Martini Wensleydale? That’s crackers, Gromit!
IT’S enough to make Wallace and Gromit choke on their favourite brand of cheese – supermarket chain Aldi is offering Wensleydale infused with a range of cocktails.
The animated film stars are huge fans of the traditional North Yorkshire cheese, but experts say its milky, crumbly texture makes it ideal for blending with flavourings including espresso martini, pink gin and raspberry, and spiced rum and honey.
None of the Aldi cheeses actually contains alcohol. The German-owned budget supermarket describes its gin version as ‘a unique and perfectly crafted balance of natural sweetness, vibrance from raspberries and the irresistible hint of junipers’.
The rum version is ‘a celebratory combination of Jamaican rum and warming cinnamon and nutmeg spices’, while the espresso martini, pictured left, is a fusion ‘of unique flavours, combining this wonderful Wensleydale cheese with a rich coffee liqueur and vodka’.
It is thought Wensleydale was first produced in the 13th Century by monks using a recipe based on sheep’s milk. In the early 1990s, however, sales had fallen so low that production in the last dairy in Wensleydale itself was at risk.
But after featuring in two Wallace and Gromit hit films – A Grand Day Out and A Close Shave – it enjoyed a huge boost in popularity, with cheese connoisseur Wallace frequently mentioning Wensleydale as his favourite, and even flying to the Moon in the hope of finding it.
The Wensleydale Creamery, the only company entitled to market its cheese as Yorkshire Wensleydale, produces a Wallace and Gromit traditional truckle – shaped like a barrel.
A company spokeswoman confirmed that it has supplied Aldi with ‘cocktail cheeses’. She said ‘We’re big fans of mixing rum, gin and vodka with our cheese. As much as we’re proud of our rich heritage and timehonoured recipes, we also understand that we cannot rest on our laurels so we champion innovation and exciting products whenever we can.
‘Year on year we launch limited-edition flavours that follow food trends, although we’re not sure what Wallace would have to say about this.’