The Taste Bud: Cabot Habanero Cheddar Cheese is Snack No. 1
This is the real deal. Photos by Kevin Gibson
As a lover of all things spicy, you can take it straight to the bank that I’ve tried more than my share of spicy cheese. There’s just one problem: Most of it simply hasn’t been all that spicy.
I chalk that up to these cheese makers being reserved when adding peppers — most people don’t want to have their palates set on fire when they’re snacking, and that’s understandable. One rule I’ve adopted is that if the package simply says “spicy” and doesn’t list a specific pepper, I walk on by.
Also, by and large, most of the spicy cheese, like pepper jack, found at a chain grocery store is simply not going to get it done for my palate. It’s usually fine, great to put on a burger or to make a grilled cheese sandwich with, but it’s not for the serious heat-seeker. That said, my fiancee Cynthia last year found some sliced cheeses with specific peppers, such as Ghost and Carolina Reaper, at Meier. She picked up a couple of packages, and now they are my go-tos when making grilled cheese or quesadillas, or for topping a roast beef sandwich.
But something my friend Laura shared with me last summer changed everything. That something was Cabot Creamery’s Premium Selected Habanero Cheddar. Laura and I went to the movies one afternoon and she brought some cubes of the stuff in a plastic bag for me to try. I could barely even concentrate on the movie once I popped that first stinging, delectable bite into my mouth.
It may not look like much, but it’s got it where it counts.
Cabot Habanero Cheddar comes unsliced in a massive two-pound brick, and it’s dense enough to probably knock somebody out with. The slightly salty cheese itself is a dry white cheddar that somehow manages to offer a measure of soft creaminess on the palate. But it’s after you start chewing, and the peppers start washing over your taste buds, that’s when your eyes open wide.
It’s an unexpectedly big burst of habanero flavor and heat, a sensation I’ve never encountered in another habanero cheese product. Yet, the quality cheddar is still present and welcome, offering balance. That balance of all these flavors and sensations is quite remarkable — there is a citrusy brightness to it from the peppers that is difficult to describe. If you’ve ever eaten a fresh Habanero, you probably know what I’m describing.
Granted, the cheese is not nearly as hot as a fresh Habanero — it’s just that the flavor is so authentic, with just the right spicy kick to match the flavors.
Obviously, what I love is that it is designed for people who truly crave the flavor and heat. While so many pepper cheese products on the market fall short, this one exceeds expectations. I made a grilled cheese sandwich with it, and I will tell you it doesn’t melt particularly well in that setting. Fine on a spicy burger, I’d wager, but I prefer to just slice and snack.
And I eat it literally almost every day now. Maybe just four or five slices, but there’s a chance that when I’m winding down my day, I’m going to start craving it.
My fiancee is now my “dealer,” as she frequents Costco, where the two-pound bricks are sold (you can get a smaller portion on Amazon, although the packaging is a bit different, so it may not be exactly the same). I have gone through so many bricks since I first tried it, that Cynthia put TWO bricks in my Christmas stocking this past year. Best Christmas ever.
Next year, I hope she gives me three.