Description
Y-Fenni Cheese
About Y-Fenni
Y-Fenni is another of those cheeses where someone has taken a combination that already works brilliantly and decided to put the whole lot together.
A creamy Cheddar-style cheese is blended with wholegrain mustard and ale, giving you little pops of mustard seed throughout the cheese and a lovely malty flavour in the background.
It’s savoury, warming and just a little bit tangy, without the mustard ever becoming too hot. And because the mustard seeds remain whole, they add texture as well as flavour.
You’ll usually spot Y-Fenni by its pale yellow wax — although once you’ve tasted those mustard seeds, you’re unlikely to forget which one it is.
What’s in a Name?
Y-Fenni is the Welsh name for Abergavenny, the lovely market town in Monmouthshire close to the English-Welsh border.
Unlike some of the ancient cheeses we’ve talked about, Y-Fenni is a relatively modern creation. But I don’t think every cheese needs a history stretching back hundreds of years to earn its place on the cheeseboard.
Sometimes a good idea is enough.
And putting mustard and ale into cheese was definitely a good idea.
Ale brings a gentle malty sweetness and slight bitterness, while wholegrain mustard provides warmth, acidity and those characteristic little seeds. Put the two into a rich, creamy cheese and everything just seems to make sense.
Y-Fenni – Jen’s Tasting Notes
The mustard seeds are the first thing I notice with Y-Fenni.
They give you little bursts of flavour as you eat, with an earthy, tangy warmth rather than lots of heat. Then the ale comes through with a gentle maltiness which rounds everything off beautifully.
Underneath all of that is the creamy richness of the cheese itself, which is important because you still want to know you’re eating cheese rather than simply mustard!
It’s savoury, slightly sweet, gently warming and very moreish.
And I really like the texture. Those whole mustard seeds popping as you eat make Y-Fenni just that little bit different.
How to Serve and Pair Y-Fenni
- Make sure you take it out of the fridge a good hour before you want to eat it so it can come up to room temperature.
- Classic pairings: Surely it has to be ale. A good brown or Welsh ale picks up the maltiness already in the cheese and works beautifully with the mustard.
- Something a little different: Try a dry Riesling. The freshness and acidity give you a lovely contrast to the richness of the cheese and the warmth of the mustard.
- On the plate: Y-Fenni was made for a ploughman’s. Good bread, ham, perhaps an apple and a few pickles — although I’d go easy on the chutney because there’s already plenty of flavour in the cheese.
- In the kitchen: This is a brilliant cooking cheese. Melt it into macaroni cheese, grate it over a gratin or, even better, put it into a cheese sauce and pour it over a good piece of ham. Cheese, ale and mustard have already been sorted for you.
Jen’s note: One of the questions we get asked all the time is whether cheeses with things added to them are somehow less ‘proper’ than traditional cheeses. I don’t think they are. There’s room on a cheeseboard for both. Y-Fenni isn’t pretending to be a centuries-old farmhouse cheese — it’s cheese with mustard and ale in it. And sometimes that’s exactly what you fancy.
Buying Y-Fenni
- Brand or Producer: Croome Cuisine
- Product name: Y-Fenni
- Milk: Cow
- Country: Wales
- Region: Abergavenny
- Strength: Medium
- Vegetarian: Yes
- Suitable for pregnancy: Yes
- Allergens: MILK, BARLEY, MUSTARD
Sizes and Prices
- 100g wedge, £2.90
- 500g wedge, £14.50
- Whole wheel (approx. 1.6kg), available to pre-order
Storage Advice
- Keep refrigerated
- Wrap in waxed paper or cling film
- Remove from the fridge before serving
- Consume within 10 to 14 days of opening
Delivery and Collection
- UK wide courier delivery
- Click and collect from our Pangbourne shop
- Free local delivery available for selected postcodes
Ingredients (Allergens are listed in capitals)
Welsh cheddar cheese (89%) (MILK, vegetarian rennet, salt, cultures), wholegrain mustard (9.5%) (water, MUSTARD seeds, white wine vinegar, glucose-fructose syrup, MUSTARD flour, salt, acidity regulator (acetic acid), cinnamon, pimento, turmeric powder), real ale (water, MALTED BARLEY WHEAT FLOUR, hops), water, MUSTARD bran, preservative (E202)
