OG Kristal ~ Van Tricht
Belgium
$15
OG Kristal, also known as ‘Old Groendal’, is an award-winning aged Belgian gouda-style cheese produced in the region of Roeselare.
If you love those crunchy bits that turn up in some well-aged cheeses (they’re protein crystals), you will fall for this beauty. It has crystals galore, plus a luscious, dense creaminess that makes you think you are eating a salted caramel.
This Gouda is incredibly popular - most of the wheels brought into the US are allocated so we are lucky when we are able to get a few wheels exclusively for our cheese club members.
Described as a "tyrosine dream come true for all the worshipers of those lovely little cheese diamonds." the cheese has a rich and fudgy texture that lovingly coats the tongue with notes of malted caramel, cocoa and liquor-soaked cherries.
"It’s not just chocolate and beer that are considered great Belgian products. Our locally produced cheeses are also fingerlickingly delicious."
Made in Belgium with pasteurized cow's milk called Brokkelkaas ("crunchy cheese") in Dutch, this is a fine, rich gouda.
If you love those crunchy bits that turn up in some well-aged cheeses (they’re protein crystals), you will fall for this beauty. It has crystals galore, plus a luscious, dense creaminess that makes you think you are eating a salted caramel.
The creamy paste contains well formed crystals that pop like candy in your mouth. The crystallized texture provides a savory balance to the fruity, nutty sweetness.
This assertive Belgian gouda is a must-try cheese for any lover of tyrosine crystals . . . the crunchy, salty, savory bits of amino acid that form in aged cheeses as the protein structure of the milk breaks down.
Like many aged goudas, the base flavor of OG Kristal leans sweeter. It has the caramel notes you'd expect from a Gouda but there is an underlying savory broth characteristic with notes of cherries and butterscotch.
OG Kristal is a Belgian Gouda style cheese made by Kaasboerderij T Groendal in West Flanders Belgium. Made at one family farm and aged by the family of affineurs at Kaasaffineurs Van Tricht.
Made in the typical gouda style fashion, the curds are washed in warm water. This washing aids in whey expulsion leading to a sweeter flavor through the 18 months of aging.
You don’t have to understand the chemistry to enjoy OG Kristal, an 18-month-old Gouda made from pasteurized milk from a single farm.
The Van Tricht family—father-and-son affineurs (cheese-aging experts)—store their cheeses in De Koninck Brewery’s former bottling facility, now divided into eight aging rooms with all the temperature and humidity controls needed to mature cheeses of many types.
The quality of our Belgian cheesemakers is defined by their great variety, beautiful artisan products and the excellent knowledge of our producers. That’s why we are proud of our Belgian cheeses, and very much convinced of their potential for global success.
Thanks to refrigerated transportation and well thought affinage our cheeses can be tasted all around the world. We stand for quality packaging that does not influence the taste of the cheese, correct package timing and a quick service.
| Milk | Cow |
|---|---|
| Country | Belgium |
