Istara

The other day I was at Sprouts and tempted by their gourmet cheese section but everything was around 8 bucks for a tiny hunk of cheese. Fortunately I found a few small pieces that were reduced. One was a gorgonzola which I bought for my husband (I'm allergic to blue cheeses) and the other was a semi-hard Spanish cheese called Istara. I've tasted a few Spanish cheeses in the past that were impressive (my favorite is Mahon, usually carried by Whole Foods) so I figured this cheese would be tasty.

After the first bite I wasn't really sure how to describe it. My first thought was "cheddar" even though after the following ten bites I realized that it was sharp like cheddar but tasted very similar to a swiss cheese. This would be great on a cheese plate to serve to guests.

I think I'll stop by Sprouts again soon and see if I can try some more reduced chunks of cheese. If it were up to my taste buds (and not my sensitive lactose intolerant stomach and aging metabolism) I would eat bread and cheese for every meal.