Thursday 22 September 2016

KIWIANA AT RISK

A favourite cheese of mine when I was young was Chesdale.



"We are the boys from down on the farm, we really know our cheese. There's much better value in Chesdale, It never fails to please. Chesdale slices thinly, never crumbles, there's no waste, and boy it's got a mighty taste. Chesdale cheese. It's finest cheddar. Made better."







Now I know that Chesdale was never a 'proper' cheese - more like a kind of cheese spread but I liked it. The soft rubber texture was interesting and the gooey way it melted in a toasted sandwich with vegemite or marmite was perfect.

Initially packaged as a small log wrapped in tinfoil that was almost impossible to completely remove, it was later packaged as segments in a circular pack.



These segments were a standard in kids lunches and were a great and unpretentious snack before the fancy schmancy snacks, canapés and treats turned up in supermarkets.

Supermarkets however have led to the demise of this Kiwi icon.
Initially Chesdale couldn't be found amongst the other cheeses where common sense would dictate it should be. Chesdale was to be found in the other grocery aisles sometimes among the baking needs and at other times amongst the spreads. Very confusing.

Some years ago the segments disappeared to be replaced by a crappy substitute named Kraft which I guess was the name of the new Australian owner. This substitution didn't taste as good and the segments were smaller - too small in fact so I gave up buying them.
The log version was still available for a while but now, to my disgust I discover that neither form can be found in my local supermarkets.

In Countdown yesterday I had a craving for potato chips and cheese segments (yes the sophisticated North) and would have even settled for that godawful Kraft but they didn't stock that either.
The only 'cheeses' segments they stocked was the French La Vache qui Rit.



I bought a pack along with some potato chips and tried last night before dinner with a glass of chardonnay.
They are crap. Small segments and too soft - too much like a spread. Pah!
I bet Richard won't like them either. He's afraid of cows.

3 comments:

Robert and the Catholics said...

Please read my post if you want intelligence.

Tracey said...

Yum! It was finest cheddar, made better! Loved the triangles. It also came in a small block. Always kept in the fridge, but apparently no need - the processing of processed cheese was so extreme it had an extensive shelf life at room temperature. Stocking it in the chiller apparently gave the consumer more confidence it the product. It was the only cheese I had ever tasted for much of my childhood. Then there was a big advertising campaign around 'buy a bigger block' and kiwis really got into cheese in a big way, with an explosion of varieties promoted.Then I think processed cheese slices ran the triangles out of town.

Richard (of RBB) said...

Okay The Curmudgeon, time you moved on to adult cheese and please read Robert's post if you want intelligence. Though I could be wrong - to steal a famous blogging phrase.