Sauternes and other sweet wines work for the same reason: their sweetness balances the salt. On the board, add oatcakes, celery, ripe pears and walnuts.

Leftovers keep giving. Use them in broccoli and Stilton soup, melt them into a cream sauce for steak, or crumble them over a winter salad with pear and toasted walnuts.