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Always buy your cheese from a specialist shop where you can see it being cut. Exposed sufaces on pre-cut portions quickly gain rancid flavours. Plastic wrapping doesn't help.
Always buy Parmesan and other grating cheeses in blocks. Pre-grated cheese quickly loses aroma and freshness though its large surface area. Sealed packaging doesn't help.
Always buy cheese in smaller amounts, more often. You will be able to eat a smaller portion in fewer days while it remains fresh. Then buy more, of course...
Avoid buying cheese that has beads of moisture or fat on it. It has probably been kept at too high a temperature, which dries a cheese out.
Avoid buying cheese that smells overwhelmingly of ammonia, unless you plan to eat it immediately. The cheese is more than likely over-ripe.
Remove the cheese from the fridge one to two hours before serving a cheese course. This allows it time to soften up and start releasing its flavours, improving taste and texture.
Let Camembert and other soft cheeses ripen up properly by storing them at room temperature. It's too cold in the fridge for the ripening process to really take hold.
The best cheese knives have large cut-outs in the blade to prevent soft cheeses from sticking to them and prongs at the end to transport cut pieces to your plate.
When cutting yourself a slice from a wedge of cheese, you should slice evenly from rind to tip. It's good cheese board etiquette to leave it the same shape as you found it.
In Britain and the US the cheese course is usually served last, but when in Europe, it's usual to serve the cheese before dessert so your diners can continue drinking red wine.
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