Jarlsberg cheese

Jarlsberg
Country of origin	Norway
Region	Jarlsberg
Source of milk	Cows
Texture	Semi-soft

Jarlsberg (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈjɑːɭsˈbærɡ]; English /ˈjɑːrlzbɜːrɡ/) is a mild cow's-milk cheese with large regular holes, that originates from Jarlsberg, Norway. Although it originated in Norway, it is also produced in Ohio and Ireland under licenses from Norwegian dairy producers.

Jarlsberg cheese has a yellow-wax rind (outer layer) and a semi-firm yellow interior. It is a mild, buttery cheese. The flavor has been described as "clean and rich, with a slightly sweet and nutty flavour". It is an all-purpose cheese, used for both cooking and eating as a snack. It has a characteristic smooth, shiny-yellow body, and a creamy supple texture. It is aged a minimum of one year and is distinguished by medium to large holes. It is usually produced in 10 kg wheels with an approximate diameter of 330 mm and a height of 95-105 mm. The characteristic holes or "eyes" are the result of the action of the bacteria Propionibacterium freudenreichii which naturally occurs in milk and is added back to the cheese during production according to a closely guarded secret formula.

The history of this cheese can be traced back to the middle 1850s. Anders Larsen Bakke (1815–1899), a farmer and pioneer in Norway's dairy industry, produced cheese in the village of Våle in what was then the county of Jarlsberg and Larviks Amt (now Vestfold), 80 km (50 mi) south of Oslo. The cheese shares similarities with Emmental, introduced to Vestfold by Swiss cheese makers during the 1830s. The cheese was first noted in the annual county report of Jarlsberg and Larviks Amt in 1855. After several years of popularity marked by a large volume of production Jarlsberg disappeared from the market.

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