| Limburger | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country of origin | TheLow Countries and Germany |
| Source of milk | Cow |
| Texture | Semi-soft |
| Aging time | 2–3 months |
 Related media on Commons | |
| Herve | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Other names | Fromage de Herve |
| Country of origin | Belgium |
| Region | Pays de Herve |
| Town | Herve |
| Source of milk | Cow |
| Texture | Soft |
| Fat content | 45% |
| Weight | 50, 100, 200, or 400 g |
| Aging time | 3 weeks to 2 months[1] |
| Certification | PDO[2] |
| Related media on Commons | |
Limburger, commonly known asLimburg (in southern Dutch contextsRommedoe, and in BelgiumHerve cheese), is acheese that originated in the Herve area of the historicalDuchy of Limburg, which had its capital inLimbourg-sur-Vesdre, now in the French-speaking Belgianprovince of Liège. The cheese is especially known for itsstrong smell caused by the bacteriumBrevibacterium linens.[3]
Herve has been produced since the 15th century.
The Herve name has become the modern European protected name for the cheese, while the Limburger name is used for the same style when made in other regions.Herve cheese, or"Fromage de Herve", is still produced in the territory of the old Duchy of Limburg, in Belgium, where it has been produced since the 15th century.[4]Herve is located nearLiège, and the borders separatingBelgium from theNetherlands andGermany. The "Land of Herve" is a hilly area between theVesdre andMeuse rivers. The duchy existed until theFrench Revolution as a part of theHoly Roman Empire, and the cheese style became popular in other areas, known by the name of its country of origin.
In the USA, it was first produced by the F.X. Baumert cheese factory inAntwerp, New York, in 1854.[5] It was also produced in 1867 by Rudolph Benkerts in his cellar from pasteurized goat's milk.[6] A few years later, 25 factories produced this cheese. It was also manufactured in Canada, where it was a German-Canadian cultural marker, by the Oak Grove Cheese Company inNew Hamburg, Ontario. Today, the only limburger producer in the United States of America wasChalet Cheese Cooperative in Monroe, Wisconsin.
Herve is a Belgianrind washed soft cheese made from rawcow'smilk. The aging process takes place in ripening cellars of theHerve countryside, sometimes cut into its chalky rock.
It is sometimes flavored with herbs. Herve has a pale yellow interior with a glossy reddish-brown coating created by the bacteria that grow during its 3-month aging. It is usually shaped into a brick when sold. The taste and flavor of the cheese deepens during the period of ripening. When young, the interior is sweet, and with age it becomes spicy.
In its first month, the cheese is firmer and more crumbly, similar to the texture offeta cheese. After about six weeks, the cheese becomes softer along the edges but is still firm on the inside and can be described as salty and chalky. After two months it is mostly creamy and much smoother. Once it reaches three months, the cheese produces its notorious smell because of thebacterium used to ferment Limburgercheese and many othersmear-ripened cheeses.[7] This isBrevibacterium linens, the same one found on human skin that is partially responsible forbody odor (particularlyfoot odor).[3]
It was often regarded as one of the most popular cheeses in Belgium.
One way to serve Limburger is the Limburger sandwich. After three months, when the cheese has ripened, it becomes spreadable. The cheese is often spread thick (more than 0.5 cm or 0.2 inch) on firm-textured 100%rye bread, with a large, thick slice ofonion, and is typically served with strong black coffee orlager beer. Alternatively, chunks or slices of the cheese up to 1.5 cm (0.6 inch) thick can be cut off the block and placed in the sandwich.
This sandwich remains very popular among thedescendants of Swiss and German immigrants in theMidwestern United States, in places includingWisconsin andOhio.
In Wisconsin, the Limburger sandwich can be found on menus at certain restaurants, accompanied by brown mustard.[8] There are several variations, such as the addition of bologna,[9] lettuce, tomato, roasted walnuts, and the use of white or French bread.[10] Sometimes the rind of the cheese is rinsed or removed to weaken its odor.[11]
Limburger and its characteristic odor are a frequent butt of jokes. Reactions to, and misinterpretations of, the smell of Limburger cheese were gags used in numerousLooney Tunes,Little Rascals, andThree Stooges comedy shorts as well as in the Abbott and Costello filmsWho Done It? (1942)[12] andAbbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) The arch-enemy of theBiker Mice from Mars has the name Lawrence Limburger, complete with terrible body odor.
The smell of the cheese is referenced inthe B-52's 1979 single "Dance This Mess Around", with the lyric "why don't you dance with me? I'm not no Limburger" suggesting that the singer feels she does not have bad enough body odor to warrant not getting a dance partner.
In the Disney Channel Original MovieDon't Look Under the Bed, Larry is making "Boogey Goo" which is said to smell terrible. He lists Limburger cheese as one of the ingredients.
A study showing that the malariamosquito (Anopheles gambiae) is attracted equally to the smell of Limburger and to the smell of human feet earned theIg Nobel Prize in 2006 in the area of biology.[13][14] The results of the study were published in the medical journalThe Lancet on 9 November 1996. As a direct result of these findings, traps baited with this cheese have been placed in strategic locations in some parts of Africa to combat the epidemic ofmalaria.[15]
Limburger is one of the cheeses mentioned in theCheese Shop sketch, that appears in the “Salad Days” episode ofMonty Python’s Flying Circus, where Mr Wensleydale (Michael Palin) the proprietor of the cheese shop suggests Limburger toJohn Cleese’s character.
100 g of Limburger contains:[16]
Media related toLimburger cheese at Wikimedia Commons
