Binnorie Dairy 'Buche de Chevre'

Matured goat log
Goat's milk
Hunter Valley
150g logs
2-3 weeks maturation
www.binnorie.com.au

There are two seasons for goat's milk cheeses - Spring and Autumn. In Spring I prefer the light, fresh curds and lemony fresh chevres, the arrival of which heralds the start of the season for me. But in Autumn, I enjoy more mature styles with stronger flavours and firmer textures that can be lingered over.

Binnorie Dairy
'Buche de Chevre'

Binnorie's 'Buche de Chevre', roughly translated as "goat's log", is a perfect Autumn goat's milk cheese. Cheesemaker, and former microbiologist, Simon Gough sources the milk from a single herd near the cheesery at Pokolbin, in the heart of the Hunter Valley wine region.

The young cheeses are dusted with vine ash before being left to mature for a couple of weeks. During this time, they develop their bloomy white rinds around the outside. The black ash just under the rind makes for a lovely contrast against the stark white of the cheese, which has a firm, chalky centre, and rich, fudgey texture.

If you're lucky enough to get one that is firm right through, without a runny layer beneath the rind (difficult to achieve with matured goat's milk cheeses) slice it into rounds and melt it on top of field mushrooms that have been baked with a splash of red wine, a sprig of fresh thyme and a generous grind of pepper. The complex, nutty flavours of the cheese perfectly complement the earthiness of the mushrooms. Autumn on a plate.

Bangalow Cheese Co 'Nashua'

Washed rind
Cow's milk (mixed Friesian/Guernsey/Jersey/Swiss Brown)
Northern Rivers
150g discs
6 weeks maturation
www.bangalowcheese.com.au

I love this cheese. I first discovered it at the ASCA Sydney Cheese Show in 2009, where I nominated it as best cheese in show. Sadly, my affection was not shared by the other judges at that particular show, and another cheese took the gong on the day.

Clearly, I was ahead of the times, because at the Sydney Royal Cheese Show in 2010, it won Gold in its class, as well as Champion Bovine Cheese and Champion Fancy Cheese.

Bangalow Cheese Co 'Nashua'

Cheesemaker Justin Telfer washes the infant cheeses in a salty brine, then lets a little bit of bloomy white mould develop on the surface. His approach is very much about allowing the cheeses to develop distintive characteristics depending on the season, and the subtle changes in each batch of milk.

Like many Australian washed rind cheeses, 'Nashua' is at its best in Autumn. When perfectly ripe, its texture is soft and pillowy, and it oozes invitingly when cut. The best batches have a distinctive hint of earth and truffles in amongst all that golden gooeyness.

After a break from the limelight last year, 'Nasha' was back to form at this year's Sydney Royal where it again earned a Gold medal in its class, and the Trophy for Champion Fancy Cheese. Not bad for a little hand-made cheese from a little town in the Northern Rivers.